the “roaring 20’s” america during the jazz age. refers to the decade following the end of wwi...
TRANSCRIPT
The “Roaring 20’s”
America During the Jazz Age
Refers to the decade following the end of WWI in America
• In his short stories, F. Scott Fitzgerald coins terms such as “The Jazz Age,” “Flappers,” and “The Great Party”
• Decade of great extravagance and hedonism
• Represents America’s decisive movement into the “modern” world
I. Prohibition• 18th amendment passes in 1919 (repealed
in 1933)• Vain attempt by traditional forces to keep
America “moral” and “lawful”
The Rise of Organized Crime in American Cities
Al Capone and the Chicago Outfit
The Genovese Crime Family of NYC
Bugsy Siegel and the early origins of Las Vegas, NV
Engaged in “bootlegging” & gambling
“Speakeasies” catered largely to white, middle-class Americans; “Juke-Joints” were their Black counterparts in the South
Prohibition Glamorized Alcohol and the Party Lifestyle of the 1920’s
The music was JAZZ….Black jazz
Fueled the FLAPPER phenomenon
Young Americans were eager to celebrate new post-war affluence
II. Protecting the “American Dream”
Restricted immigration is not an offensive but purely a defensive action. It is not adopted in criticism of others in the slightest degree, but solely for the purpose of protecting ourselves. We cast no aspersions on any race or creed, but we must remember that every object of our institutions of society and government will fail unless America be kept American.
President Calvin Coolidge (1924)
Resurgence of the KKK
“Protectors of the American Way of Life.” (religion, heritage, language, racial purity)
“Red Scares”
Fueled by communist Russia;
fear of unknown “enemy” who didn’t share capitalist vision of the “American Dream”
Sacco & Vanzetti: execution of Italian anarchists in 1927
The Immigration Acts of 1924
•National Origins Act limited “undesirable” immigration (Southern and Eastern Europeans, especially Jews and Catholics) based on quotas
•The Passing of the Great Race (1916) [Grant]•The Rising Tide of Color Against White World-Supremacy (1920) [Stoddard] ……
Prevailing sentiment saw immigrants as a threat to the American way of life and the “American Dream”
III. The Rise of Motion Pictures and the Cult of Celebrity
Hollyw
ood
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ale
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•H
ollyw
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Am
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.
Professional/college athletes begin to occupy national media spotlight:
-Babe Ruth/NY Yankees-Notre Dame/Knut Rockne
• Ruth hits 54 Home Runs in 1921• ”Black Sox” scandal of 1919 shocks nation (gambling/sports)
Charles Lindbergh & Trans-Atlantic flight of 1927-represented American daring, ingenuity and optimism-named the “Lindy Hop” dance after him
IV. Rise of the “American Juggernaut” & the Modern Consumer Society
• First consumer boom of the modern era; America becomes the richest nation in the world
• Rise of the automobile [$900 in 1915; $350 in 1925] and the assembly line
• 1920: for the first time, more people lived in cities than on farms
• Growing division in the “American Dream” and a divided America:
1) Hard work = success (immigrants, lower classes, new money, upward mobility)
vs.
2) Inherited wealth = success (White Protestant power structure, privileged classes, old money, status quo)
Most Americans thought it would never end….
…a never ending upward spiral of economic success that rose to a
frenzy by late 1929…
But it all came to a sudden, crashing halt on October 24,
1929 —Black Friday—marking the end of what F. Scott Fitzgerald called “the most expensive orgy
in history.”