VUS.10a - 1920's Popular Culture

The student will apply social science skills to understand key events during the 1920s and 1930s by

a) analyzing how popular culture evolved and challenged traditional values;

The 1920’s and 1930’s were a time of cultural and economic changes in the nation.  During this period the nation faced significant domestic challenges including the Great Depression.

Popular culture began to evolve into an age of modernism that challenged traditional values.

Modernism marked the beginning of a period that rejected conventional ways of viewing and interacting with the world. The movement was reflected in art, architecture, literature, music, entertainment, and fashion.

Mass media and communications 

 Radio: Broadcast jazz, entertainment programing, sporting events, and Fireside Chats 

 Movies: Provided escape from Depression-era realities 

 Newspapers and magazines: Shaped cultural norms, established a consumer culture, and sparked fads

Challenges to traditional values 

 Traditional religion: Darwin’s theory, the Scopes Trial 

 Traditional role of women: Flappers, 19th Amendment 

 Open immigration: Rise of new Ku Klux Klan (KKK), a Red Scare 

 Prohibition: Smuggling alcohol, speakeasies

Terms & Events

Mass Media

Prosperity

Jazz

Traditional values

Popular Culture

Cultural Norms

Darwin’s Theory of Evolution

Scopes Trail

KKK

Prohibition

Smuggling

Speakeasies

People

Flappers