the roaring 20s

• What cultural elements did the 1920s contribute to American society?

  Jazz, movies, radio, and consumer culture
• What was the economic condition of the 1920s for most Americans?

  Prosperity was not for everybody
• What term describes the economic policy of minimal government regulation in the 1920s?

  Laissez-faire capitalism
• Which political party dominated the 1920s in the US?

  The Republican Party
• Who were the three Republican presidents during the 1920s?

  Harding, Coolidge, and Hoover
• What was a significant consequence of the government policies in the 1920s?

  Increased government corruption
• What industrial technique did Henry Ford popularize?

  The assembly line
• How many cars were produced annually by 1929?

  4.8 million
• What was the impact of the automobile on American families by 1929?

  Half owned a car
• How did American corporations expand during the 1920s?

  By extending their reach overseas
• What percentage of the world's cars did America produce by the end of the decade?

  85 percent
• What new household devices became popular in the 1920s?

  Vacuum cleaners, toasters, refrigerators
• What was the significance of the American film industry moving to Hollywood?

  Land was cheap and sunny for filming
• How did consumer debt change attitudes in the 1920s?

  It became acceptable to go into debt
• What was the Harlem Renaissance?

  A celebration of African-American culture
• What did the Supreme Court begin to embrace during the 1920s?

  The right to express dissonant views
• What was the impact of the Ku Klux Klan in the 1920s?


  It denounced immigrants and minorities
• What was the first immigration restriction bill passed in 1921?

  It limited immigrants to 357,000
• What was the significance of the trial of John Scopes?

  It tested the law against teaching evolution
• What were the key features of the 1920s in America?

  • Jazz and cultural change
  • Prohibition and illegal liquor
  • Rise of consumer culture
  • Increased personal freedom
  • Government policies favoring business
  • Corruption in government
  • Harlem Renaissance and migration
• What were the economic disparities in the 1920s?

  • Real wages rose by 25%
  • Corporate profits rose at twice that rate
  • 1% of banks controlled 50% of resources
  • Wealthiest 5% had more income than bottom 60%
  • 40% of Americans lived in poverty
• What were the social changes for women in the 1920s?

  • Flappers embraced new freedoms
  • Short hair and skirts became fashionable
  • Birth control became more accessible
  • Marketing targeted women as consumers
  • Traditional roles still expected
• What were the contradictions of the 1920s in terms of civil liberties?

  • Rise in free speech and civil liberties
  • Increase in lynchings and prejudice
  • Immigration restrictions despite economic need
  • Celebrity culture vs. traditional values
  • Tolerance as a societal value