Mass Consumer Culture Of The 1920's

Throughout American history and the 1900’s, fads have been a hugely successful form of self expression. From fashion, to recreation, to dumb and sometimes dangerous things that youths do, fads are a way to distract from the troubles of the world and find something else fun to do.

The 1920s is notorious for being a good time, with its reputation of being full of fun parties and extravagant living. Those wealthy enough were able to enjoy that along with all the other changes in American culture. In the 1920s the use of installment buying, credit, and stock market investments became a typical part of life. Technology that improved home life, like vacuums and radio, were desired, and these shifts in culture added to the stigma that good times would continue forever. The American people were not aware that common habits in the 1920s would lead to the Great Depression in the 1930s, during which unemployment reached over 25%, the economy struggled, and the fun times ended. The Great Depression was caused by experts that encouraged

The Jazz Age which is also referred to as the Roaring Twenties began after World War I took place and lasted until 1929, when the Great Depression began. The 1920s opened up a world of change to Americans; some did not approve and others, especially those in the big cities, celebrated with music and dance every day. There were numerous inventions that were being created throughout the 1920s and because of nationwide advertisement; people all over America were able to buy all the same stuff as one another. But unfortunately, times were different for those that lived in Colorado.

The nineteen twenties can be summed up as one of the most important improvements on theatre, paintings, music, building, and culture.

When Korean veterans returned from the fighting, everyone was overjoyed to be reunited with their loved ones after two huge, deadly wars.

The rise in advertisement played a key role in the rise of consumption. Thanks to well-developed advertisement campaigns, America redefined what a necessity is. Advertisers encouraged Americans to actively work towards maintaining a high social standing. “Advertisers made no secret of their intention to promote novelty for its own sake, in the hope that consumers would exchange perfectly serviceable goods for goods that conformed to the latest fashions” (Lasch, 2000). Consumers devoured this advertisement scheme and began to rapidly increase their spending. Many advertisements for common, household products made claim that they could make the normal appear comparable to the high end. For example, Lux, a soap company, ran an ad in 1920 that depicted two women talking - one of the women complemented on the other on the quantity of sweaters she owned, only to find out that it is not a new sweater, but rather her old sweater that Lux soap made it look brand new (Lux)! Men and women alike began to believe

The Roaring Twenties started in North America and spread to Europe as the effects of World War I diminished. In Europe, the years following the First World War (1919-1923) were marked by a deep recession. Europe spent these years in rebuilding and coming to terms with the vast human cost of the conflict. Unlike in the aftermath of World War II, the United States did little to try to rebuild Europe. Instead, it took an increasingly isolationist stance (Answers, 2006).

Three ways society changed in the 1920’s are through culture, economy, and social norms like fashion and women's rights. The 1920’s was a time of change. The United States had just won the war and after the war the United States just wanted to “return to normalcy”. But nothing was normal after the war; the 1920s was a time where the United States was at a peak prosperity. But this can be countered with organized gang violence, increased rate of murder, and countless robberies. Even though prosperity in the 1920s can be counter argued. Overall the 1920s was a time of change; a time for a change in culture, for a change in the economy, and for a change in social norms.

The Roaring Twenties began in the 1920s. It was known as the Modern Age because it brought changes and innovations. The Roaring Twenties took place right after World War I. Millions of people died and it was a horrible event. Soldiers returned and everyone went through a hard time. People wanted to forget this catastrophic event so when they returned they tried to forget the past and live the moment. Many wanted to to enjoy themselves, they began to value convenience and leisure over hard work and denial. World War I brought changes. People started to drink, party, and enjoying life. However, the 1920s was not only butterflies and rainbows. It was a really hard time for farmers, women, African Americans, and immigrants.

The influence of 1920 mass culture deserves some consideration in the shaping of the country although the commercial growth of the 1920s did not really Americanize working- class Chicagoans as deeply and as quickly as one would think. It is quite evident that mass culture by itself did not actually modernized American society in the1920s; it was more how mass culture was consumed that really had the greatest impact on ethnic workers. Despite many Americans changing the way they purchased goods and services, nowhere was that change more evident than in the middle class communities. On the contrary workers from the manufacturing sectors did not benefit equally from the growing wealth during the 1920s. The decade had failed to remove economic uncertainty with unemployment remaining high and the fear of not finding a job or losing a job forcing workers to focus on economic security rather than spending.

During the 1920s, there occur several social and political changes occurred. For the first time, Americans began to step out of their comfort circles. Nicknames for the decade, such as “the Jazz Age” or “the Roaring Twenties,” in a way express all of the excitement it was like to have lived through out such a time. As the economy boomed, wages rose for most Americans and prices fell, resulting in a higher standard of living and a dramatic increase in consumer consumption. More and more people began to go out and live life under a new light and experiment with new things.

America had been a generally conservative nation with a population that avoided personal debt. However, this would all change during the decade known as “The Roaring Twenties.” This prosperous period embodied huge changes in the general lifestyle and culture of the American people as they embraced consumerism. However, during the 1920s the economy also faced numerous unfortunate events and unstable practices that would lead to one of the world’s worst economic crashes. There were many reasons for the economic downfall, including mass production and consumerism, excess credit and ‘playing’ the stock market, which led to the stock market crash in 1929.

The Roaing Twenties was a time of greatness while the Harlem Renaisance was a boom throughtout the United States for African Americans. Many jobs came as the industries increased and the rich were getting too much money, but when the thirties came around the United States went into a terrible place, offering little hope. For example, families lived in single-bedroom dwellings, people were on the streets, and kids worked in the factories. As a result, the short stories of the Modern Era by Fitzgerald, Welty, Steinbeck, O’Connor, Porter and a poem by Frost all show the good times and the very tough times of these decades.

During the 1950’s art took a major turn in history from traditional styles depicting people and scenes of everyday life to abstract thoughts and ideas that were transformed onto a canvas to express emotions and ideals in society. People, events, and society have always impacted several styles of art, but the consumer culture in the 1950’s impacted art in a new completely unique way. Post WWII society was more industrialized and more focused on developing and selling new products. The postwar generation had more disposable income to spend on the latest and greatest products and the market turned to advertisements in mass media to get their products out there to consumers. With televisions and films increasing in popularity the market flooded these forms of media with catchy flashy ads that showed favorable people like movie stars using products. With the increasing use of mass media, the culture shifted to consumerism which effectively shifted art as well. Art was directly impacted by the consumer culture because of society’s use of advertisements, photographs, and films which artists like Richard Hamilton and Andy Warhol used those elements in their own works to portray the change of societal standards in a new modern style of art called pop art.

The concept of free-market played an essential role in making American people in the 1960s believe that it is important for them to fight communism through any means possible. Consumerism had reached a point where it had become indispensable and the benefits that it brought along made it difficult and virtually impossible for the community to express interest in economic systems other than capitalism. One of the principal reasons why the Cold War occurred relates to the West's obsession with materialism and with the fact that this precious concept could be destroyed as a result of communist ideas pervading the Western society.