American Life in the Roaring Twenties, 1919 1929
CHAPTER 31
American Life in the “Roaring Twenties,” 1919–1929
PART I: Reviewing the Chapter
A. Checklist of Learning Objectives
After mastering this chapter, you should be able to:
1. Explain and analyze America’s turn toward social conservatism and normalcy following World War I.
2. Describe the cultural conflicts of the 1920s over such issues as immigration, cultural pluralism, and prohibition; and describe the rise of organized crime during the decade.
3. Describe the rise of Protestant Fundamentalism and its apparent defeat in the landmark Scopes Trial.
4. Discuss the rise of the mass-consumption economy, led by the automobile industry.
5. Describe the cultural revolution brought about by radio, films, and changing sexual standards, and the resulting anxiety it produced.
6. Explain how new ideas and values were reflected and promoted in the innovative American literature and music of the 1920s, including the African American Harlem Renaissance.
7. Explain how the era’s cultural changes affected women and African Americans.
B. Glossary
To build your social science vocabulary, familiarize yourself with the following terms.
1. syndicalismA theory or movement that advocates bringing all economic and political power into the hands of labor unions by means of strikes. “. . . a number of legislatures . . . passed criminal syndicalism laws.”
2. Bible BeltThe region of the American South, extending roughly from North Carolina west to Oklahoma and Texas, where Protestant Fundamentalism and belief in literal interpretation of the Bible have traditionally been strongest. “. . . the Klan spread with astonishing rapidity, especially in the Midwest and the ‘Bible Belt’ South.”
3. provincialNarrow and limited; isolated from cosmopolitan influences. “Isolationist America of the 1920s, ingrown and provincial, had little use for the immigrants. . . .”
4. racketeerA person who obtains money illegally by fraud, bootlegging, gambling, or threats of violence. “Racketeers even invaded the ranks of local labor unions. . . .”
5. underworldThose who live outside society’s laws, by vice or crime. “. . . the annual ‘take’ of the underworld was estimated to be from $12 billion to $18 billion. . . .”
6. creditIn business, the arrangement of purchasing goods or services immediately but making the payment at a later date. “Buying on credit was another innovative feature of the postwar economy.”
7. installment planA credit system by which goods already acquired are paid for in a series of payments at specified intervals. “. . . encouraged by tempting installment-plan buying, countless Americans with shallow purses acquired the habit of riding as they paid.”
8. magnateAn influential person in a large-scale enterprise. “. . . an outraged public forced the screen magnates to set up their own rigorous code of censorship.”
9. repressionIn psychology, the forcing of instincts or ideas painful to the conscious mind into the unconscious, where they continue to exercise influence. “The Viennese physician appeared to argue that sexual repression was responsible for a variety of nervous and emotional ills.”
10. charismatic Concerning the personal magnetism or appeal of a leader for his or her followers; literally, “gift of grace.” “Harlem in the 1920s also spawned a charismatic political leader, Marcus Garvey.”
11. functionalismThe theory that a plan or design should be derived from practical purpose. “Architecture also married itself to the new materialism and functionalism.”
12. surtaxA special tax, usually involving a raised percentage increase on an already existing tax. “. . . Congress . . . abolish[ed] the surtax, the income tax, and estate taxes.”
PART II: Checking Your Progress
A. True-False
Where the statement is true, circle T; where it is false, circle F.
1. T F The red scare of 1919–1920 brought the United States to the brink of war with the revolutionary Communist government in Russia.
2. T F The Sacco-Vanzetti case aroused worldwide protest because of alleged prejudice by the judge and jury against the atheistic immigrant defendants.
3. T F The revived Ku Klux Klan remained a powerful force in American politics until the onset of the Great Depression.
4. T F The Immigration Act of 1924, for the first time, severely limited the numbers of immigrants and discriminated against those from eastern and southern Europe.
5. T F Some intellectuals, like Horace Kallen and Randolph Bourne, believed that immigrants should be able to retain elements of their own cultures and thus contribute to a more diverse and cosmopolitan America.
6. T F One major consequence of prohibition was the rise of organized crime that controlled liquor distribution as well as drugs, gambling, and prostitution.
7. T F The Scopes trial verdict acquitted biology teacher John Thomas Scopes and overturned the Tennessee law prohibiting the teaching of evolution in the schools.
8. T F Two major innovations of the new consumer economy were mass advertising and the ability to purchase goods on credit without paying the full price immediately.
9. T F The automobile had major social and cultural effects in weakening family life and offering new freedom to women and youth.
10. T F D.W. Griffiths’ film, The Birth of a Nation, was the first major Hollywood production to present African Americans in a positive light.
11. T F The 1920s saw attempts to restore stricter standards of sexual behavior, especially for women.
12. T F The Harlem Renaissance and the rise of jazz both reflected a new racial pride among African Americans.
13. T F The most prominent writers of the 1920s upheld the moral virtues of small-town American life against the critical attitudes and moral questioning of the big cities.
14. T F Many American writers and artists of the 1920s sought escape from what they saw as the narrow culture of the United States by moving abroad to Mexico.
15. T F The real estate and stock market booms of the 1920s were fueled by large amounts of risky speculation and excessive credit.
B. Multiple Choice
Select the best answer and circle the corresponding letter.
1. The red scare of the early 1920s was initially set off by
a. the Sacco-Vanzetti case.
b. the rise of the radical Industrial Workers of the World.
c. the Bolshevik revolution in Russia.
d. an influx of radical immigrants.
e. the revelation of American Communist infiltration of the federal government.
2. Besides attacking minorities like Catholics, blacks, and Jews, the Ku Klux Klan of the 1920s opposed contemporary cultural changes, such as
a. evolution and birth control. b. patriotism and immigration restriction.
b. prohibition and higher education. d. novels and modern architecture.
c. automobiles and airplanes.
3. The quota system established for immigration in the 1920s was based partly on the idea that
a. many of the political refugees from war-torn Europe were likely radicals or communists.
b. immigrants from northern and western Europe were superior to those from southern and eastern Europe.
c. the era of European immigration would be replaced by immigration from Latin America.
d. immigration should be based on family connections, education, and job skills, not ethnic group.
e. the United States was becoming increasingly overpopulated.
4. Progressive intellectuals, like Horace Kallen and Randolph Bourne, differed from most Americans of the 1920s in believing that
a. the continuing divisions of language and religion among the working class enabled employers to exploit workers and crush unions.
b. southern and eastern European cultures were as sophisticated as those from northern and western Europe.
c. racial and economic justice was more important that cultural issues.
d. immigrants should be able to preserve elements of their culture and not be forced to conform to a single American model.
e. the U.S. government should recognize more than one official language.
5. One major impact of prohibition was
a. a rise in criminal organizations that supplied illegal liquor.
b. an improvement in family relations and the general moral tone of society.
c. a turn from alcohol to other forms of substance abuse.
d. the rise of voluntary self-help organizations like Alcoholics Anonymous.
e. a heightened respect for law enforcement at the local, state, and federal levels.
6. The essential issue in the Scopes trial was whether
a. scientists ought to be allowed to investigate the biological origins of humanity.
b. the teachings of Darwin could be reconciled with those of religion.
c. Darwinian evolutionary science could be taught in the public schools.
d. Fundamentalist Protestants could use public school facilities for their meetings.
e. the teaching of Darwinism would inevitably lead to sex education in the schools.
7. The term Fordism was widely used to describe businessman Henry Ford’s innovation of
a. Ford’s anti-Semitism and hostility to education.
b. applying the internal combustion engine to a vehicle that the ordinary person could own.
c. a system of time and motion studies designed to improve efficiency in manufacturing.
d. assembly-line mass production of identical, relatively cheap manufactured goods.
e. permitting customers to purchase automobiles on credit with little money down.
8. One of the primary social effects of the new automobile age was a
a. growing migration from cities to smaller towns and rural areas.
b. strengthening of intergenerational ties among parents, children, and grandchildren.
c. tightening of restrictions on women.
d. closing of the gap between the working class and the wealthy.
e. weakening of traditional family ties between parents and youth.
9. Radio and the movies both had the cultural effect of
a. increasing Americans’ interest in history and literature.
b. enabling the sophisticated culture of the wealthy elite to spread to the masses.
c. encouraging producers of culture to adapt their products to a wide a variety of tastes.
d. encouraging local creativity and ending cultural dependence on a few big cities.
e. increasing standardized mass culture and weakening traditional forms of family and neighborhood culture.
10. Among the major changes vigorously pursued by many American women in the 1920s were
a. expanded voting rights and political equality.
b. economic equality and equal pay for equal work.
c. social reform and family welfare.
d. leadership in national business and politics.
e. opportunities for adventure and sexual liberation.
11. The primary achievement of Marcus Garvey’s Universal Negro Improvement Association was its
a. promotion of black jazz and blues.
b. positive impact on black racial pride.
c. economic program of economic development in Harlem.
d. successful transportation of numerous America blacks to Africa.
e. formation of an organization designed to promote racial integration and equality.
12. H.L. Mencken’s magazine, American Mercury, appealed to many young literary rebels by
a. encouraging American writers to migrate abroad to Paris.
b. promoting a program of progressive economic and social reform.
c. its regular publication of sexually explicit writing and images.
d. attacking the American middle class, patriotism, and Puritan do-gooders.
e. its popular appeal to a great variety of Americans.
13. Many of the prominent new writers of the 1920s were
a. fascinated by their historical roots in old New England.
b. disgusted with European domination of American culture.
c. interested especially in nature and social reform.
d. rooted in the traditions and values of the South.
e. highly critical of traditional American Puritanism and small-town life.
14. The center of the African-American literary and cultural revival of the 1920s was
a. Atlanta. b. Harlem, in New York City.
b. New Orleans. d. Paris.
c. Chicago.
15. During the 1920s, Treasury Secretary Andrew Mellon and the Republican Congress pursued the economic policy of
a. encouraging stock and real estate speculation.
b. permitting the federal debt to grow substantially in order to stimulate the economy.
c. cutting taxes for the wealthy and shifting the tax burden to the middle class.
d. promoting higher wages so that the lower income groups could purchase goods and keep the economy growing.
e. favoring old industries, like textiles and steel, over new industries, like consumer appliance manufacturing.
C. Identification
Supply the correct identification for each numbered description.
1. ______The public panic of 1919–1920, spawned by fear of Bolshevik revolution, that resulted in the arrest and deportation of many radicals
2. ______Hooded defenders of Anglo-Saxon and Protestant values against immigrants, Catholics, and Jews
3. ______Restrictive legislation of 1924 that reduced the number of newcomers to the United States and discriminated against immigrants from southern and eastern Europe
4. ______Theory advocated by Bourne, Kallen, and others that immigrants should be able to retain elements of their traditions within a diverse America, rather than being forced to melt all differences
5. ______National policy created by the passage of the Eighteenth Amendment, which led to widespread lawbreaking and the rise of organized crime
6. ______Legal battle over teaching evolution that pitted modern science against Fundamentalist religion
7. ______Henry Ford’s cheap, rugged, mass-produced automobile
8. ______D. W. Griffiths’ epic film of 1915 about the Reconstruction era that prompted protests and boycotts by African Americans
9. ______One of the few new consumer products of the 1920s that encouraged people to stay at home rather than away from home and family
10. ______Movement led by feminist Margaret Sanger that contributed to changing sexual behaviors, especially for women
11. ______Syncopated style of music created by blacks that first attained widespread national popularity in the 1920s
12. ______Marcus Garvey’s self-help organization that proposed to the resettlement of blacks in Africa
13. ______H. L. Mencken’s monthly magazine that led the literary attack on traditional moral values, the middle class, and Puritanism
14. ______F. Scott Fitzgerald’s influential first novel of 1920 that celebrated youth and helped set the tone for the emerging jazz age of the decade
15. ______The explosion of creativity in a New York City district that encouraged African American artists, writers, and musicians to celebrate racial pride
D. Putting Things in Order
Put the following events in correct order by numbering them from 1 to 5.
1. ______The trial of a Tennessee high-school biology teacher symbolizes a national conflict over values of religion and science.
2. ______Fear of the Bolshevik revolution sparks a crusade against radicals and Communists in America.
3. ______A modest young man becomes a national hero by accomplishing a bold feat of aviation.