The Consumer Culture Of The 1920s

In the 1920’s, America was evolving into a fun, carefree, and entertaining country – or so many people thought. On the outside, many people observed Americans with prosperity, lavish lives, and new opportunities through new technology and inventions. However, although America seemed to be well off at the time and enjoying life, it was only a slight cover up. Inside the country, there was turmoil which included debt and war. For this reason, America earned the reputation of the 1920’s as the Roaring Twenties due to the positive outcomes of the economic conditions, developments in the arts, and developments in entertainment.

The 1920s, often referred to as the Roaring Twenties, was a time of great change and a time of powerful enthusiasm in many areas of society. The world had just finished the biggest war in history, the First World War, and the United States was left almost unharmed by the war. The United States was able to experience a decade of peace and success following the war. During this decade, America became the wealthiest country in the world (Trueman, 2000). The people in the United States went through a colorful period during the twenties. However, at the same time the 1920s was also a very rebellious and difficult time for many. The culture of the 1920s has influenced the culture of America’s society today.

The Roaring Twenties were a time of wild enjoyment, loud music and booming economy. In 1920, for the first time in American history, more

The “Roaring Twenties” saw a rise in consumerism for many reasons. Besides people desiring to shed the thriftiness of past

Changes in American attitude after the war pushed the foundation for consumerism in the 1920’s. The shift to a consumer climate that indulged the individual was a relief after experiencing a survival point of view that is associated with a war time economy. Indulgence and maybe even reward are what individual attitude changed to in the majority of the urban centers. For the first time the technology of the age, shifting attitude of the populace and the economy of the nation aligned for an exciting roar of the 1920’s.

Summary and Definition: The rise of prosperity of the United States in 1920 led to the emergence of American Consumerism in the period in history known as the Roaring Twenties. Consumerism is the theory that it is economically attractive to encourage the attainment of goods and services in ever-increasing amounts. American Consumerism increased during the Roaring Twenties due to technical advances and innovative ideas and inventions in the areas of communication, transportation and manufacturing. Americans moved from the traditional avoidance of debt to the concept by buying goods on credit installments. Mass advertising and marketing techniques via the 1920's newspapers and the radio saw a massive increase in sales

During the 1920’s consumerism started to develop when people wanted to have the latest items on the market when they had the money to purchase such items. The marketplace took full advantage of this by doing radio and paper advertisements. “Sears, Roebuck & Co., a company founded in 1893, regularly issued a mail-order catalog. By the 1920s, the catalog, nicknamed the consumer's bible, had become enormously popular. It completely revolutionized how people purchased items.” (“American Economy in the 1920s: Consumerism, Stock Market & Economic Shift,” 2003) When we buy something today we call it having a payment every month, back then they called this installment buying and buying on credit. This is the era where this stated to become more popular

In the 1920s, enormous cultural change was witnessed in the United States. It was a time of profound change and it is commonly referred to as Roaring Twenties. These historic changes began immediately after the World War I, which ended in 1918, since the United States emerged as the new world superpower. Therefore, the U.S. economy was booming. This was a dynamic decade that is mostly characterized by prosperity, leisure, technological advances, consumerism, and major shifts toward modern values.

The 1920’s, known as the Roaring Twenties, was a luxuriant decade characterized by technological advancement, economic affluence, unprecedented leisure opportunities, and consumerism. Urbanization and innovation shifted traditional values of rural societies to a new way of life. Availability of white collared occupations increased the replacement of blue collared jobs. Women achieved social transformations while experiencing their new sense of freedom. Contrary to the Roaring Twenties flourishing era, the prosperous period was also labeled as being a time of anxiety. This age obtained the frantic reputation due to the effects of the prohibition, a cultural civil war, and lack of government regulation.

Before we began researching on the Mass Consumer Culture of the 1920’s I already knew a little information on the Model-T, the assembly line and of “Buy now, pay later”.However, I just knew a brief information on how it impacted the 1920’s but not in depth. As we began researching I learned that the half of the nation's automobiles were bought through credit and that some department stores created credit lines for customers to buy clothing and other items. In addition, I learned that there were many different ways for advertising. This included the radio, billboards, posters and catchy slogans. After watching my peers presentation I learned that whenever I’m presenting I should be familiar with the topic I am presenting about instead of

The “Roaring Twenties” was the beginning of change for America, from the economy to the society and culture. A few months after World War 1, the 18th Amendment took effect in the United States, which began the prohibition and a spark for change in the lives of the people. The simplistic way of living was no longer used in the urban cities; life had changed from its conservative moral values to a more carefree “live as you please” type of mentality. Due to this change in mental state, the priorities of the people changed and seemed to center on illegal alcohol, liberalism, and money. This made it possible for the arrival of a new culture.

Evidently, the roaring twenties was a period of many changes including the new ways of leading the nation of The United States by president Calvin Coolidge whose first message to Congress was for isolation in foreign policy, tax cuts and limited aid for farmers forcing many people move to cities and live “the modern life” as they called it. As a result of the many technological advancements, and the eagerness of people to have a normal life after The Great War, led many people to acquire consumerism and greed attitudes. American consumerism increased during the 1920s due to innovative ideas and inventions in the fields of communication, transportation and manufacturing. For instance, automobile was the most significant consumer product of the 1920’S that even twenty six and a half million cars existed one for every 4.6 people in the nation.

The “Roaring Twenties” were an age of dramatic political, social, and economic change. Women wanted new and improved rights and the nation’s wealth doubled between 1920 and 1929. Culture, values, and the technology of America changed and it had only just begun.

The Roaring Twenties occurred from 1920 to 1929 and was known as the decade of having fun and spending money. This era in history presents the flourishing of mass-production and consumerism within the economy. This success initially resulted in profiting investors as well as raising the living standard of both the middle and working-class. After World War I, America was introduced to various innovations such as the radio and aviation. When asking Elysia about the Roaring Twenties, she told me that she learned a lot about the topic in 12th grade when reading the popular novel, “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

The 1920’s, nicknamed, “The Roaring Twenties” or “The Jazz Age,” was one of the most exciting and influential decades of the twentieth century. Following the war, America experienced many social, economic, technological, and political changes that reflected the transition from traditional to a modern American culture. The rise of a consumer-oriented economy and mass production led to a “revolution in morals and manners,” (Digital History) and created cultural conflicts among the rebellious younger generation and the older traditional generation. These changes and advancements that occurred during the 1920’s, whether positive or negative, impacted every aspect of American life.