As World War II came to an end, the United States entered the 50s. This decade became a major influential time that brought many cultural and societal changes. Categories such as the economy, where a boom in new products increased, the technology world which incorporated new medicines and computers, entertainment when the television became popular and the overall lifestyles that Americans adapted to. All of these topics reshaped and created several advancements throughout society during the 1950s.
The 1920s carried much change in society. Some of these changes were more rights for women, jazz music, and prohibition. The people of the 1920s were disillusioned by society lacking in idealism and vision, sense of personal alienation, and Americans were obsessed with materialism and outmoded moral values (The Roaring Twenties).Cultural changes were strongly influenced by the destruction of World War I ending 1918. America needed to recover and with it youth rebelled against the norms of the older generations.
The Roaring Twenties was recognized as a Golden Age for its’ mass culture that shaped the new beliefs of those across the United States during the 1920s. This period was known for its’ thriving economy and political changes. New forms of leisure appeared because everyone had a fair amount of spare cash caused by the consumer society developing. Radios were bought, cinemas were opened, newspapers and magazines were sold; all sorts of mass media were methods of communication that emerged during this glorious era. They were not only tools of amusement, but also had the effect of spreading popular culture. Some said mass media were inappropriate and made youngsters addicted to daily fun. It is undeniable to say that the widespread of mass media, for instance, movies, radios, newspapers, and magazines during the 1920s created a stupendous impact in the people’s values and views nationwide.
The Declaration of Independence of 1776 asserted that all men are created equal and are endowed with certain unalienable rights among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. However, the exhaustion of farm land by poor agricultural planning and the introduction of the assembly line reversed the flow in the 1920s. They helped to turn the migration of the people back to the city. Many farmers returned to the cities to work for such leaders of industry as Ford and Rockefeller. The American Dream indicated not about a better life but about wealth. Historians called the 1920s, roughly the period between the end of World War I and the Great Stock Market Crash of 1929, as the Roaring Twenties or a period of remarkable changes. Over half of all Americans resided in cities and the growing affordability of the automobile forced people to be a lot active. While the decade was known as the era of jazz and flapper fashions, a lot of domains still remained quite conservative. In the novels of Hemingway, Fitzgerald, and Stein, the 1920s were also the time of deep disillusionment, the era of the lost generation. Drawing upon my knowledge of the 1920s, I would evaluate the validity of this stereotype by historical
This paper is mainly about the consumption behavior of America’s majority population during the 1920s, namely its white majority citizens of European ancestry. Of course, it’s necessary to acknowledge that the country’s minority African-Americans, Latinos, Asians and people of various other backgrounds developed their own versions of consumerism during the 1920s as well. As for the European-Americans, they were targeted as consumers by producers of consumer goods. Women were targeted mainly by companies that made cosmetics, beauty, and personal hygiene items (many in number); clothes; kitchen appliances (a huge category of items, most of them being electrical); furniture; electric vacuum cleaners, home cleaning materials (also large in number),
During the 1920s Americans were questioning whether to stick with the traditional views on life or go with the new modern views. The 1920s or the Roaring Twenties was a period in American history in which the economy grew massively, new inventions and ideas came about, and values were changing. Americans in the 1920s were divided by two very different viewpoints, traditional views like prohibiting alcoholic beverages in the United States and the belief in fundamentalism, however, the modern views of the new flapper and the theory of evolution were more appealing to Americans and would eventually transform American values because the ideas were new and it was an act of rebellion against their parents.
The 1920’s was an era of great transformation in the realm of the film industry. Hollywood created the merriment that entertainment brought. With that, it introduced a way of contentment to the entire world. The film industry truly began to flourish in the 1920’s. Thus, Hollywood is considered the birthplace for movie studios.
1 - Consumerism developed in America during the early twentieth century in large part due to the boom in industry created by Europe 's inability to create goods after World War I. Combined this with American inventions such as Henry Ford’s assembly line and Americans had money to spend (Schultz, 2013). With the advent of an electrical distribution system, Americans had electricity in their homes for the first time, which led to the desire for all types of electrical appliances to make life easier. All these new products meant that companies had to get the word out about their products which ignited the advertising industry, which led to even more consumerism. Mix into this recipe, the growing credit industry, and you had consumerism like
The 1920s were the first years of the new, modern America, with a growing consumer society and new ideas and rules. America saw many changes throughout this decade, including but not limited to social, economic and political changes. Throughout this time, new values were made with the growth of new forms of entertainment and education. After the Progressive Era, the ideas of political figures changed with a new focus on conservative politics and less labor issues. With the new ability for people to buy other products than basic needs, their money went to new inventions, causing new industries to grow.
The 1920s in America, also known as the Roaring Twenties, was a time of political, social, economic, technological, and cultural developments. These developments created new changes and helped shape the ways of life of the American people. Women played a significant example in social changes. From improvements in the education system, to minor developments such as the changes in attire. Another major development was economic production. There was advancement in household items and more products started to receive more recognition by advertisement. Moreover, there were many social developments during the 1920s of America.
A truly unique American mass culture saw its creation in the 1920’s where radio shows and movies could be shared all over the country and more Americans were living in cities than ever before. The creation of mass culture in America could be seen as a side effect of all of these new technologies and societal differences that took place in the 20s. Time space compression also had a large effect on mass culture as well. In the 20s because of the creation of new technologies. people could now communicate throughout the country and develop their own similar culture. Whereas in other time periods different areas and states within the same country would have different cultures and slang. In the 20s with the creation of a mass culture in America
Silent films, jazz concerts, sports, dancing marathons, radio entertainment. Video games, cable TV, digital movies, apps, internet. Any of these sound familiar? The first characteristics belong to the Silent Majority, which is the generation that lived in the 1920s. The other ones pertain to the Millennials, this generation consists of people born in the late 1980s all the way to 2000s. Two different generations that even though they seem very different, they can be similar in some aspects and some of the main themes that compare both times are transportation, media and entertainment.
During the 1920s, advertisement started to increase and expand. Many ideas and tactics were used to lure the attention of the consumers. After World War I, America started to grow with a stable and growing economy. This flourishment made many American's live out the 1920s in prosperity. This caused America to flourish with new inventions, for example the automobile, household machinery, television, etc. Even old inventions and ideas were improving, like the radio, movies, and the use of advertising. The radio, movies, driving, and buying the various new products became a part of the daily lives. These inventions created a sense of ease for daily lives in America in the 1920s. It made life, jobs, and experiences easier.
Through the 1920s, America really started blooming as an economic powerhouse and started new cultural norms as known the famous phrase: “the roaring 20s”. The move from traditional to modern which was supported by consumerism, technology, and culture caused a mass society. Mass society was a brand-new idea in the 20s and cause wrestling about modernity because no one knew if it would work because society was already used to having separate classes for many many years before. The newly developed idea of consumerism allowed for the lower classes to hide their economic status much easier than before. The new advances in technology sets the same standards for everyone in society to reach so they all look alike. Cultural norms changed because of
Consumo ergo sum - I consume, therefore I am. This turn on the classic phrase I think, therefore I am has become increasingly popular, especially used for reflection on our society and by critics of capitalism. In order to understand our society better, it is important to descry the origins of the capitalistic ecosphere we live in. Traces of consumerism can be found throughout all ages of humanity, however a particularly great shift took place in the eighteenth century. This essay intends to prove that the new culture of consumerism influenced the British society in all aspects during this period. [Why Britain? add Neil Mc Kendrick/Brewer Talk]