What were the main effects of the Marshall Plan?

There were two important and interconnected main effects
of the Marshall Plan.  First, the Marshall Plan helped the economies of Western Europe
recover from the war.  Second, the plan helped cement the friendship between the US and
those countries and helped to keep the European countries from moving closer to the
Soviet Union.

After the war, the economies of Europe were
devastated.  The US feared that extreme poverty in these countries would push them
towards communism.  Therefore, the US created the Marshall Plan in order to kill two
birds with one stone, so to speak.  The Marshall Plan simultaneously helped the
countries of Western Europe to recover from the war and made them more likely to ally
with the US against the Soviety Union out of gratitude for the
aid.