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Roaring Twenties Analysis

1056 Words5 Pages

Nicholas Waldron

The Changes and Motives of the Roaring Twenties

HIST 151-005
History Since 1876

“I pledge on my honor that I have not received or given any unauthorized assistance on this writing assignment.” The 1920s were an age of dramatic social and political change. For the first time, more Americans lived in cities than on farms. The nation’s total wealth more than doubled between 1920 and 1929, and this economic growth swept many Americans into an affluent but unfamiliar “consumer society.” People from coast to coast bought the same goods (thanks to nationwide advertising and the spread of chain stores), listened to the same music, did the same dances and even used the same slang! Many …show more content…

“Not the romantic violin but the barbaric saxophone now dominated the orchestra, and to its passionate crooning and wailing the fox-trotters moved in what the editor of the Hobart College Herald disgustedly called a syncopated embrace” (Allen, p.70). This new sound and movement caused a more sexual dancing style. “No longer did even an inch of space separate them; they danced as if glued together, body to body, cheek to cheek” (Allen, p.68). The Catholic Telegraph of Cincinnati was in an uproar at this sexual dancing style, calling it “absolutely indecent” for a female to be half dressed and dancing in such a crude way in public (Allen, p.68). Fredrick Allen also focused on the major conflict of how the younger generation acted out during the roaring twenties. The younger generation became a topic of concern “from coast to coast” (Allen, p.70). Before the 1920s companies across the nation believed that it would be “suicidal to portray a woman smoking” in an advertisement. But soon enough women began to smoke and billboards went up portraying a women smoking a cigarette (Allen, p.82). Women began to drink and smoke in public and before the 1920s if a women was seen in public doing these things she would be considered loose and undesirable. Women before the 1920s were forbidden to kiss a man in public, but during the 1920s women participated in “petty parties” and “necking” (Allen, p.69). Young men and women at this time were free and wild breaking all kinds of past society roles. What caused all this wild and loose acts amongst the younger

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During the Roaring Twenties many people had, as William H. Leuchtenberg said, ‘“get-rich-quick”’, [Doc 2]. And man people did get rich quick. Everybody wanted a piece o the pie that was economic prosperity, but that pie has to run out eventually. With this idea in the heads of millions of Americans extreme overexpansion of many aspects of society led to the “adversity soon demonstrated,” [Doc 1]. John D. Hicks cites just some of the factors that “account for the plunge from prosperity to adversity”.

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Traditional values were questioned by modern beliefs, with African Americans gaining confidence throughout the Harlem Renaissance, in addition to women finding new ground in American culture, marking their image forever, embracing their new form: flappers. Throughout the 1920’s events such as the Great Migration, with new roles of women shook the American region, as the conflict of tradition, versus modernization, began. To begin,

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The Roaring 20s brought a lot of daily excitement and change as United States saw new developments in industry. The stock market was high and all seemed well. America was changing drastically in a good way but little did they know one event would change millions of lives for the worse. While everything seemed amazing to the unknowing eye, the change in economy, government, and social life had a lot of bad moments.

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The 1920’s in America is often considered as “The Roaring Twenties. World War I was over, women got suffrage, fashion changed immensely, prohibition was put into place, and jazz filled the air. The Roaring ‘20s was a decade of play and prosperity. Unemployment was low and Americans were better off financially. After World War I, America wanted to return to normal.

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Emma Lynch Mr. Holland APUSH January 27, 2017 Roaring 20s DBQ The 1920s appeared to be a period of turning inward for Americans, as they had been disillusioned and damaged by World War I. President Warren G. Harding had coined the term ‘a return to normalcy’, which was a nostalgic vision of American society with traditional values and roles, and was widely accepted and eagerly embraced by the population. It was during this time that America experienced “The Roaring Twenties”, an outstanding period of prosperity. There was also a significant shift from an agrarian society to an industrial society, which as a result, caused tremendous tension between traditionalists and modernists.

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Feel the smooth jazz notes go through your body and straight into your feet, and before you know it you’re dancing in a dimly lit speakeasy while the colorful band plays a lively tune. Your date, a flapper, is smoking and drinking right next to you, along with important political leaders of your city. The room is full of promise, and devoid of concern, alcohol is illegal to everybody, yet everybody is drinking. Your back out onto the dance floor, and dancing the night away spending your time doing something perfectly illegal. That is what a normal weekend night consisted of for most adults during the era called The Jazz Age, more commonly referred to as the Roaring Twenties.

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The United States has undergone many innovations and events during the 20th century. The U.S. became a growing economic powerhouse has technology and innovation enhanced and resulted in improvements to everyday life due to the changes made after World War I and by Franklin Roosevelt during his presidency. After this postwar era, the U.S. entered one of its most productive decades in history. Known as the “Roaring Twenties,” change in social, economic, political, and cultural aspects gave the U.S. a time of prosperity. However, this prosperity would only last for a little as the Stock Market Crash of 1929 would bring hardships back to the people.

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Did the 1920’s actually “roar” The image of the Roaring Twenties as a time of wild parties, economic growth, and cultural revolution has been popularized through media and pop culture. However, the reality for many Americans during this time was one of significant challenges and inequality. Despite the common notion that the 1920s were a time of prosperity and progress, this decade did not truly roar due to economic inequality, social tension, and systematic racism One of the main reasons why the 1920s did not roar was due to economic inequality. While the decade saw significant economic growth and innovation, the wealth was not distributed equally.

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Sofia Monaco Dr. Rich Denning US History 16 May 2024 The Roaring Twenties The Roaring Twenties was the time frame between 1920-1929. This was such a time to be alive in the United States, the decade was commonly known as the “Roaring Twenties” but also as the Jazz Age, the ballyhoo years and the age of excess. The United States was recovering from World War I and going through a time period of rebuilding throughout America. The people and communities were experiencing a lot of changes.

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The Wall Street Crash and the Great Depression of 1930 ensured that the hedonism and excess of flappers were abruptly and instantly snuffed out (Flappers and the Roaring 20s). It was also a time of new inventions. The most significant was the automobile. The automobile in particular revolutionized the way that American youth socialized, bestowing youth both “mobility and privacy” (How the Youth Culture of the 1920s Reinvigorated America). Youth were able to get out of the house away from the older generation.

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Society at the time was highly ostentatious, with desires that were extremely materialistic. Materialism is still a highly prevalent facet of society today; a person’s worth is often judged by the size of their house, or the size of their car. Furthermore, the sin and decadence that accompanied the new generation was seen as a worrisome problem for the previous generation at the time, and that same criticism be seen in current society as well. The previous generation criticizes the new generation’s immorality and transitioning lifestyle. However, with the unfavorable economy today, parties are not thrown with the same pompousness as they were in the 1920s; that era was special for its enormous boost in the economy which was reflected in societal life.

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Despite this, women were able to make a huge impact on America through social reforms. Many young women went against the beliefs of their parents. Prior to the Roaring Twenties, America was in a Victorian era. Women wore dresses that were floor-length, their hair was long and premarital sex was almost non-existent. During the 1920’s however, some women became what are known as “flappers”.

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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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The Roaring Twenties were full of dramatic, social, political, and economic changes ("The Roaring Twenties,1). Post World War I, the era marked the beginning of modern times with new and worthy developments. More and more people were abetted to live in the cities, most people had jobs, therefore money to spend, and they spend it by “having a good time” (McNeese,88). While the society got rid of their miseries; sciences, arts, and businesses renewed themselves by evolving. This research paper briefly gives examples from advances in technology, transportation, and entertainment while discussing their benefits to the United States.

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