The Twenties A Republican Decade Business Booms Society in the 1920s Mass Media and The Jazz Age Cultural Conflicts The Roaring Twenties The 1920s was an era of rapid change and clashing values. Many Americans believed society was losing its traditional values, and they took action to preserve these values. Other Americans embraced new values associated with a freer lifestyle and the pursuit of individual goals. Writers and artists pursued distinctively American themes, and the Harlem Renaissance gave African Americans new pride. The Red Scare 1917 Russian Czar Nicholas II was forced to abdicate Vladimir Lenin (supporters: the Reds) after 2 years of bloody revolt, millions of deaths & wide spread destruction the new nation was called the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR) Lenin made communism the official ideology of the USSR openly hostile to the American belief system Communism in the Soviet Union The Red Scare Govt promises to stir up revolutions in other countries and spread communism Govt owns all lands and property A single political party controls the govt Individuals have no rights that the govt is legally bound to respect Causes & Effects Intense fear of communism and socialism in the US The Red Scare. Socialism the belief that government should run and control all businesses. Communism society is classless, wealth is distributed and there is no individual rights. The government controls all property theory established by Karl Marx it is considered a boarder branch of socialism. Innocent or guilty accused communists were jailed or forced to leave the US Labor Strikes Convinced communists were behind the strikes Boston Police Strikes Steel & Coal Mine Strikes True cause cost of living double, rent prices went up, high food prices Business Booms Big Idea The business of the American people is business American business boomed during the 1920s, as Americans earned more and spent more on exciting new products The Presidents during the 20s adopted the Laissez- Faire attitude toward business. Laissez-Faire means that government should interfere as little as possible For a decade their will be republican presidents Tin Pan Alley Tin Pan Alley is the name given to the collection of New York City-centered music publishers and songwriters who dominated the popular music of the United States in the late 19th century and early 20th century. The start of Tin Pan Alley is usually dated to about 1885, when a number of music publishers set up shop in the same district of Manhattan. The end of Tin Pan Alley is less clear. Some date it to the start of the Great Depression in the 1930s when the phonograph and radio became popular, while others consider Tin Pan Alley to have continued into the 1950s with the start of rock & roll. Irving Berlin Irving Berlin was a Russian born naturalized American composer and lyricist, and one of the most prolific American songwriters in history. Berlin was one of the few Tin Pan Alley/Broadway songwriters who wrote both lyrics and music for his songs. He never learned to read music beyond an elementary level, with the help of various musical assistants or collaborators, he eventually composed over 3,000 songs, many of which (e.g. "God Bless America," "White Christmas," "Anything You Can Do," "There's No Business Like Show Business") left a mark on American music and culture. He composed seventeen film scores and twenty-one Broadway scores Henry Ford Henry Ford was the American founder of the Ford Motor Company and father of modern assembly lines used in mass production. His introduction of the Model T automobile revolutionized transportation and American industry. He was a prolific inventor and was awarded 161 U.S. patents. As owner of the Ford Company he became one of the richest and best-known people in the world. He is credited with "Fordism", that is, the mass production of large numbers of inexpensive automobiles using the assembly line, coupled with high wages for his workers. Henry Ford & Assembly Line The Model T The Model T was introduced on October 1, It had many important innovationssuch as the steering wheel on the left, which every other company soon copied. The entire engine and transmission were enclosed; the four cylinders were cast in a solid block; the suspension used two semi-elliptic springs. The car was very simple to drive, andmore importantlyeasy and cheap to repair. It was so cheap at $825 in 1908 (the price fell every year) that by the 1920s a majority of American drivers learned to drive on the Model T. Model T Ford Steel, rubber & gasoline industries grew Henry Fords Model T & assembly line Income rose Money was spent Traveled, motels, garages, gas stations Route 66 (highways) Consumer economy buy in large numbers on credit or installment plans New products- vacuums radios toasters First fast food restaurant & shopping center Automobiles- the biggest industry Business Booms Economic prosperity afforded Americans leisure time. Sports: Babe Ruth & heavyweight champion Jack Dempsey Motion pictures: The first talking picture, The Jazz Singer, made in Mass media: (radio, movies, newspapers) helped unify the nation and spread new ideas and attitudes. ON THE MOVE.. 6 million Americans moved from rural areas to urban Areas. The suburbs grew new transportation systems & automobiles allowed to work in the city & live in the burbs African Americans left the South for the North to escape Jim Crow laws and were in search of better jobs Immigrants from Canada & Mexico come to work in America Americans turned to Heroes: Charles Lindbergh flying non stop from New York to Paris Babe Ruth baseball star Amelia Earhart attempted to fly around the world Jack Dempsey boxing Heavy weight champ Society in the 1920s Big Idea American society changed rapidly during the 1920s as urban areas grew and women adopted new lifestyles The Culture of Slang Cats meow (or cats pajamas) Crush Gatecrasher Blind date Big cheese Something fantastic Infatuation with someone Someone who crashes a party Dating someone youve never met The boss The Culture of Slang Bump off Goofy Gams Gyp Garb Murder or kill Silly A womans legs Cheat Something wonderful StyleWork & Politics Women bobbed or cut their hair short- flappers Women moved into office, sales and professional jobs Women wore make up & shorter dresses Women voted in local and national elections Women smoked & drank in public Women were elected to public office 1920 18 th Amendment: Prohibition it was illegal to produce, consume or sell alcoholic beverages th Amendment repealed with the 21 st Amendment Rural areas obeyed, cities ignored the law New type of criminal bootlegger Bootleggers formed organizers to control the sale of alcohol. Al Capone of Chicago build a huge profitable crime organization Tension in urban overcrowded cities, Ku Klux Klan carries out violent attacks on blacks, Catholics, Jews & immigrants The Summer of 1925 became known as the Red Summer race riots broke out in 25 cites The Harlem Renaissance In NYs neighborhood of Harlem, African Americans created environments that stimulated artistic development, racial pride, a sense of community, and political organization, which led to a massive creative outpouring of African American arts. Langston Hughes: writer; the leading voice of the African American experience in the U.S. Louis Armstrong: introduced jazz, a style of music influenced by Dixieland music and ragtime. African American Politics The Great Migration led to African Americans becoming powerful voting blocs, which influenced election outcomes in the North. The NAACP battled against segregation and discrimination. The NAACPs efforts led to the passage of anti-lynching legislation in the House of Representatives, but the Senate defeated the bill New Morality Challenged traditional ideas Women entered workforce Automobile allowed youth to escape parents Changes in fashion Flappers- drank, smoked and dressed revealing Women entered fields like medicine, law and science. Assignment - students will create a magazine spread or newspaper front page of the 1920s you can work with a partner 1. Choose a topic from the 1920s, create a picture of that topic and write a paragraph about that topic 2. Find a slang term of the 1920's and explain what it means 3. Find a new invention and or feat from the 1920's 4. Draw a political cartoon Put all 4 topics together and make it look like a magazine or newspaper front page You can use white paper or colored paper