Essay about Only Yesterday by Frederick Lewis Allen

"The Roaring Twenties”, "The Era of Wonderful Nonsense", "The Decade of the Dollar" , "The Period of the Psyche", "Dry Decade" and the age of "Alcohol and Al Capone”, these slogans are all ways to describe the 1920’s in just a few words. (The 1920s: Lifestyles and Social Trends: Overview) The 1920’s were a decade of parties, money, and extravagant lifestyles. The decade portrayed the American Dream of women, money, alcohol, music, and partying. In the twenties dresses were shorter, alcohol was illegal, and parties were a given. New fashion trends and music, infamous and dignified names, and unforgettable scandals are what remain of the extravagant post WWI decade. If you were alive

The era of the Roaring Twenties, was a time of great societal change. Many of these changes were greatly influenced by jazz music. During this time, the country was coming out of World War I and the attitude of most people was dark and dismal. Dance and music clubs became tremendously popular in an effort to improve the quality of life for many people.

“The United States economy prospered during the war, factories became very efficient. They made weapons and turned out supplies for the war. After the fighting ended, the same factories began making peace time products.” (Corrigan 6) Before the war, many jobs were confined to either farms or handyman jobs. With the demand of wartime products such as guns, ammunition, and uniforms, factories provided americans with millions of jobs. Young, old, skilled, and unskilled, were working long hours in these factories; and they were working for little or no pay. As well as these factories providing jobs for Americans, they also provided jobs to the millions of immigrants, who also worked for little to no pay. Also due to the improvement of technology, came the invention of the assembly line which brought mass production and jobs. Washing machines, microwaves, radios, and automobiles were some of many of the new modern conveniences. “The rich became much richer during this decade, but many poor people did not benefit at all from the country's growth.” (Corrigan 6) The social classes stayed the same, this was a result of the new “American Dream”. The wealthy began to be driven by wealth and money. The two upper classes split into two: ones with new money, and those with old. Those with old money usually inherited it in the form of land, investments, or money. Ones with new money, were often very young and spent their money

The Jazz Age, otherwise known as the Roaring twenties marked a time period when the economy excelled. American society was experiencing a new extravagant routine and were feeling lightheatened and optimistic after WWI. Many people felt that it was a time to become rich, drink hard liquor and spend their time partying, although many burnt out early in their life. There was several new crazes that came with the lavish lifestyle including dance and flag pole sitting. The increased interest in party included the excessive ingestion of alcohol and soon led to a prohibition but people soon found loop holes. The 1920s was an exciting part of US history where national celebrities in sport, music and film emerged along with the introduction of Jazz

The 1920s was known best for its wealth, parties and free spirits giving it the nickname of the ¨roaring 20s¨. Contributing to the the lavish lifestyle of the 1920s, women, known as flappers, challenged gender roles and broke social norms with their outfits and behaviors. New inventions, such as radios and model-T cars became the foundation for the thriving economy. The country 's culture had been making huge strides and the economy was on an upward climb. Everything about society in the ‘20s seemed to be flourishing. At a rapid rate, more middle and lower class people began investing massive amounts of money. Borrowing money from bankers to finance the get rich quick hobby these classes were engaging in produced dangerous trends. At the peak of the economy in the 1920’s, warning signs began to present themselves of a future economic decline. Many United States citizens ignored the small signs like a subtle rise in stock prices. As the small signs began to become increasingly more evident, big investors sensed danger and took proper precautions. However, the middle and lower class investors were not savvy enough to predict the crash. Finally, on October 29th, 1929, what is now known as ¨Black Tuesday¨, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped almost 23 percent and the market lost between $8 billion and $9 billion in value.

Recollection of popular memory, the decade that followed soon after World War I was referred to as the Jazz Age or the Roaring Twenties (Foner 769). With its flappers; which were young, sexually liberated women (Foner 760-770), speakeasies (nightclubs known for selling liquor in violation of Prohibition), and a rising stock market that was stimulated by easy credit and a get-rich-quick outlook, it was a time of revolt against many of the ethical rules handed-down from the nineteenth century (Foner 770). In addition to this, similar to that of the labor movement, feminists were fighting to adapt to the new political situation. The 1920 suffrage achievement eradicated the bond of unity between numerous activists, each “struggling for her own

The Roaring Twenties and The Jazz Age are both labels for the time period of the 1920s. This time period involved drastic social along with political change that emphasized artistic and cultural dynamism. Evidence of this is that jazz music and dancing developed, the flapper redefined modern womanhood, Art Deco popularized, and many inventions of great significance came about that continued to fuel this age. Also, the majority of U.S. people were now living in cities rather than on farms for the first time, contributing to the doubling of the nation’s wealth. This economic prosperity transformed American society into one that was now primarily consumer based. Supply and demand to fit consumers needs was the ultimate goal of

The 1920s are often referred to as “The Roaring 20s” and this decade definitely deserves that title. This was a time of social changes and cultural conflicts, and much of the younger generation challenged tradition. Many people welcomed these changes, but some did not. Womanhood was redefined; women gained more social freedom. This decade was also referred to as the Jazz Age, and the popular music that people danced to brought about changes in fashion. World War I had just ended, and people were ready for fun and freedom.

The 1920s in America is often regarded as a decade of debauchery, characterized by glamorous gangsters and fashionable flappers, and its decadent reputation is largely deserved. The glitzy image of the “Roaring Twenties” primarily arose from the influx of bootlegged alcohol incited by the Eighteenth Amendment (Prohibition) and the film industry driving a newfound boom in pop culture.

The Roaring 20’s was a time of the first “Youth Rebellion”, sheiks, shebas, flappers, jazz music, and “Oxford Bags”. Sheiks were young men with sex appeal, as well as shebas were young women with sex appeal (Britten 28 & 32). Flappers were young women who wore short skirts, cut their hair short, and danced the nights away with the sheiks and shebas. During the 1920’s, young ladies were expected to dress modestly, in long skirts with blouses and corsets.

The 1920’s in American history, characterized by its social, artistic and cultural vitality, and is known as the roaring twenties. The U.S. economy was the largest industrial in the world, thus it provided significant help to European nations that experienced debt after World War I. Throughout this prosperous era, many rich Americans made large profits from businesses that they owned. A majority of Americans started to spend more money than they earned which would inevitably lead to major problems in the future. On October 29, 1929, which is known as Black Tuesday, the stock market crashed. The Great Depression began and proved to be a worldwide phenomenon. Domestically as well as internationally, the dramatic effects of the depression worked as a domino effect as all banks and other businesses fell almost instantaneously. Through the use of these two documents which are being used from Shi and Mayer, For the Record; “Two Views of the Great Depression”, and “Letters to the Roosevelt’s this paper will address and assess the effects of the depression from eyes of the everyday American who experienced this depression first hand.

The clash between generations during the 1920’s is the natural divide that exists as the previous generation holds fasts to its values, while younger groups adapt in behavior to match the changes their environment underwent overtime. This occurrence can be seen in the previous decades yet grows more prominently after the 1920’s, with further generational gaps in values occurring into the present time. Perhaps what makes the clash so overt and prominent in the 20’s compared to earlier generations is that through more media such as radio, movies, advertisements and novels came a rapid pace of fashion and behavior, especially among young women. The changes the generations clashed over were farther apart then could be easily by-passed and an understanding reached. Even during the 1920’s, older and younger generations attempted to figure out why neither could comprehend and appreciate the other’s values, blaming past and current events for the “Flapper Craze.” In the article “A Flapper's Appeal to Parents,” by Ellen Welles Page, those bewildered by

When you think of the roaring 1920’s, you picture music, dance, life. The art from this time also evolved into something brighter and more imaginative. “The Harlem Renaissance had played an enormous role in creating this sense of a distinct American identity. Its music, especially, was widely understood as one of the first truly “authentic” expressions of American experience, unfettered by European influence or tradition” (The Humanities 109). It was time where people could finally act like themselves and do whatever they want without getting criticized. Women were starting to show some skin with less clothing, Jazz became a popular genre of music that people could not get enough of, and poetry and paintings gave a whole new meaning to art.

The Roaring Twenties was known to many as an infamous age of sex, lawlessness, and prohibition. The twenties were much more than that actually it was time where the American society had a dramatic shift from its rural roots to the bustling city. American society was changing from the rural farm days. Many people were moving into the city and buying new gadgets that were being invited. Society was turning into a consumer Society this meant that many people across the country were buying the same products as people in different regions of society. Americans doubled their wealth during the twenties which is what led to this consumer society. Society now also was changing a lot for women. Women would now have the right to vote and more sexual

During the Roaring Twenties young Americans responded to this criticism by expanding on all of these "violations," with more outrageous slang, jazzier music and dance, shorter and flimsier dresses and shorter hair. And the efforts of the Suffragettes paid off when the Nineteenth Amendment, granting women the right to vote, was ratified in 1920. The separate spheres of the 19th century had been broken and the Flapper redefined modern womanhood.” ( Social Dance.Sandford,edu)