According to Merriam Webster dictionary, revolutionary is defined as constituting or bringing about a major or fundamental change. The nineteen twenties were liberal socially and economically. The nineteen twenties was a revolution of liberalism because women of the nineteen twenties, such as flappers, and the introduction of jazz music.
Admittedly the twenties were conservative because of the Prohibition laws. This conservatism was not revolutionary because it was weighing the needs of more over the needs of a few. Zietz exclaims that “Prohibition was the most successful achievement of anti-modern forces of the 1920s” (229). The Eighteenth Amendment was ratified, which was an authorization on the ban of the production and sale of alcoholic
…show more content…
beverages. The anti-Saloon League, which was formed in 1893 became a powerful political force in passing a national ban on alcoholic beverages. Then The Volstead Act set the standard amount for alcohol, which was “one half or one per centum or more of alcohol by volume which are fit for use for beverage purposes” (1919) The nineteen twenties were revolutionary for the liberalist because the people were open to change their social lives in order to progress. Zeitz declared that the “twenties were an era of liberation for women” (16). Women fought for the Nineteenth Amendment to be ratified for their right to vote. People were scared that if the women got the right to vote that gender roles would be flipped where the women would have masculine roles and the men would have feminine roles. Just the opposite of that happened when the amendment was ratified. The women of the nineteen twenties were significantly liberal in “the new women.” The new women included changes of their appearance and attitude. The new women rejected traditional values of the Victorian Era, where the women were covered from head to toe and never cut their hair. The new appearance was short dresses that would expose the legs and arms of the women, cut their hair in a short bob, which sometimes resembled men’s hair, and the women also wore make up, which Victorian times found scandalous. These women were also known as flappers. Flappers also would openly smoke and drink in public without their father, brother, or husband. Women turned more to championing personal happiness and gratification to material culture instead of their Progressive mothers. Alvah Posen drew a comic strip and wrote lyrics to go with it called Them Days is Gone Forever were he bade farewell to aspects of life that were gone forever (Posen 1922). The women Women were also sexually equal to men. The women owned their bodies. Zeitz exclaimed that there was a “Repeal of Reticence” (34). The women were repealing the restraint about issues that were thought to be scandalous, like premarital sex. The new women changed the way men and women value women. The introduction to jazz music was revolutionary for liberals because of its new music, art, and education.
The nineteen twenties introduced new music in the Jazz Age. The new music created was jazz, which included improvisation and syncopation in its style and most times played on brass instruments such as, trumpets, trombones, and saxophones. Jazz separated with mainstream music of the white culture that was referred to as classical. Jazz was originally an African-American genre, but the urban young people rebelling against their conservative cultured parents also enjoyed it. Jazz music was a part of the Harlem Renaissance. The Harlem Renaissance was a neighborhood that broke out in African American literature, art, and music. Jazz was popular in illegal bars, flappers, and more open liberal culture of the cities. This period of Renaissance was pronounced as a rise in black culture, which encouraged experimentation and the development of black nationalism. One of the concepts of the Harlem Renaissance was the New Negro. The New Negro rejected the submissive and accepted the lives led by the “old negroes.” The New Negroes also pushed for a more positive black population that would not accept racism, segregation, or second class treatment. The Harlem Renaissance was also known for its art. Alain Locke was the “Father of the Harlem Renaissance” for his book The New Negro. Alain Locke wrote about the transformation “as not relying on older time-worn models, but, rather, embracing a new psychology and new spirit” (Locke 1938). Alain Locke also brought together a few of the greatest African-American poets and authors who promoted the new culture of independence. Writers like Zora Neale Hurston who wrote Their Eyes Were Watching God, which tells of life in the South for poor black people, and Countee Cullen who wrote I Have a Rendezvous with Life, Color, and The Black Christ and Other Poems. Langston Hughes also became an outstanding poet with his writings that
promoted black nationalism and black pride. The Ways of White Folks obtained attention for the criticism of race relations and his personal doubts of racial integration. A lot of the poets were college educated and studied graduate work at Harvard University. The Harlem Renaissance changed the way people listen to music, write art, and the way the education system works. The liberalism that happened in the nineteen twenties connects to modern day life. This connects because millennials are changing the way the people in this world do things. The other generations like Generation X, Generation Y, or even the baby boomers consider it scandalous the way the millennials are doing it. Generation X, Generation Y, and the baby boomers are scared of the change that is happening, just like how the white people were scared of the change that was happening in the nineteen twenties. Generation X, Generation Y, and the baby boomers are scared of the change the millennials are causing, like the men, and upper class conservative generation were scared when the women earned the right to vote, and started becoming the new woman.
...aid attention to it. Liquor was sold behind closed doors, and speak easys became very common. The 19th Amendment was also ratified during the twenties. After 81 years of campaigning, woman had the right to vote. During this time the Klu Klux Klan, which gained popularity, seized political control of seven states. A very famous case during the 1920’s was the Scopes Monkey Trial. In 1925 teacher John Scopes went on trial for teaching evolution. This raised a countrywide debate on whether people believed in evolution or creationism. Overall there were a couple important Amendments passed during the 1920’s and few political arguments.
As a nation coming out of a devastating war, America faced many changes in the 1920s. It was a decade of growth and improvements. It was also a decade of great economic and political confidence. However, with all the changes comes opposition. Social and cultural fears still caused dichotomous rifts in American society.
The United States and our government has been shaped entirely from its past. We have learned right from wrong, what has worked and what has failed. The 1920s was a time in our country where the government created a law that upset the people. This decade is often referred to as The Roaring 20’s, The Jazz Age, The Prohibition Era, The Cocktail Era, etc. All these names perfectly describe this time, but it was also a time to learn from the mistake of creating a law that prohibited alcohol. This law played such a huge role in the decade, and has been forever remembered. The Great Gatsby is a romance novel that also hints on the time of prohibition. F. Scott Fitzgerald talked greatly about alcohol and the part it took in The Roaring 20 's. Though
According to Webster’s Online Dictionary, revolution is “a sudden, radical or complete change.” During the early settlement of the British colonies, settlers became so culturally different from those in Great Britain that they already seemed to be their own country. This is what John Adams meant in saying, “What do we mean by the Revolution? The war? That was no part of the Revolution; it was only an effect and consequence of it. The Revolution was in the minds of the people… years before a drop of blood was shed at Lexington.” In fact, the revolution began years before the colonists began to feel mistreated by the British. As they arrived in the new colonies, they noticed many major differences in the society and culture of this new place. As time went on, they learned about the colonies and the society there, and eventually, they evolved their cultures and lifestyles to comply with this new society. The primary changes the colonists the colonists made were in their economic system, their lifestyle, and their freedoms. In England, the economic system was primarily industrious, while in it was agriculture. In addition, the colonists, especially those in the south, relied very heavily on slave labor for agricultural purposes. In Great Britain, however, slavery did exist, but it was not relied upon for a functional society. The final change the settlers made in the New World was religion. In Great Britain, the king forced everyone to join the Church of England and leave the Roman Catholic Church. When in the colonies, settlers could go back to whatever religion they desired, so colonial religion was extremely diverse. Therefore, three main changes or “Revolutions”
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 Harlem Renaissance was an intellectual and literary period of growth promoting a new African American cultural identity in the United States. The decade between 1920 and 1930 was an extremely influential span of time for the Black culture. During these years Blacks were able to come together and form a united group that expressed a desire for enlightenment. This renaissance allowed Blacks to have a uniform voice in a society based upon intellectual growth. The front-runners of this revival were extremely focused on cultural growth through means of intellect, literature, art and music. By using these means of growth, they hoped to destroy the pervading racism and stereotypes suffocating the African American society and yearned for racial and social integration. Many Black writers spoke out during this span of time with books proving their natural humanity and desire for equality.
History is an abundance of movements that demonstrate the changes in societal ideals and beliefs, it also conveys the struggle many people had to maintain conservative ideas. The 1920s was a major time frame when many changes occurred and began, it is the epitome of the struggle between a changing nation and the Conservatives who want it all to stay the same. The power struggle between the Conservatives and the rebellious members of society had been going on for years but it was the passing of the Volstead Act, which had kicked started the Prohibition, that created an explosive change throughout the society. Drinking became fashionable, everyone wanted to do it because it was forbidden. With one law being broken people began to break the societal norms; woman drank and smoked in public, blacks were becoming popular in society, and even the accepted religious facts were called into question. This disregard for the norms caused an uproar throughout society and were the main tensions between old and new ideal; the tension stemmed from the ideals about women, blacks and religion.
Revolutions are usually described as “radical” events. A “radical” event is defined as one that greatly changes the political, cultural, social, and/or economic nature of a society. I believe that the American Revolution was a radical event that dramatically changed our society. There were many impacts to the changes such as slavery, primogeniture, the Articles of Confederation, republican motherhood, and government. This was the time in life, that we as America gained our independence from Britain. The American Revolution is what shaped our world to become what it is today.
The New Negro Movement, widely known as The Harlem Renaissance, rolled into Harlem, New York – and touched the whole of America – like a gale-force wind. As every part of America reveled in the prosperity and gaiety of the decade, African Americans used the decade as a stepping stone for future generations. With the New Negro Movement came an abundance of black artistic, cultural, and intellectual stimulation. Literary achievers like Langston Hughes, Zora Neal Hurston, Claude McKay, and Countee Cullen rocked the world with their immense talent and strove to show that African Americans should be respected. Musicians, dancers, and singers like Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway, Josephine Baker and Bessie Smith preformed for whites and blacks alike in famed speakeasies like The Cotton Club. Intellectuals like Marcus Garvey, W.E.B. DuBois, and Alain Locke stood to empower and unify colored people of all ages. The Harlem Renaissance was not just a moment in time; it was a movement of empowerment for African Americans across the nation, and remains as such today.
The Harlem Renaissance, originally known as “the New Negro Movement”, was a cultural, social, and artistic movement during the 1920’s that took place in Harlem. This movement occurred after the World War I and drew in many African Americans who wanted to escape from the South to the North where they could freely express their artistic abilities. This movement was known as The Great Migration. During the 1920’s, many black writers, singers, musicians, artists, and poets gained success including Zora Neale Hurston, Langston Hughes, Marcus Garvey, and W.E.B. Du Bois. These creative black artists made an influence to society in the 1920’s and an impact on the Harlem Renaissance.
Which means all people, not giving thought to any struggle in the past. A revolution is a radical and pervasive change in society and the social structure, especially one made suddenly and often accompanied by violence. As stated before, society changed, but the social structure of the society did not. When observing historical context, this can be a revolution because social structures either reverted back to the old ways then changed to an extent.
Thousands of city dwellers flocked night after night to see the same performers”. This music created by the African-Americans in Harlem transformed the negative outlook of many into a positive one, or one of some understanding toward the Black populus. This introduction of Jazz and Blues into the society of the era gave birth to several influential and pivotal artists such as Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong. This popularized the Jazz and Blues music genres and brought major notoriety to African-Americans, bringing much needed change in the perceptions of Black citizens. Poetry was another prominent form of expression during the Harlem Renaissance era.
The Harlem Renaissance was a period of great rebirth for African American people and according to the online encyclopedia Wikipedia, the “Harlem Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned the 1920s and 1930s.” Wikipedia also indicates that it was also known as the “Negro Movement, named after the 1925 Anthology by Alan Locke.” Blacks from all over America and the Caribbean and flocked to Harlem, New York. Harlem became a sort of “melting pot” for Black America. Writers, artists, poets, musicians and dancers converged there spanning a renaissance. The Harlem Renaissance was also one of the most important chapters in the era of African American literature. This literary period gave way to a new type of writing style. This style is known as “creative literature.” Creative literature enabled writers to express their thoughts and feelings about various issues that were of importance to African Americans. These issues include racism, gender and identity, and others that we...
As it mentioned above, the title itself, draws attention to the world-renowned music created by African Americans in the 1920s’ as well as to the book’s jazz-like narrative structure and themes. Jazz is the best-known artistic creation of Harlem Renaissance. “Jazz is the only pure American creation, which shortly after its birth, became America’s most important cultural export”(Ostendorf, 165). It evolved from the blues