During the 1920’s sometimes referred to as the "Jazz Age", America was taking its last final steps from the traditional period to new era of modernization. It was a time in which American popular culture reshaped itself in response to the urban, industrial, consumer- oriented society America was becoming (Brinkley 641). In this reshape two sides stood in defense of their beliefs, the traditionalist who wanted America to stay the same or go back to the way it was. Rebelling against the new customs and morals of the urban middle class, they sought to defend older values. However, the new modernist looked forward to change; embracing the future and its fore coming traditions and ethics. During these time a mass consumer culture submerged, a society in which people could buy items not just because of needs but for pleasure. Middle class families could afford to purchase new appliances like electric refrigerators, washing machines, electric irons and vacuum cleaners which had a dramatic impact on the lives of women. Men smoked cigarettes and women bought cosmetics and fashionable clothing (Brinkley 647). But above all was the automobile, affecting life in countless ways. The automobile was America’s way to venture out farther away from home. It allowed a chance for farmers to get off the farm and travel into the big cities, and for the city folk to get away from the daily pressures of city life. With easier travel people could drive from rural areas to the city to work. Automobiles permitted young adults to get out from under the eyes of their over-protecting parents. The automobile was often a means of a different kind of escape. It allowed them to move easily away from parents and family and to develop social lives of their own (B... ... middle of paper ... ... a northern state when they are in the south and living conditions are bad. They felt that if they are given the opportunity, they would have not messed it up and would have worked the hardest. They had they specific profession but they were wiling to take whatever they could. The second was a thank you letter from a person whom received a job in Philadelphia, telling all their progress and how the job is going and that all was well. Document 2 what we want in American declared warren Harding in 1920 is less government in business and more business in government. Puritan explains why business will lead to the salvation of America. What is the finest game business the soundest science business the trust art business the fullest education? Business the fairest opportunity business the cleanest philanthropy business the sanest religion is business (Breen Document 2).
Also known as the Jazz Age and the Roaring Twenties, the American people felt that they deserved to have some fun in order to forget the emotional toll and social scars left from the war. The Jazz Age was appropriately named due to the illegal activities and good times, which included music, parties, and flapper girls. Jazz was a new style of music that originated out of the New Orleans area, where one of the greatest jazz musicians of all time – Louis Armstrong – began his career. The energy of jazz was a very new and almost uncomfortable style for the very traditional, rigid family of the 1920s. Young people in particular seemed to enjoy this new music the most, as it made them feel carefree. The energy of jazz was symbolic of the era’s trans...
In Daily Life in the United States, 1920-1939: Decades of Promise and Pain, author David E. Kyvig, creates historical account of the Great Depression, and the events leading up to it. Kyvig’s goal in writing this book was to show how Americans had to change their daily life in order to cope with the changing times. Kyvig utilizes historical evidence and inferences from these events and developments to strengthen his point. The book is organized chronologically, recounting events and their effects on American culture. Each chapter of the book tackles a various point in American history between 1920 and1939 and events are used to comment on American life at the time. While Kyvig does not exactly have a “thesis” per se, his main point is to examine American life under a microscope, seeing how people either reacted, or were forced to react due to a wide range of specific events or developments in history, be it Prohibition, the KKK, or women’s suffrage.
In contrast to this small town were the advancing views of America. The twenties continued to roar towards modernism. “Breakthroughs in technology, the increase in material wealth, and the beginning of an empire seemingly heralded the upward march of civilization, with America on the forefront” (Dumenil 6). In all directions, it was clear that America was moving forward. Transportation was a prime example of this advancement. Innovator Henry Ford introduced his “ Ford Miracle” to the public (Dumenil 6). Economies and the social values also began to advance. “Dubious get-rich-quick schemes and fads…contributed to a tone of feverish frivolity” (Dumenil 7). People began to lead fast paced lives with the desire to become rich, quickly.
As a nation coming out of a devastating war, America faced many changes in the 1920s. It was a decade of growth and improvements. It was also a decade of great economic and political confidence. However, with all the changes comes opposition. Social and cultural fears still caused dichotomous rifts in American society.
Republicans dominated the 1920's political scene. During this time period, many changes occurred in the United States. Both culturally and economically. This period is known as the roaring twenties.
Automobiles have been apart of not only American, but worldwide life for more than 100 years. The 1920’s was a period in which the use and production of them became very prevalent and mass produced like no other time before. Automobiles began to be make life easier, and increasingly more productive in just about every way. The Great Gatsby is a book in which automobiles were owned by almost every character; without the automobiles characters such as Gatsby, Tom, Daisy, and even Nick would not be able to get to the city in which they called “West and East Egg” from their suburban mansions on the outskirts of town. Intriguingly, the way their cars looked differed greatly from others of the time that showed their power,
The 1920’s were an age of dramatic changes. More and more people were moving into the cities, leaving the rural way of living behind. People were beginning to value independence, and fend for themselves. American society began to adopt the new desire to become rich and famous; and modernists were doing anything they could to achieve their dream of becoming very wealthy. Traditionalists were doing anything they could to preserve the old ways of American society without any of this new technology or city life. The traditionalists believed that it was best to keep things the way they were, while modernists felt it was important to try a new way of doing things. Traditionalist in the 1920’s
The 1920s was a time of conservatism and it was a time of great social change. From the world of fashion to the world of politics, forces clashed to produce the most explosive decade of the century. It was the age of prohibition, it was the age of prosperity, and it was the age of downfall.
A brief summary of the changes from the 1920’s is provided in this source. The article discusses the birth of mass culture and how an economy of automobiles is born. The site also discusses social and political changes along with the economic growth seen during this era.
...ime period in American history. The country had bounced all the way to its feet and was going stronger than it had in two decades. Men were coming home from war, eager to start families and be good American consumers. One could go on with a peaceful conscience knowing that the automobile that he just purchased was bought in good faith: it would help support the economy, create jobs, and contribute to better opportunities for Americans. Or so one believed. Living in the suburbs suddenly became an attraction that appealed to returning veterans. Neighborhoods near schools and churches were ideal places to raise kids, and start a family. The middle-class family was evolving at a speedy pace that was taking families away from large cities at an even quicker pace. To own your own home, have your own car, and raise your family in the suburbs was the “all American” dream.
The 1920's was a time of change in the United States. “The Roaring Twenties” had an outstanding impact on the economy, social standards and everyday life. It was a time for positive results in the industry of consumer goods and American families, because of higher wages, shorter working hours, and manufacturing was up 60% in consumer goods. But it was also a time of adversity and opposition for others, such as immigrants and farmers. Immigrants had lots of competition when they were looking for work and they weren't treated fairly by Americans, depending on where they came from and what they believed. Farmers were paid very little because the price of food kept going down, they also had the Dust Bowl to worry about. African Americans became further infused with mainstream America during the Harlem Renaissance. They were also able to organize and elect officials who would make life better for them. The Roaring Twenties was a very exciting time to live in and we can all learn what the real world is like, and how we can prepare to be ready for it, today and in the future.
Nothing would be the same today if society hadn’t experienced its most unprecedented transformation that transpired during the 1920’s. This famous decade later on came to be known as the roaring twenties. It got its name as a result of the epidemic that changed the country from a nation of conservancy into a nation of diversification. One of the reasons for this epidemic came through the use of fashion. This alteration occurred essentially in large cities towards the western side of the country, like New York. It wasn’t until further on that the southern areas merged into the new customs as well. With a drastically diverse innovation in fashion to express power, wealth, and self-determination going on, the 1920’s became the era of change for society’s view on lifestyle.
Carlisle, Rodney P. Handbook To Life In America. Volume VI, The Roaring Twenties, 1920 To 1929. Facts on File, 2009. eBook Collection (EBSCOhost). Web. 30 May 2012
As the decade’s fashion and architecture of the day portrayed conformity, the American car represented the country's optimism and enthusiasm in a decade of hopefulness. Car manufacturers looked at conformity as a foreign concept and did everything in their power to excite buyers and bring crowds to their showrooms. The 1950’s American automobile culture has had a long lasting influence on the people of the United States. The American car manufacturing switched from producing war weapons to consumer goods at the end of World War II, and by the end of the 1950’s, one out of every six working Americans were employed by the automotive industry. The United States became the world's largest manufacturer of automobiles, and Henry Ford's goal that any man with a good job should be able to afford an automobile, was achieved. In result, a new generation of service businesses focusing on customers with their automobiles, like drive-through restaurants and movies, were created. Another contemporary entity that was established from the result of the booming automobile industry was the expansion of the National Highway System with Interstate highways. The wider, multi-lane highways allowed traffic to move at faster speeds with few or no stoplights. The automobile industry not only positively influenced people’s perspectives on travel and appealing machinery, it predisposed many other innovations and necessities that we still use in modern
When people think of the 1920s they think of the great depression. What people don’t know is that twenties were much more than the depression. The 1920s were one of Americas most prosperous eras. This era brought peace, new technology, inventions, new dances, flappers, entertainment, prohibition and much more. The twenties have been described in many ways including the Roaring Twenties, the Jazz age and the era of wonderful nonsense. The name that best illustrates this time period is the era of wonderful nonsense because the crazy fads.