The Roaring Twenties
Mr. Miller
Seward Middle School
The Roaring Twenties
• After World War I, the U.S. went into a
short economic recession, but then
things picked up again in the 1920s for
many, but not all, people in the U.S.
• This “feel good” time was known as the
“Roaring” Twenties…
• Overview/Preview – see movie next
slide…
Textbook Overview
• Section 1: The Business
of America: “Harding &
the Return to Normalcy”
• Warren G. Harding
became President and
chose a pro-business
Cabinet.
• Many (not all) in his
cabinet were corrupt and
there was much scandal
• Harding died suddenly in
1923.
Textbook Overview
• Section 1: The Business
of America: “Coolidge
Takes Over”
• Coolidge took a “hands
off” appraoch to business.
• He was a believer in less
government control on a
lot of things such as crop
prices, taking care of the
poor, etc.
• This helped lead to
business really booming
as the 1920s continued.
Textbook Overview
• Section 1: The Business of
America: “Technology
Changes American Life”
• Americans had more $ to
spend, so items like cars
(when they were invented),
vacuums, refrigerators, etc.
were bought and sold (more $)
• The assembly line increased
production of many products.
• People started borrowing $
and buying on “installment”
plans and paying monthly.
• This did lead to more people in
debt (remember for 1930s)
Moving to Section 2
• What other aspects of society (other
than business and the economy)
changed or evolved (that’s whole other
story) during the 1920s?
• Moving to Section 2…
Textbook Overview
“Flapper”
• Section 2: Changes in Society:
“Youth in the Roaring
Twenties”
• Younger people started having
more fun, going to college, etc.
since the economy was doing
better
• Women wore shorter dresses,
shorter hair, and did “fun” stuff
like go out on the town, etc.
that the men got to do before
• The Charleston and other
dances and songs went “big”
• The older generation did not
like this “rebellious” movement
Zoot Suit
Textbook Overview
• Section 2: Changes in
Society: “New Roles for
Women”
• Women gained the right to
vote with the 19th amendment
in 1920 & they went from there
• The strong economy and
seeing how women worked for
the men during WWI led to
more job opportunities.
• Young women really started
“stretching” their roles in
society, while the older ones
felt they weren’t being ladylike
• (known as “flappers”)
Women’s Roles Change
• Women’s role changed. Youthful
“flappers” were much different from the
stuffiness of the Victorian era.
• This video shows the “fun time” that
many were having during these Roaring
Twenties…
• Youtube clip on Flappers
Textbook Overview
• Section 2: Changes in Society:
“Prohibition and Lawlessness”
• In 1920, the 18th amendment
was passed, which outlawed
the sale and manufacture of
alcohol in the U.S.
• Many felt the government
overstepped it’s bounds
• Most still drank, but either
made their own, smuggled, or
went to “speakeasies”
• This also led to the rise of
organized crime (mafia) such
as Al Capone, etc.
Prohibition
• This History Channel clip shows a good
summary of the Prohibition movement.
• See History Channel Video “Speakeasies”
segment
• Mr. Miller’s soapbox moment… This is not
meant to glorify the use of alcohol in any way
(you’re way too young)
• See U.S. News article highlights…
• Act accordingly…
Textbook Overview
Marcus Garvey
• Section 2: Changes in Society:
“Changes for African
Americans”
• The Great Migration (WWI unit)
led to many African-Americans
moving to the north.
• Unfortunately, this led to a lot of
racial tension and many riots,
etc.
• The NAACP was formed to help
protect rights, etc. with mixed
results.
• Marcus Garvey led a movement
by others to go back to Africa
and leave USA
Textbook Overview
Charles Darwin
• Section 2: Changes in Society:
“A Divided Society”
John Scopes • Race wasn’t the only issue there was a backlash against
immigrants, urban vs. rural,
religion vs. science and other
issues
• Fundamentalists fought against
the teaching of evolution in
schools and the Scopes trial
became a huge story.
• The Ku Klux Klan also had a
resurgence in power, numbers,
and influence.
William Jennings Bryan
• More on these topics…
The Scopes “Monkey” Trial
•
Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution holds that inherited
characteristics of a population change over generations, which
sometimes results in the rise of a new species.
• According to Darwin, the human species may have evolved
from an ape-like species that lived long ago.
• Fundamentalists think this theory is against the biblical
account of how God created humans and that teaching
evolution undermine religious faith.
•
Fundamentalists worked to pass laws preventing evolution being
taught in schools, and several states did, including Tennessee in
1925.
•
One group in Tennessee persuaded a young science teacher
named John Scopes to violate the law, get arrested, and go to
trial.
The Trial
• Scopes was represented by Clarence Darrow, and
William Jennings Bryan, three-time candidate for
president, represented the prosecution.
• John Scopes was obviously guilty, but the trial was
about larger issues.
• Scopes was convicted and fined $100, but Darrow
never got a chance to appeal because the conviction
was overturned due to a technical violation by the
judge.
• The Tennessee law remained in place until the
1960s.
• See History Channel video on the trial
The Ku Klux Klan
• It originally started during the
Reconstruction era after the
Civil War
• It gained momentum during the
1920s
• They had around 5,000,000
members at one point
• They used this influence to
intimidate (and much worse)
African Americans (and
Catholics, and immigrants, and
Jews, and…) and try to
influence politics with violence
• It lost influence later in the 20s
• Youtube clip
Moving to Section 3
• So there were good and bad things
going on in America during this time
• What about American’s leisure time?
How did they fill it?
• Race relations were still bad… but a
change was coming…
• What about the “lost” in between?
Textbook Overview
• Section 3: The Jazz Age &
Harlem Renaissance: “More
Leisure Time for Americans”
• Inventions, shorter working
hours, and higher wages gave
most (not all) Americans more
time and $ to spend on leisure
• Movies, museums, sports,
driving, etc. were popular
events to be part of
• Some African-Americans,
Hispanic Americans, etc. were
“left out” of this prosperity
Textbook Overview
• Section 3: The Jazz Age & Harlem
Renaissance: “Mass Media and
Popular Culture”
• Radio became very popular for the
first time, “connecting” many
Americans to sports, shows, etc. (like
we have with TV and now internet
today)
• Movies and movie stars became very
popular as well
• Movies were mostly silent in the early
20s, but then sound came along as
well in The Jazz Singer
• Disney came onto the scene with the
first Mickey Mouse in Steamboat Willie
Textbook Overview
• Section 3: The Jazz Age & Harlem
Renaissance: “A Search for Heroes”
• Sports and sports stars became a big
deal during the 1920s
• Babe Ruth & Ty Cobb in baseball
• Negro leagues in baseball started due
to racism keeping them out of MLB
• Jack Dempsey & Gene Tunney in
boxing
• Bobby Jones wins the Grand Slam in
golf
• Helen Willis and Bill Tilden in tennis
• Other heroes: Charles Lindbergh and
Amelia Earhart for flying across the
Atlantic Ocean
Textbook Overview
• Section 3: The Jazz Age & Harlem
Renaissance: “The Harlem
Renaissance”
• Many African Americans moved to New
York City (and other northern cities) for
work, escape, etc.
• The Harlem neighborhood of NYC was
the world’s largest black community
• Jazz musicians, artists, writers,
scholars, etc. that were AfricanAmerican flocked to NYC and culture
flourished there
• The “Renaissance” offered a new hope
to African-Americans for their future in
America.
• Famous jazz musicians Loius
Youtube
Armstrong and Duke Ellington
• Singer Bessie Smith was also popular.
Textbook Overview
• Section 3: The Jazz Age & Harlem
Renaissance: “The Lost Generation”
• Some famous people lost hope for
America (or the world?) during this time
and left America for primarily Paris,
France
• They became expatriates and chose to
live in another country
• Writers Ernest Hemingway (A Farewell
to Arms), F. Scott Fitzgerald (The Great
Gatsby), and Sinclair Lewis (Babbitt)
were some famous ones who left
• They wrote about the negatives of the
era such as Post-WWI despair, wealth
gone wild, and material possession
obsession in the middle class.