Social And Cultural Rebellion In The 1920's

The Roaring Twenties, The Jazz Age, The Lost Generation. Never has a decade spurred as many different nicknames as the 1920’s has. The ‘20’s were a decade subject to lots of change, and therefore lots of social and cultural rebellion. Not only were Women’s Rights addressed, but the consumer industry and mass culture was born. Many new attitudes and morals were also adopted. However, while I believe this period to be the epitome of social and cultural rebellion, others may argue that any changes were only superficial.

To begin with, Women’s Rights were finally addressed during the ‘20’s. Women also shed many of their old household responsibilities.
Women could vote at last: The 19th Amendment to the Constitution had guaranteed this right
Before this decade, women's clothes were conservative and uncomfortable. “Bodies were boned and corseted into an hourglass shape, with waists forced into tiny circlets measuring less than 20 inches,” (Just the swing.com). “Skirts hit the floor, and the sight of even an ankle was considered to be quite racy.”
The liberating fashion of the 1920s was a huge shift from the constraining, stuffy Victorianism fashion of the past. Besides shorter and looser clothing, women also started to embrace a new bob hairstyle. Mary Garden, a famous opera singer during this time, cited her reasons for bobbing her hair. “I felt freer without long, entangling tresses,” (Garden). “I had my hair cut short because, to me, it typified a progressive step...”
New inventions and technology during this time also indirectly helped women gain more independence. New cookers, electric irons, refrigerators, washing machines, and vacuum cleaners created more leisure time. Also, the increased availability of birth-control devices made it possible to have fewer children. The combination of labor saving devices and having less children allowed women more
People became more materialistic, and concerned with luxurious items. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby was a popular book published during the ‘20’s, and describes the tragedy caused by the frantic search for material success. The main character of Fitzgerald’s novel, Gatsby, displayed his wealth at extravagant parties. “On week-ends his Rolls-Royce became an omnibus, bearing parties to and from the city between nine in the morning and long past midnight,” (F. Fitzgerald). Before, America was a country of farmers, of poor immigrants. However, during this decade, the wealth doubled. As a result, extravagance was emphasized throughout