1. Chapter 23
Coping with Change

2. Introduction
In many ways modern America began in the “Roaring Twenties”
It was a time of rapid economic growth, technological advances, and changing social and cultural values
With millions of cars coming off Detroit’s assembly lines, Americans took to the roads
They were entertained by movies and radio programs
They bought an array of new consumer products
All of these new developments in society stimulated great artistic creativity, but also contributed to social tensions, fears, and culture wars

3. Introduction (cont.)
1.) Why was the economy so prosperous in the 1920’s and how were different social groups affected by the economic boom?
2.) What were the dominant political values of the 1920’s, and how did Republican presidents of the period represent them?
3.) What was the new popular culture of the decade, and which Americans did it barely touch?

4. Introduction (cont.)
4.) What developments in the period contributed to both the social tensions and the artistic flowering?

5. A New Economic Order Booming Business, Ailing Agriculture
Demobilization following WWI disrupted the economy
Caused a sharp recession
By 1922, recovery had set in
For the rest of the decade the economy grew rapidly and prospered
Development of electric appliances
Refrigerators
Washing machines
Vacuum cleaners
Development of the automobile industries

6. Booming Business, Ailing Agriculture (cont.)
Mass production of cars:
created hundreds of thousands of jobs
Stimulated a host of related industries
Rubber
Oil
Steel
Highway construction
American business also invested heavily abroad and loaned $$$$ to European nations to help them repay war debts
High protective tariffs in the 1920’s tended to suppress international trade

7. Booming Business, Ailing Agriculture (cont.)
Wages rose overall during the decade
But not all workers shared in the pay increases:
Southern workers
African-Americans
Mexican-Americans
Recent immigrants
Female workers

8. Booming Business, Ailing Agriculture (cont.)
American farmers did well during WWI
After the armistice European and domestic markets contracted
Prices plunged
Farmers need to repay loans and mortgages
Farmers tried to compensate by growing more
This created a surpluses that drown down produce prices further
Agriculture remained a depressed sector of the economy throughout the 1920’s

9. New Modes of Producing, Managing, and Selling
Introduction of the assembly line and other technological advances brought more than 40% increase in productivity between 1919 and 1929
History Channel video--assembly line
This led to bigger profits
A wave of corporate merges
By 1930, 100 corporations controlled almost 1/2 of the business done in the U.S.A.
Competition disappeared
Corporations joined together in trade associations
Fixed prices
Divide markets

10. New Modes of Producing, Managing, and Selling (cont.)
A network of chain stores developed
Displaced small, independently owned retail stores
Big business successfully boosted sales and profits
Introduced credit
Relied heavily on advertising
Business influence and values pervaded all areas of American life in the 1920’s:
Big businessmen became the new cultural heroes
Politicians vied to serve business
Organized religion tired to copy its selling techniques

11. Women in the New Economic Era
The proportion of women working outside the home stayed at about 24%
Working women earned less than men holding similar jobs
The growth of large corporation increased the need for:
Secretaries
Typists
Filing clerks
Few women broke into management positions
Teaching and nursing were typical female professions

12. Struggling Labor Unions in a Business Age
The 1920’s were an unsuccessful time for organized labor
Union membership fell from 5 million in 1920 to 3.4 million in 1929
Management discouraged the growth of unions:
Intimidation
Violence
Insistence on the open shop
Use of scab labor during strikes
Introduction by some companies of benefits such as stock purchase plans
Employers often charged that unions and strikes were Communist led

13. The Harding and Coolidge Administrations
Stand Pat Politics in a Decade of Change
1920 election
Republicans nominated Warren G. Harding
Democrats nominated James Cox
Harding easily won
Harding admin. was riddled with corruption
He put friends in high positions which they abused

14. Stand Pat Politics in a Decade of Change (cont.)
Charles Forbes
Veterans’ Bureau chief
Stole bureau funds
Harry Daugherty
Attorney General of the Justice Department
Sold influence and immunity from prosecution
Albert Fall
Sec. of the Interior
Leased govt. oil reserves at Teapot Dome, WY and other locations to favored businessmen in exchange for bribes

15. Stand Pat Politics in a Decade of Change (cont.)
In the fall of 1923, Harding had a heart attack and died
Calvin Coolidge assumed the presidency

16. Republican Policy Making in a Probusiness Era
In the Coolidge administration corruption lessened
The probusiness attitudes continued
High tariffs protected domestic manufacturers from foreign competition
“trickle down” theory
Supported by Sec. of Treasury Andrew Mellon
Congress lowered federal taxes for the wealthy

17. Republican Policy Making in a Probusiness Era (cont.)
Supreme Court declared the federal child labor law unconstitutional
Under Chief Justice William Howard Taft
Appointed by Harding

18. Republican Policy Making in a Probusiness Era (cont.)
Even though Coolidge promoted govt. assistance to business, he opposed federal aid to all other groups
He refused to extend relief to 1927 flood victims
Twice vetoed the McNary-Haugen bill
Which proposed to have Washington buy up surplus farm commodities at good prices

19. Independent Internationalism
The U.S.A. followed an independent internationalism
Protected what it saw as U.S. global interests only
Did not join the League of Nations or the World Court
International naval arms conference
1921
In Washington D.C.
Called by Harding’s Sec. of State, Charles E. Hughes
Treaties that imposed a 10-year moratorium on battleship construction
Pledged the major powers to respect each other’s territorial possessions in the Pacific

20. Independent Internationalism (cont.)
The 1920’s Republican administrations also insisted that the WWI allies repay a portion of their war debts to the U.S.
Then they made it difficult for them to do so
Curtailed their sales of goods in the U.S. with high protective tariffs

21. Progressive Stirrings, Democratic Party Divisions
Progressive reform sentiment did not completely disappear in the 1920’s
A coalition of labor and farm groups in 1924 revived the Progressive Party
Nominated Robert LaFollette for president
Democrats nominated John W. Davis
The party was split between urban and rural wings
Republicans nominated Coolidge
Coolidge easily won

22. Women and Politics in the 1920’s: A Dream Deferred
Ratification of the 19th amendment had less impact on politics in the 1920’s than many women’s rights advocates predicted
The women’s movement splintered:
Some feminists backed an equal rights amendment
Other feared it would undermine laws protecting female workers

23. Mass Society, Mass Culture
Cities, Cars, Consumer Goods
This was the 1st decade in which the majority of Americans lived in cities
City life-styles and values spread to more and more of the population
The new consumer goods were most readily available to city dwellers
New electric appliances transformed household duties
Supermarkets
Commercial bakeries

24. Cities, Cars, Consumer Goods (cont.)
Automobiles had the biggest impact on American culture
Traffic jams
Parking problems
Mounting accidental deaths
Reduced parental supervision of young adults
The spread of suburbs
History Channel video--car

25. Soaring Energy Consumption and a Threatened Environment
The mass production and sales of cars and electric appliances took a heavy toll on the environment and natural resources
Generating enough electricity to power the new appliances consumed millions of tons of coal
The biggest users of oil and gasoline were the millions of automobiles

26. Soaring Energy Consumption and a Threatened Environment (cont.)
The nation wasted and needlessly depleted fossil fuels
Pollution of the atmosphere all came from the cars, power plants, steel mills, and other industries
Cars also made it easier for people to visit wilderness areas
Tourists’ demands for good roads, hotels, and other amenities in pristine areas soon threatened to ruin them
A few groups protested
Americans on the whole were indifferent to the environmental threat

27. Mass-Produced Entertainment
Americans increasingly turned to mass-produced entertainment
Assembly line production made work less fulfilling and less time consuming
Popular magazines built massive circulations
Reader’s Digest
All over the U.S. people listened to the same radio programs and watched the same movies
Produced a more homogeneous national culture

28. Mass-Produced Entertainment (cont.)
The new standardized culture did not permeate all segments
In rural areas, evangelical Christians denounced much of the mass entertainment as godless
Mexican-Americans and African-Americans maintained most of their own vibrant ethnic culture

29. Celebrity Culture
Mass communication made possible by radio and film created nationwide heroes and media events
Sports celebrities:
Babe Ruth
Ty Cobb
Jack Dempsey
Charles Lindbergh
Solo flight across the Atlantic
History Channel video--flight
History Channel speech--Coolidge on Lindbergh

30. Cultural Ferment and Creativity
The Jazz Age and the Postwar Crisis of Values
In the so-called Jazz Age,some young people rejected the values of their elders on sexual matters, dress, and decorum
The ideas of Sigmund Freud became popular
psychoanalysis
Women asserted their freedom by discussing sex openly, wearing makeup, smoking, and shortening their skirts, and their hair

31. The Jazz Age and the Postwar Crisis of Values (cont.)
This upheaval in manners and morals primarily affected the urban middle class
Most farmers, African-Americans, industrial workers, and recent immigrants were more concerned with economic survival than experimenting with new life-styles

32. Alienated Writers
The 1920’s saw the emergence of many talented writers writers
Sinclair Lewis, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald
They were often critical of:
the narrow-minded, small-town values of prewar America
the materialistic business culture of the twenties
Some felt so uncomfortable with the 1920’s America that they spent much of the decade abroad
They did care deeply about finding and creating an “authentic” American culture through their works

33. Lewis, Hemingway, and Fitzgerald

34. Alienated Writers (cont.)
In his American Mercury magazines, Henry L. Mencken championed the works of these new writers
He also kept up a steady barrage of ridicule of American politics and society

35. Architects, Painters, and Musicians Confront Modern America
architecture
American cities in the 1920’s were filled with skyscrapers
Painters
American artists painted the American scene
Urban and rural
Past and present
Thomas Hart Benton
Edward Hopper
Joseph Stella
Georgia O’Keeffe

36. Architects, Painters, and Musicians Confront Modern America (cont.)
New classical composers appeared
Aaron Copland
The unique contribution of America to the musical world was jazz
George Gershwin
Jelly Roll Morton
Louis Armstrong
Duke Ellington

37. The Harlem Renaissance
Led by the growing African-American population in the northern cities
Harlem in New York City
New York City had a concentration of:
Recording companies
Book and magazine publishers
Theater productions
African-American civil-rights organizations
NAACP headquarters
These drew African-American artists, writers, composers, musicians, and intellectuals
Most of the U.S.A. and the West Indies

38. The Harlem Renaissance (cont.)
Whites flocked to Harlem’s jazz clubs to hear these musicians
All-black stage shows played on Broadway
White-owned publishing houses printed the novels and short stories
Langston Hughes
Claude McKay
Explored the African-American experience in their works

39. The Harlem Renaissance (cont.)
Some sympathetic whites also produced works portraying African-American life
George Gershwin’s musical Porgy and Bess
Many whites though held romanticized and stereotyped views of Harlem and African-Americans

40. A Society in Conflict Immigration Restriction
In 1924 and 1929, the U.S. govt. passed restrictive laws that drastically cut the total # of immigrants permitted to enter the U.S.A.
They also established quotas for each nationality
Laws excluded Chinese and Japanese entirely and eastern and southern Europeans received small quotas
Reflected the fears and intolerance of the time
Total immigration fell to 280,000 in 1929
It averaged 1 million a year between
This discriminatory, national-origins quota system remained in U.S. law until 1965

41. Needed Workers/Unwelcome Aliens: Hispanic Newcomers
The 1920’s, National Origins Act did not curtail immigration from Western Hemisphere countries
By 1930, about 2 million Mexicans had arrived in the U.S.A.
Most lived in the Southwest
Most worked in agriculture
Agribusiness wanted the cheap labor
Mexicans experienced bitter resentment from nativist Americans

42. Nativism, Anti-Radicalism, and the Sacco-Vanzetti Case
The Sacco-Vanzetti case further illustrated the intolerance and divisions in society in the 1920’s
Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti were Italian immigrants
They were convicted of robbery and murder
Vanzetti (on left)
Sacco (on right)

43. Nativism, Anti-Radicalism, and the Sacco-Vanzetti Case (cont.)
The evidence against them was circumstantial
The prosecution probably prejudiced the jury by stressing their ethnic origin and political radicalism
They were found guilty of the crimes and were executed in 1927

44. Fundamentalism and the Scopes Trial
Several states passed laws prohibiting the teaching of any scientific theory that contradicted the account of human origin given in the Bible
John T. Scopes
High school teacher in Dayton, TN
Challenged the state’s law by teaching Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution

45. Fundamentalism and the Scopes Trial (cont.)
The American Civil Liberties Union hired a team of distinguished lawyers headed by Clarence Darrow to defend Scopes
William Jennings Bryan assisted the prosecution
Scopes was convicted

46. Fundamentalism and the Scopes Trial (cont.)
The fundamental religious position was ridiculed in the courtroom and in the national press
But states still passed anti-evolution laws
Textbook publishers deleted mention of Darwin’s theories to appease local school boards
History Channel video--Scopes trial

47. The Ku Klux Klan
Another indication of social conflict and intolerance was the rise of the KKK
Preached hatred toward blacks, Jews, Catholics, immigrants, and the new urban values
Membership grew to an estimated 5 million
For a short time it exerted real political power in a few states
OR, OK, IN
It threatened, intimidated, beat, and murdered those it considered to be dangerous to a “purified” America

48. The Garvey Movement Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA)
Led by Marcus Garvey
Mostly poor urban African-Americans
Preached black pride
Black “economic solidarity”
A return to Africa
At its peak the UNIA had 80,000 members
The first mass movement among African-Americans

49. Prohibition: Cultures in Conflict
Prohibition split Americans
Supporters:
Native-born
Fundamentalist Protestants
Rural areas
Opponents:
Liberals
Intellectuals
Rebellious youths
Big-city immigrants

50. Prohibition: Cultures in Conflict (cont.)
Enforcement of prohibition broke down almost immediately
Many Americans did not believe in it
Organized crime was busy supplying the demand for illegal liquor
Prohibition became a big issue in the 1928 election
History Channel video--prohibition raid

51. Hoover at the Helm The Election of 1928
Democrats nominated Alfred Smith
Republicans nominated Herbert Hoover
Hoover easily won
Many fundamentalist Protestants would not vote for Smith because he was a Catholic, did not support Prohibition, and came from NYC
The biggest reason for Hoover’s victory was economic prosperity and Republican promises that things would get even better

52. Herbert Hoover’s Social Thought
Hoover encouraged voluntary cooperation among corporate leaders:
Raise wages
Plan production and marketing
Standardize products

53. Herbert Hoover’s Social Thought (cont.)
He believed in self-regulation by business would ensure economic growth and a better life for all
He did not believe in govt. intervention
After the Great Depression set in, he clung to voluntarism and was reluctant to use govt. power
This greatly handicapped his ability to deal with a sick economy

54. Conclusion
In the 1920’s Americans tried to adjust to the mass production, mass culture, and urban society that had emerged
The decade’s political leadership was for the most part conservative and backward looking
Those who found this new world unfamiliar and threatening often reacted with repression and hate
Supporters of prohibition, fundamentalists, KKK

55. Conclusion (cont.)
Others embraced the new life-styles made possible by radios, cars, movies, and electric appliances
The social ferment also produced an outpouring of creative energy
Harlem Renaissance
Jazz
American literature