The Modern Youth Culture Of The 21st Century

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With the times socially and politically changing, young people saw rules and laws as things to evade and work their ways around them. When the 18th amendment banned the distribution, but not the drinking, of alcohol, older teens stored up drinks in their homes that would be able to last them for years. This outrageous and cunning new way of thinking spread across the country in one of the quickest social developments the United States has ever seen and left older generations speechless. Never before had anyone seen such bold and defiant attitudes in anyone, let alone the youth. These distinguishing characteristics separated this generation as a whole and inspired others to come, laying the foundation for modern thinkers. Many ideas of the modern youth culture stems from the new inventions, feminism, innovative ways of thinking, and pre-war opinions of the 1920’s. …show more content…

The advancement of Henry Ford’s model T automobile was changing all aspects of society as it became more affordable. Teens began using them to spend more time with one another and go out of town or to places that would soon become social hang outs. Historians say this is the origin of the transitions that “shattered tradition” (“The Invention of the Teenager”). When surveyed, 47.6% of girls and 45.4% of boys cited the hour they got home or the number of times they went out as the main source of disagreements with their families (“Modern Youth in the 1920’s: Collected Commentary”). This was because cars had made old fashioned courting obsolete and dating became a common practice. Also, buses made it possible to expand school zones, turning one-roomed school houses into larger buildings, offering teens to meet more people in their age groups, instigate peer pressure, and discuss unpopular

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