Postwar American Economic Prosperity (10-12)

Who illustrated the famous Great Gatsby cover?

Francis Cugat

What does the cover depict?

a blue-black night sky punctuated by neon lights and dominated by floating lips and eyes of a woman

Who directed the 2013 blockbuster version of Great Gatsby? Who was starred?

Directed by Baz Luhrmann, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Carey Mulligan

What characteristics make up a “Roaring Twenties” themed party?

women with bobbed air and men in their finest tuxedos

Which cultural critic described the novel as becoming part of America’s “iconographic lingua franca”?

Greil Marcus

Who coined the term “Jazz Age” to describe the 1920s?

Fitzgerald

what are some famous images of the 1920s?

well dressed men and women drinking gin in lavish saloons and speakeasies; dimly lit jazz clubs, neon signs of NY, dapper gangsters like Al Capone and John Dillinger with Tommy guns and new popular cars

What other period in American history had recognizable images associated with it? What were they?

The 1960’s with its counter-cultural “flower children” and “hippies”

What did authors try to capture in their writing regarding the 1920s?

the behavior of young people as well as major issues such a as making sense of WW1 violence to navigating a world filled with new technologies, changing social arrangements and diversifying populations.

Why wouldn’t the average American believe you if you told them that the 1920s would be a period of excess and affluence?

the economy was looking grim at the start of the decade, coinciding with the end of WW1.

When did America enter WW1?

APril 6, 1917

what period experienced the highest rates of inflation ever in US history? By what percentage did prices rise?

1916-1920; 80%

When did prices begin to drop and re stabilize the economy?

JUne 1920

What industry exemplifies the rise of consumer products which contributed to the image of the 1920s being a period of economic excess?

the automobile

By what factor did car ownership increase during this decade?

3x

What other markets did increased car ownership help grow?

gas, lodging (motels, aka motor hotel) and entertainment further from homes (movie theaters public musicals and athletic events)

Several important scenes in Great Gatsby revolve around what?

cars, specifically their size shape and operation of such luxurious products.

how would these scenes have come across to readers 20 years earlier? what did they mean to readers in 1925?

exotic; spoke to their fascination in cars as status symbols and means of getting around

How is consumer culture defined?

A national emphasis on spending money and acquiring material goods

New inventions led to what economic shift?

new job opportunities specifically in the manufacturing sectors producing new conveniences like refrigerators and washing machines.

What other factor also brought with it new jobs?

the rapid electrification of the 20th century

what did the electrification of the nation increase the demand of? what did these products help facilitate?

leisure items like radios and phonographs, which helped create industries related to the creation and distribution of entertainment.

According to Americans what features made the decade “roar”?

technological developments along with cultural changes

How do the 2 presidential administrations of the period compare to each other?

they are ideologically and administratively consistent.

which presidents served during the roaring 20s? When did each one serve?

Warren G. Harding 1920-23 and Calvin Coolidge 1923-1929