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Consumerism In The 1920s

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The 1920s were marked by an increase in consumerism due to a booming economy post-World War I (CrashCourse, 2013), the increasing popularity of consumer debt (CrashCourse, 2013) and an increase in the mass production of consumer goods (Osburn, n.d.). Coupled with technological advances, families now had access to mass media (in the form of the radio and television) and modern conveniences, such as household appliances and automobiles. Radio and television broadcasts helped to build a mass culture, where consumers were watching, listening, purchasing and emulating the same things across the nation (Osburn, n.d.). Women’s suffrage granted women the right to vote; some women took this new found voting freedom as license to break from traditional female roles in other areas and began dressing and …show more content…

Protests over the unfair treatment of different races, especially African Americans, and the rights of women were hallmarks of this era (Rosmanitz, n.d.) The election of John F. Kennedy spurred the creation of the War on Poverty, and Great Society programs of federal assistance to the poor (Tindall & Shi, n.d.). Like the 1920s, Americans enjoyed high levels of prosperity during the 1960s. This prosperity helped create a robust middle-class in which more families enjoyed the modern conveniences we take for granted today (Active USA Center , n.d.). However, this ideal lifestle could take a toll, especially on women who were required to be everything to everyone, often times leading to intense dissatisfaction (Active USA Center , n.d.). The 1960s saw more and more women entering the workforce (moreso than in the 1920s), changing the dynamic within families. With more working mothers, fathers were called upon to play a more integral role in the function of the household (Potter, n.d.). In 1960, birth control was legalized (Potter, n.d.), giving women even more control over their family structure and lifestyle they chose to

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The most crucial change that occurred in the 1920s was the passing of the 19th Amendment. The 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote. Continuing the chain reaction, women found more opportunities for employment. For example, advertisers exploited sexual allure to sell everything, which many “old-timers” regarded as a veritable errotic eruption. Although a women’s lifestyle took a giant leap forward, African Americans were still in the same spot.

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“Like all other women I thought that there couldn’t be much improvement in the same old task of washing dishes.” This quote by Christine Frederick in 1912 speaks so much truth about the way women lived before the 1920s. Many women had believed that they were sought out to stay at home and be the regular housewife that the American people portrayed them to be. None of them probably believed that they would soon get the privilege to vote, have a job, or to even dress a little less modestly. They would soon come to the realization that their way of life would be changed when the 1920s came rushing in.

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1 - Consumerism developed in America during the early twentieth century in large part due to the boom in industry created by Europe 's inability to create goods after World War I. Combined this with American inventions such as Henry Ford’s assembly line and Americans had money to spend (Schultz, 2013). With the advent of an electrical distribution system, Americans had electricity in their homes for the first time, which led to the desire for all types of electrical appliances to make life easier. All these new products meant that companies had to get the word out about their products which ignited the advertising industry, which led to even more consumerism. Mix into this recipe, the growing credit industry, and you had consumerism like

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This paper is mainly about the consumption behavior of America’s majority population during the 1920s, namely its white majority citizens of European ancestry. Of course, it’s necessary to acknowledge that the country’s minority African-Americans, Latinos, Asians and people of various other backgrounds developed their own versions of consumerism during the 1920s as well. As for the European-Americans, they were targeted as consumers by producers of consumer goods. Women were targeted mainly by companies that made cosmetics, beauty, and personal hygiene items (many in number); clothes; kitchen appliances (a huge category of items, most of them being electrical); furniture; electric vacuum cleaners, home cleaning materials (also large in number),

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During the Roaring Twenties, consumerism began to rise as people became more comfortable with spending and buying what they wanted, even if they didn’t need it. According to U.S. History, “New products made household chores easier and led to more leisure time. Products previously too expensive became affordable. New forms of financing allowed every family to spend beyond their current means” (U.S. History). Many middle class families were taking advantage of this and “replicating” first class lifestyles.

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The 1920s were the first years of the new, modern America, with a growing consumer society and new ideas and rules. America saw many changes throughout this decade, including but not limited to social, economic and political changes. Throughout this time, new values were made with the growth of new forms of entertainment and education. After the Progressive Era, the ideas of political figures changed with a new focus on conservative politics and less labor issues. With the new ability for people to buy other products than basic needs, their money went to new inventions, causing new industries to grow.

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As World War II came to an end, the United States entered the 50s. This decade became a major influential time that brought many cultural and societal changes. Categories such as the economy, where a boom in new products increased, the technology world which incorporated new medicines and computers, entertainment when the television became popular and the overall lifestyles that Americans adapted to. All of these topics reshaped and created several advancements throughout society during the 1950s.

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The 1920s carried much change in society. Some of these changes were more rights for women, jazz music, and prohibition. The people of the 1920s were disillusioned by society lacking in idealism and vision, sense of personal alienation, and Americans were obsessed with materialism and outmoded moral values (The Roaring Twenties).Cultural changes were strongly influenced by the destruction of World War I ending 1918. America needed to recover and with it youth rebelled against the norms of the older generations.

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There was advancement in household items and more products started to receive more recognition by advertisement. Moreover, there were many social developments during the 1920s of America. After the war, men and women wanted to establish new ways of life. They left old traditions from past generations behind and questioned the customs of their parents and grandparents. For women, a change in clothing

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A truly unique American mass culture saw its creation in the 1920’s where radio shows and movies could be shared all over the country and more Americans were living in cities than ever before. The creation of mass culture in America could be seen as a side effect of all of these new technologies and societal differences that took place in the 20s. Time space compression also had a large effect on mass culture as well. In the 20s because of the creation of new technologies. people could now communicate throughout the country and develop their own similar culture.

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Women were being treated like slaves and were actually miserable. They wanted to have their own time and show their true feelings, but they couldn’t because they always had to be happy when their husband came home from work. In the 1960’s women started to stand up for themselves and fight back about gender discrimination and more. Women wanted equal pay for work, an end to domestic violence, sexual harassment, and a share in duties around the household.

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The life of an average married woman in the 1950s was very different from that of today’s woman. This was the age of conformity. Very few women worked after getting married; they stayed at home to raise the children and keep house. Men were the suppliers of their families. They had no thought for the unfeminine problems of the world outside the home; they wanted the men to make the major decisions Many women during the fifties may feel that they were happy being mothers and that they were equal to men, just different.

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In the 1920s, mass-production and mass-consumption were the mainstream in the American society. The “mass” culture made consumer goods, and ordinary people could easily enjoy movies, radios, music and sports (634). Politics changed from Progressivism demanding government intervention to supporting individual success in private business (623). Henry Ford founded the Ford Motor Company, and adapted the concept of mass-production to his automobile business. The mass-production of the automobile brought a big change in America.

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The Roaring Twenties was recognized as a Golden Age for its’ mass culture that shaped the new beliefs of those across the United States during the 1920s. This period was known for its’ thriving economy and political changes. New forms of leisure appeared because everyone had a fair amount of spare cash caused by the consumer society developing. Radios were bought, cinemas were opened, newspapers and magazines were sold; all sorts of mass media were methods of communication that emerged during this glorious era. They were not only tools of amusement, but also had the effect of spreading popular culture.

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This all started to change with the suffrage movement in that women started to enter the professional workforce, obtain higher levels of education, and became more involved in political life resulting in a shift of gender roles as women were entering long held male domains (McCammon et al., 2001, p. 53). Haferkamp and Smelser (1992) discuss further changes regarding social equality and how in the 1970’s the social movements of the 1960’s shifted towards women’s rights. This is when women focused on equal opportunities both in private and public capacities (Haferkamp & Smelser, 1992, p.

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