THE EARLY 20 TH CENTURY s-1930s

Transcription

1 THE EARLY 20 TH CENTURY 1920 s-1930s

2 TRADITIONAL TO MODERN 20s represent a dramatic transition from traditional America into Modern America Traditional Ideals Vs. New Modern Ideals: Psychology- Sigmund Freud New Politics- Marx, Max Eastman New Art- Surrealism, Dali, Picasso New Biology- Darwin New Woman- Flappers, Emma Goldman New Immigrants- Southern & Eastern Europe New Mass Culture- Film and radio

3 URBAN VS RURAL For many the 1920 s were a time of independence. More than ½ of the population lived in urban areas/cities Cities are more liberal embraced change Rural areas are more conservative, embraced the past More than ever attended college

4 TRADITIONAL CULTURE VS NEW YOUTH YOUNG PEOPLE BEGAN ENJOYING FREEDOMS: PARTIES DANCING FADS ILLEGAL DRINKING POP MUSIC FAST CARS

5 GIBSON GIRL VS FLAPPER Flapper-a fashionable young woman intent on enjoying herself and flouting conventional standards of behavior women who use their freedom to challenge traditional dress & behavior 2 million women have jobs More women go to college AUGUST TH AMENDMENT WOMEN CAN VOTE

6 DEMOBILIZATION VS WARTIME 4.5 million soldiers return home from war needing jobs Government cancels war contracts totaling billions of dollars Businesses cut production= lay off millions of workers Inflation- demand for goods exceeds supply & prices increase Wages stay the same, workers go on strike 4 mil in 1919 = ECONOMY SUCKS! Need someone to blame

7 LABOR UNREST- MAJOR STRIKES IN 1919 COAL MINERS STRIKE- won wage increases but not better working hours BOSTON POLICE STRIKE- low wages, poor working conditionscity goes into chaos Over 3,000 strikes nationwide, and labor lost in nearly every case

8 THE RED SCARE Communism- major productive resources in a society such as mines, factories, and farms are owned by the public or the state, and wealth is divided among citizens equally or according to individual need Anarchists- people that want all government abolished Red Scare- promoting the fear of the rise of communist and other radical groups Radicals and Communists were rounded up in Palmer Raids Mitchell Palmer- Attorney General that led anti communist campaign Gave the government broad power against suspected radicals. In late 1919 Palmer's forces arrested thousands and deported (send back to home country by force) hundreds.

9 THE RED SCARE Many thought these Communist ideas would lead to a revolution in America Radicals & Communists used as Scapegoats for the Post-war economic downturn- blamed for strikes Xenophobia- fear and hatred of foreigners As Communism overseas began to fail, Red Scare dies down

10 THE EXTREME RED SCARE The Trial of Sacco and Vanzetti Two Italian immigrants charged with robbery & murder in Massachusetts Accused of being anarchist- really communist sympathizers No solid evidence Executed August 23, 1927 Shows the Extremes of the Red Scare Its been proven that it was Sacco s gun but no evidence that Vanzetti had anything to do with it

11 TRADITION VS NEW SCIENCE Fundamentalism: Taught the Bible was free from error, or literally true Strongest in rural areas Examples of leaders include Billy Sunday and Aimee Semple McPherson Scopes Trial: Fundamentalists oppose Darwin s theory of evolution (man has evolved over time- No God) Butler Law- Illegal to teach evolution in Tennessee John T Scopes jailed for teaching evolution in school

12 SCOPES TRIAL Trial turns into media circus Scopes is convicted and fined $100 Later Supreme Court over turns his convictionhowever teaching evolution still illegal until the 60s. Significance: Shows the New intellectual challenges to traditional beliefs

13 IMMIGRATION REFRESH YOUR MEMORIES! Emergency Quota Act? National Origins Act? Chinese Exclusion Act? Where are Old Immigrants from? Where are New Immigrants from?

14 KU KLUX KLAN WASPS- WHITE ANGLO SAXON PROTESTANTS Grew dramatically in the 1920s Many of its members were people from rural America who saw their status declining adding immigrant, Catholics, Jews to hate. Used violence, targeting African Americans, Catholics, Jews, and all immigrants In the 1920s, the Klan focused on influencing politics. The Klan s membership was mostly in the South but spread nationwide. Peak membership was in the millions, many from Indiana, Illinois, and Ohio. Membership declined in the late 1920s because of a series of scandals affecting Klan leaders. The goals of the new Klan were to preserve the U.S. for white native-born Protestants.

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16 RACISM VS MINORITY RIGHTS The Great Migration- The movement of millions of African Americans from Southern states to Northern cities (St. Louis, Chicago, Detroit, Baltimore, New York) Minorities organize to protect their rights. Who are leaders we discussed last unit? Harlem Renaissance- Thousands of southern African Americans that settled in New York feel a new sense of pride and self in this new place- huge cultural burst- writers, musicians, thinkers, artists Writers- James Weldon Johnson- wrote of facing prejudice Poets- Langston Hughes- wrote of black defiance and hope Artists- Aaron Douglas- focused on experiences of African Americans Performers- Josephine Baker Musicians- Jazz- music that was often improvised and innovative in sound. Louis Armstrong (trumpet) and Duke Ellington (pianist)

17 MEXICAN AMERICANS Immigration restrictions did not apply to Mexico 1 million Mexicans moved to the U.S. Most settled in the southwest- Texas, California Johnson-Reed Act- part of the national origins act- less than 2% Mexican-Americans became primary source of immigrant labor Dominated agriculture and construction jobs Exploited and discriminated against Los Angeles to Mexican-Americans what Harlem was to African Americans

18 RECREATION VS PROHIBITION 18th Amendment- Banned the sale, manufacture & transportation of alcoholic beverages Strong support in rural areas, strong opposition in urban areas Difficult to enforce Speakeasies = secret illegal clubs that served alcohol Bootleggers- People who smuggled liquor into the U.S. from Canada & Mexico Feds attempt to shut speakeasies down- Task force of only 3,000, Impossible task Moonshiners- one who makes illegal, distilled alcohol

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20 December 1933 (lasted 13 years) 21st Amendment Ends prohibition

21 AL CAPONE Al Scarface Capone takes control of the bootlegging business in Chicago Prohibition- Millions of dollars from businesses to criminal activity St Valentine s Day Massacre: Capone wants to be top dog Kills off six members of Irish gang Now crime boss of Chicago By 1927 making $60 mill a year from beer sales 1931 convicted of tax evasion & sent to Alcatraz- 32 YEARS OLD Syphilis, gonorrhea, cocaine addiction Paroled in 1939 Dies of syphilis January 24, 1947 in his home at Palm Island

22 ISOLATION VS MASS COMMUNICATION AND CULTURE News papers, magazines, Radio and Film unite collectively to create American Culture New advertising and Credit created a consumer society Credit- the ability of a customer to obtain goods or services before payment, based on the trust that payment will be made in the future Radios also became very popular during the 1920 s as families gathered around the radio to listen to music, comedies, and mysteries. Ads in newspapers selling products to make life easier

23 Efficiency decreases the cost of cars $ $ $290 ASSEMBLY LINE Industries that boomed as a result of the booming car industry Steel, Rubber, Oil, Construction (need for roads and bridges), glass, paint, housing, etc Income increases Purchasing more goods Companies earn higher profits Companies expand and hire more people

24 MUSIC Unites culture Blues: from Delta, expressing the difficulties of Southern life Jazz: blended many influences of Negro spirituals, European harmonies, and West African rhythms

25 OPTIMISM VS PESSIMISM Writing that expressed cynicism and pessimism of modernity Cynicism- belief that people are motivated by self interest, not out of pure good will Pessimism- tendency to see the worst or believe the worst will happen, lack of hope or confidence in the future Focuses upon the futility of life for the common man against an overwhelming system Alienated White artists F. Scott Fitzgerald The Great Gatsby (The American Dream) Ernest Hemingway A Farewell to Arms (The joys and pain and misery of love) William Faulkner The Sound and the Fury (feeling misunderstood, complicated)