The years following World War One brought several changes to America. In fact, what we now consider as "normal and modern America" began around 1920. This decade saw the rise of the automobile, radio usage, consumer credit (and debt) and popular entertainment. We also experienced continued growth in labor unrest, racial violence and anti-immigrant policies.
This website has a myriad of resources on the various aspects of this fascinating decade. For the comments section, choose any four of the categories on the left-hand side of the page. Summarize what you learned from each category with fifty words (for a total of 200).
Art- Art Deco was in decorative arts that also in architecture. The name came from the World's fair that was held in Paris in 1925, which showed off French luxury goods. Art Deco was a major style in Europe from the early 1920s, though it did not spread to the U.S. until about 1928. Basically think of the cover of the great gatsby movie. (63)
ReplyDeleteDance- Dances like the Tango and Charleston received exploded in popularity when it was shown in movies by stars. People were finally freed from the tight corsets and the large puffed sleeves and long skirts that characterized how women dressed during a new generation. Young people introduced their own fashion styles and so the "flapper" and "sheik" came into play. Women had short bobbed hairstyles; they wore close fitting hats and short skirts they were Called flappers. and young men with ukeleles, racoon coats and bell-bottom trousers were called "sheiks". (90)
Fashion- The dresses were lighter (because of the lack of material and new synthetic fabrics). Fashion designers used different fabric colors, textures and patterns to create a totally new style. Evening dresses, coats and jackets were often trimmed with fur. Hemlines rose for most of the decade but dropped slightly toward the end of the era. Many women turned to fashion as a way to support their families in the case of war widows, or to earn extra money to spend on the things they wanted. (86)
Jewelry- Costume jewelry was a craze in the early 1920's when the new fashions for women were casual as well as sporty, and were not appropriate for precious stones. Jewelry materials ranged from plastics to rubies, gold, etc. Platinum was the new luxury metal used with stones like coral, jade, aquamarine, citrin, onyx and opal. Trend-setting designers were Coco Chanel and Etc. Flappers were draped many strings of beads. People liked to wear jewelry as decoration especially in the upper class. (81)
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Automobiles-the car enables people to travel much further afield than foot or horse permitted. Sunday drives to country areas and touring vacations and became popular, but motorists had to plan carefully as there were often long distances between petrol stations and breakdowns were fairly common.
ReplyDeleteAirplanes- were initially built predominantly of lightweight materials like wood and canvas but continual developments in the aviation industry over the first decade of powered flights lead to increasing use of metal parts and panels.In the 1920s the English Air Force auctioned off 10,000 surplus airplanes no 30,000 aircraft engines many had which seen service in the war.
Food-was plentiful and cheap thanks to the large quantities produced by the Americans farms. A lot of of time was taken on preparing and cooking meals. For the 1st time people could drink freshly squeezed orange juice and tomato juice year round due to improvements in refrigerated storage and transportation. The publics and eating habits changed as Americans ate fewer starches and ate more fruits and sugar.
Sports-sports which grew and flourished in the nineteen twenties due to the unprecedented public and private promotion. Sports that had up until the time been largely ameatur events caught the eyes of promoters who could see the opportunity to make money. Tennis and golf both had men and women participating in it.
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Army, Navy, Air Force- The major powers wanted to try and balance out all of there weaponry and stuff like that. To do so they signed treaties. Japan and Germany however did not really enjoy that idea. Huge ships that carried planes in the Sea used to be the big power but now is switching to planes.53
ReplyDeleteSports- Sports were becoming popular during the 1920s. the sports that were popular were golf, tennis, baseball, swimming, football, and boxing. Sports weren't that great until people realized the money that they could make and thats how the pro football league began as well as many other pro sports. 50
Food. Hard to believe but before the 1920s there were not any refrigerators. That revolutionized how we eat because before you could not save food or anything of that sort. It allowed us to eat heartier and healthier food. It took away little farms because they were bought out by the bigger ones with fridges. 54
Automobiles- When cars came out there obviously weren't any roads besides the roads that were used for horses which made those roads became jam packed. Later on to pay for roads the government figured out a way to do so, they put a tax on gas. All states had a gas tax by the end of 1929. 56
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Food- The American diet in this century consisted of large quantities of meat and potatoes. A lot of time and effort was put into making meals each week and cleaning up. Around 44 hours were spent doing this. As time went on, fruit, vegetables, and milk because more important and were later a part of each meal.
ReplyDeleteMovies- In the 1920's, movie stars were actually stars. This meant that they had huge salaries and were known around the world. Silent movies were popular during this time. Most silent movies were often accompanies by a piano or organ music. It took around 7 years for there to finally be sound with movies.
Music- The radio was very popular in the 1920's. New media gave musicians the opportunity to get their names out in the world to be noticed by their talents. Many of these musicians would go on to become famous for their music and be known by tons of people. Jazz music was also something popular during this time. This type of music was considered the devil's music by the American public.
Sport- Publicity was the main reason for sports becoming so popular. Newspapers, magazines, radios and movies were the key factors. Although, as people began listening and watching about sports, these types of people became less engaged in sports, which resulted in "couch-potato" syndrome. Just watching Babe Ruth play baseball became so much more intriguing than actually playing.
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In the 20's the church took a strong interest in issues like the family, marriage and divorce, prohibition of alcohol, employer-employee relationships, crime and other social issues but would not take part in politics due to the separation of the church and state. Also when the automobile made transportation easier many small churches shut down and members went to much larger churches.71
ReplyDeleteMany in the U.S. wanted "the return of normalcy" so they tried to agree on a reduction in weapons.politicians and military chiefs tried to position their armed forces to best advantage, which would mean the lack of production of the arms could lead to problems in the future.48
Roads that had been designed for horse transport began to deteriorate due to the increased load of traffic. In 1906 local governments supplied 96 per cent of the road funding. The funding problem for building and maintaining roads suitable for motor cars was largely solved by a tax on gas.50
The 1920's was a transition period for Sports, that had up until that time been amateur events caught the eye of promoters who could see an opportunity to capitalize and make money by sponsoring those sports.The maedia ensured large crowds and guaranteed the financial success of the sports allowing new stadiums to be built and providing large for the sports stars 63
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The first section I chose to read about was the fashion of the ladies in the 1920's. Hats, shoes, stockings, handbags, dresses and jewelry all came together around the same time in harmony. The 1920's dresses were lighter and as short as they have ever been.
ReplyDeleteThe next section I chose to read about was the food section. The introduction of refrigerators started during this time. The publics eating habits changed as Amerucans are fewer and fewer starches. They started eating more fruits and sugars. The war brought about new methods of processing food. Like canned foods and frozen foods. Gas stoves were also starting around this time.the next section I chose to read about was the music section. The Jazz music had really stared to become a rally big thing in this time. Jazz had spread to dance halls and other venues. The next section I chose to read bat was the hair styles. The hair styles of this time were mostly short hair and wave. The bob hair style was also rally popular during this time.
Dance- Dancing in the 1920's was becoming socially acceptable and grew in popularity as well as complexity. Dance was being taught in schools, offered in classes, and influenced music and parties all over the United States. Women also began to face criticism when flappers popularized the shimmy. The Lindy Hop was the first dance that included swinging your partner in the air.
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Health- Vaccines and breakthroughs in medicine were huge in the 20's. Improvements in insulin for diabetics helped their treatment. Public places like hotels and stores installed hand dryers to reduce waste and help hygiene. Also, Vitamins A, K, B, and C were all discovered in the 20's. A tuberculosis vaccine was also improved by some French researchers. (50)
Prohibition- Carry Nation lead the prohibition movement a while before it became an official law. She believed that she was called by God to promote temperance. She destroyed bars and saloons, and was a leader for women like her in groups like the Women's Christian Temperence Movement. Prohibition also made alcohol poisoning more prevalent because of bootleg alcohol being obtained. (59)
Society- Household items like refrigerators, radios, and furniture were readily available and able for purchase thanks to credit. Frozen foods reduced meal prep time, and larger department stores shut out smaller local stores. Children started to become an economical boundary for families, as the number of children per household declined. Working hours were decreased while pay was increased. (57)
Health- We obviously didn't know everything about medicine and health like we do today and possibly how we will know in the future. Science research in the 20's led to studies on vitamins and knowledge of hormones in the human body. New drugs and vaccines were also released which was a major accomplishment. Herbert McLean Evans studied and discovered the effects of vitamin E. Meanwhile Elmer V. McCollum discovered Vitamin D, its presence in cod liver, and its ability to prevent rickets, a skeletal disorder. During the early twenties , factories, hotels, clubs and department stores started to impliment powered hot air hand dryers which helped the spread of germs. (109)
ReplyDeleteMovies- In the twenties the majority and most popular types of movies were the silent ones, but there was a breakthrough in technology to allow synchronized sound to take the place of this old method. The movie stars back then were just as popular as the ones today, making a huge sum of money for their salary. The movies before sound would often have piano music playing with film running. The first type of movie theatres were called Nickelodeons. This type of entertainment was new and all started the movement of this upcoming era, further advancing and developing this technology brings us to 3D movies that we have in the modern day. (111)
Military Forces- Even though people were against more war in the 20's after seeing the shocking outcomes and the negative shadow that was over the US after WW1, people though we weren't going to have anymore wars. Disarmament was a very large issue, delegates from all the main branches of the war met to try and agree on a reduction in weapons. World War 1 delved into the use of planes and air power, this changed the outlook on a nations navy being the strongest branch of its military. The aircraft carrier was developed and made use of naval planes, due to the cost of fuel and planes couldn't obviously fly across seas in the amount of time needed for combat. (119)
-Matthew Mettendorf
Army/Navy/Air Force- The major powers of the world wanted to start balancing out the power of military among the nations. Many treaties were being signed as sides tried to make peace however nations like Germany and Japan wanted to continue to grow. Also with times advancing, aircraft carriers began to be the new major sea power versus the traditional big gun warships. (60 words)
ReplyDeleteBusiness- Business literally "was boomin" at this time period as the economy began to grow drastically. New inivations began in factory work speeding up production. Many new products like the radio and automobile became available for all and people around the world were buying off of credit instead of savings. America became the richest nation as well thanks to this. (55 words)
Science- This was perhaps the major category of growth in the world as many new inventions came out. The radio was invented as was the telephone companies so the world began to become connected. Air travel became possible allowing people to travel from place to place in hours versus what used to take months. (53 words)
Automobiles- Automobiles was a major category that helped propel the US economy greatly. Thanks to Mr. Ford, the automobile became available for everyone which increased sales cross the nation. People could travel cross country in days now and delivery and transport became super easy with this new innovation. It helped also clean the streets as well since horses were no longer needed. (58 words)
Architecture- The skyscrapers first were known in New York City. Engineers in 1920s suggested that a building could only reach 2000 feet high. The Empire State Building which is the tallest was started in 1930 and finished 18 months later to take place of Chrysler building. It remained tallest for many years until the World Trade Center was built.
ReplyDeleteFood-The war brought about new methods of food processing as manufacturers streamlined production methods of canned and frozen foods. foods had a bad reputation initially as the lead solder used in construction leached into the food causing health problems. Once new safer cans were introduced then foods increased in popularity.
Jewelry- machines eventually took over from hand maid because of the cuts that were needed and that it could make were simply better and easier. Flappers were often dropped with many pieces to show off the low cut neck shirt so people could see the nice jewelry they had. This was mainly just decoration for a girls body.
Music- jazz was spreading to dance halls and many other venues. It was the most popular form of music alongside of blues which is pretty much the same. It became famous for people that were on the radio to use up time they would sing and this is how people find out about it and because so spread throughout. (226)
Architecture - there was a big push by politicians in the twenties to change architecture they started making bungalows which were small houses and they made it to where there was something call a breakfast nook in it which replaced the dining room and the dining table to make more room for a house. (53 words)
ReplyDeleteFood - in the twenties the average person's diet contained of meat and potatoes my most favorite foods other than pasta. But they were in plenty due to all the farmers and there was plenty of food to make its way around to everyone that needed it and there was some left over. (53 words)
Jewelry - costume jewelry was popular at the time like beads and pearls. The wore them like around their wrist and necks and various colors. They wore different kinds of jewelry like necklaces and bracelets and earrings. Along with the traditional kinds of jewelry. This made jewelry cheaper for the average buyer because most of it wasn't real it was all fake cheap stuff. (63 words)
Science - most of the things that we take for granted today are expensive things back then like toaster refrigerators and other things like that they were not every day things. These inventions made life easier for most people because they helped keep things cold and helped keep things warm.(67 words)
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