The 1920’s was the decade that redefined American culture and made the United States what is is today. Advancements in science, engineering, and music are just the tip of the iceberg in the 1920’s. This was an exceptionally prosperous time for the majority of the country in a surplus of ways. More specifically, there was a sizable change in the lives of people during this period in history due to the new idea of consumer credit. This is the decade that changes the entire way of buying and selling goods. People are now able to take out loans to buy goods (such as cars, furniture, refrigerators, etc.) and pay back in installments. (USHistory.org) This process makes goods much more affordable for the average person which cause a drastic increase …show more content…
They could only purchase things with the money in their pockets. Before the 20’s it wasn’t a great issue because there was not as much technology to purchase and goods were not being sold at such high prices. However, as things such as the Ford Model T car, the refrigerator, vacuum cleaners, clothing irons, and other technologies come about, the average American does not have the cash lying around to buy these products. By giving people loans to buy these new 19th century luxuries, they were building up the economy. Businesses were booming, people were spending and making lots and lots of money. The idea was to be able to get people to buy things that cost more than the money in their pockets. They could finance what they wanted to buy and would pay back what they owe in a weekly payment plan. (Media, American Public) Consumer credit was exceedingly beneficial to the economic prosperity of the 1920’s because it made the average American person capable of getting involved in the buying and selling of the brand new and expensive luxuries of the new decade. Consumer credit also got the money circulating throughout the
In Daily Life in the United States, 1920-1939: Decades of Promise and Pain, author David E. Kyvig, creates historical account of the Great Depression, and the events leading up to it. Kyvig’s goal in writing this book was to show how Americans had to change their daily life in order to cope with the changing times. Kyvig utilizes historical evidence and inferences from these events and developments to strengthen his point. The book is organized chronologically, recounting events and their effects on American culture. Each chapter of the book tackles a various point in American history between 1920 and1939 and events are used to comment on American life at the time. While Kyvig does not exactly have a “thesis” per se, his main point is to examine American life under a microscope, seeing how people either reacted, or were forced to react due to a wide range of specific events or developments in history, be it Prohibition, the KKK, or women’s suffrage.
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of production, it was the age of destruction, it was the epoch of nativism, it was the epoch of racism, it was the season of skepticism, it was the season of anti-communism, it was the spring of gain, it was the winter of loss – in short, it was the 1920's. Indeed, the decade of the 1920s was a truly “roaring” and prosperous time, but at the same time, it was a period of chaos and conflict. The events that happened during this decade influenced the world as we know it today. More importantly, the thought that the 1920’s was an era of major change in the United States, both positive and negative, is indeed fascinating and it deserves thorough examination.
America was on fire during the period of excitement. These new inventions were making home life easier for women and more enjoyable for the men. Not only were American families buying these new trinkets but they also started purchasing stock in companies at an increased rate. A commodity that was available before the war but not readily accessed, now became as high as seven million Americans buying and owning company stock after the First World War. With the purchase of automobiles, washing machines, and stock families were still not making enough to keep up. Even though the wage market had increased, the need for fancy things made it almost impossible for a family to have enough money left over to survive. This demand for the goods but not enough money produced a technique used by manufactures to bring in more customers, consumer credit. Today this method of shopping is used by every American everywhere at some point in their lives. Consumer credit is what is known today as a payment plan. A buying strategy that we all use today, payments, actually came about in the decade after World War I.
Republicans dominated the 1920's political scene. During this time period, many changes occurred in the United States. Both culturally and economically. This period is known as the roaring twenties.
Technology played an important role in the daily lives of Americans in the 1920s. Many inventions and new developments occurred during this time. A large number of items that are used today were invented by individuals and teams in research laboratories. This technology brought many conveniences such as electrical power and indoor plumbing into the home. Radios gave people access to the news and provided entertainment. Mass culture was also born and the automobile became the largest consumer product of the decade. By 1929, one in five Americans had an automobile on the road. America experienced a decade of economic growth due to the impact of technology in the 1920s.
The 1920s was a time of conservatism and it was a time of great social change. From the world of fashion to the world of politics, forces clashed to produce the most explosive decade of the century. It was the age of prohibition, it was the age of prosperity, and it was the age of downfall.
The 1920’s was a period of extremely economic growth and personal wealth. America was a striving nation and the American people had the potential to access products never manufactured before. Automobile were being made on an assembly line and were priced so that not just the rich had access to these vehicles, as well as, payment plans were made which gave the American people to purchase over time if they couldn't pay it all up front. Women during the First World War went to work in place of the men who went off to fight. When the men return the women did not give up their positions in the work force. Women being giving the responsibility outside the home gave them a more independent mindset, including the change of women's wardrobe, mainly in the shortening of their skirts.
Also, advertising arose during this time, along with the notion of “buy now and pay later”. All these things allow for these new middle-class families to live the “American Dream” and live a prosperous life, and in doing so they also spurred America’s economy.
To start off, the economy boom was when many Americans came to the peak of their financial gains. Because of Americas new founded wealth, americans citizens used their new extra money on entertainment. Prohibition caused economic growth due to the illegal selling and using of liquor. More jobs became open to all people and wages, and hours increased making it easier for people to have a satisfying living. Child labor laws made restrictions on the age, and how much a child could work, and this made people way more relaxed about factory workers. Loans were an easy way for people to be able to achieve their goals during this period of time. Along with loans, credit was a way for people to use money that they may not have at the time and then pay it back to the bank later, thus the economy became very powerful coming out of the Great Depression. All of these factors led to...
The 1920’s was a decade that changes American life. Frederick Lewis Allen describes the twenties as a “revolution in manners and morals.” The twenties has been named all types of nicknames, such as: “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” (Gales Research, 1998). During the twenties, the way Americans lived had changed. The 1920’s was a time in history that has been remembered for its great prosperity but also for its great loss. The Great Depression is what ended the Roaring Twenties.
The 1920's was a time of change in the United States. “The Roaring Twenties” had an outstanding impact on the economy, social standards and everyday life. It was a time for positive results in the consumer goods industry and American families, because of higher wages, shorter working hours, and manufacturing was up 60% in consumer goods. But it was also a time of adversity and opposition for others, such as immigrants and farmers. Immigrants had lots of competition when they were looking for work and they weren't treated fairly by Americans, depending on where they came from and what they believed.
The 1920’s was one of the best eras of all time. The era roughly occur after World War I and ended with a stock market crash causing consumers and the government to go under depression. But at the beginning, society was changing, new technology was presented to consumers and the economy was booming to society. Slavery tends to fade away, plantations were smaller, and money was a easy target. *Fitzgerald 's novel the Great Gatsby portrays to the reader deeper views to what the U.S. was like living in the 20’s, and how it could affect us an individual both physically and mentally.
Laissez-faire in the 1920s created an economy filled with inequality. While manufacturing, finance and services all enjoyed high times, agriculture and energy struggled throughout the decade. Despite the fact that the economy itself was structurally flawed, the stock market would go through the roof. Phenomenal economic growth was centered in only two industries: construction and automobile manufacturing. Even these industries would begin shrinking in the year before the stock market crash. For most of the 1920s the economy grew along with capital facilities. But by the time the stock market crashed, there was so much plant space producing so many goods that the backlog of inventory was three times greater than normal. Half of America was living at or below the minimum and could not afford to buy these products. As a result of this drastic economic change, the government was forced to look past laissez-faire and interfere with the publics marketing operations with the intent of improving the economic
The Year 1920 and Its Everlasting Impact On Our Country 1920 was the year of many struggles that the government and the people of our country were forced to surpass; however, in doing so, they forever illustrated the strength of our nation and the political, social, and economic advancements our country experienced over time. Only two years before 1920, the Great War, better known as World War I, ended and left “nearly 180,000 army personnel” “discharged because of disease or non battle injuries. Despite major advances in wound treatment and physical reconstruction, the Great War left more than 200,000 American veterans permanently disabled. Untold others would suffer from war-related trauma for decades after leaving service” (Kinder 1). No one is unaccustomed to the fact that World
The early 20th century was a time of great change for America. World War One brought a whole new meaning to warfare and challenged politicians and government officials to set the tone for America’s presence on the world stage. Twenty years later, America was again involved in a war, this time with a powerful Nazi Regime. Nestled in between these times of calamity lies the 1920’s. Although there was no combat or soldiers being deployed overseas; America was definitely at war.