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The White Reception Of Jazz In The 1920's

937 Words4 Pages

The 1920s were a time of rapid social and cultural change in America, and jazz music played a significant role in shaping this transformation. The emergence of jazz in the 1910s and 1920s coincided with the Great Migration, which saw millions of African Americans moving from the rural South to the urban North in search of better opportunities and freedom from racism. Jazz music provided a powerful expression of African American culture and identity, and it quickly became a sensation among both black and white audiences. However, the reception of jazz among white Americans was complex, as it challenged many of the prevailing racial attitudes of the time. Jazz in the 1920s affected America's perception of race for the better, and music today, …show more content…

Anderson notes that many white music critics dismissed jazz as "primitive" and "barbaric," and some even thought the rise of jazz was because of a decline in moral values among black Americans. Anderson writes, "Jazz was perceived by some white Americans as a threat to white culture, as a form of entertainment that was, in fact, more closely associated with African American culture than with white culture." This perception of jazz as a black form of music contributed to the racial tensions of the time and reinforced stereotypes about African Americans as uncivilized and …show more content…

Shindo's article "Jazz and the Cultural Transformation of America in the 1920s" delves deeper into the cultural impact of jazz music. Shindo argues that jazz was not only a form of entertainment but also a social and cultural force that helped to shape American identity in the 1920s. He writes, "Jazz was a symbol of America's new cultural identity, one that was defined by its diversity and its embrace of individual expression."(Shindo) Jazz music embodied the spirit of the "Roaring Twenties," a time of social and cultural experimentation and change. Jazz music challenged traditional notions of race and gender, and it provided a space for artists to experiment and push the boundaries of musical

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