Social Changes In The 1920s Essay

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The 1920s were marked as a period of change in the United States. The social changes started happening in the United States after the World War I ended in 1919, with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles and arose many social conflicts. The end of World War I caused a recession, a temporary slump in the economy. Since the war was over, the United States was no longer a wartime economy. Instead, it became a consumer economy. The soldiers came home, but had trouble working because some had shell shock, a psychiatric illness, some went through physical changes and there were fewer jobs. To cope with the depression caused by the war, men started drinking alcohol. Women prior to World War I were housewives. They were not respected and did not …show more content…

This all leads to women's suffrage which leads to the women’s right movement. The African Americans were also recruited in the World War I army. They were not treated respectfully even though they fought for the nation. There was a lot of World War I military discrimination. As the World War I ended, the African Americans tried to find jobs, but there was job discrimination. Then came the 1920s and gave the United States a perfect opportunity to resolve the conflicts of the World War I. Prohibition and social change altered the mass culture of the United States and marked social change and social conflict during the 1920s.
One of the most important and vivid impressions of the 1920s was prohibition. It all started with the Temperance Movement. The Temperance Movement was the first attempt to stop alcohol abuse and the problems it caused during the mid-1800s. Women were the inventors of the movement because it was widely used by men in the United States. Moreover, some women wanted prohibition because their husbands and fathers were abusing them and their children. Due to women's efforts, nine states passed the …show more content…

They did not have any rights to do anything. They could not vote, they could not drink, smoke, dance, wear short skirts, or cut their hair either. However, they started to change their attitude at the end of World War I, reflecting their freedom. Their courage paid off when in 1920, the Nineteenth Amendment was passed, which gave the women the right to vote. Some women started taking over jobs in the government. In 1924, the first women governor was elected named, Jeannette Rankin, and became the first female in the House of Representatives. Some women became known as the Flappers, a group of liberal women. The Flappers were not interested in rebelling for the women’s rights. Instead, the Flappers rebelled against the traditional ways. The Flappers usually wore short skirts, they cut their hair, drank, smoke, and danced. They soon became a symbol of women during the 1920s. Women also faced discrimination during this time period. Most of the businessmen discriminated against women. They still wanted the women to quit work and be a housewife and raise their children. Some colleges did not allow women to be admitted into their universities. Moreover, the states did not allow women to serve on juries and they also did not allow to let women keep their earnings if they were married. They gave their paychecks

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