1. LESSON 2
The Twenties

2. Postwar Prosperity and Glamour
The Twenties
Postwar Prosperity and Glamour
After the war, Americans became consumers, spending money instead of saving.
Cars became more affordable and therefore more popular.
Most homes had electricity so Americans bought appliances like toasters and refrigerators.
Since most families only had one income, people relied on credit to pay for things.

3. What’s in a Name? The decade of the Twenties has several nicknames.
The “Roaring Twenties”
The “Jazz Age”
The “Lawless Decade”
What do these nicknames tell you about the 1920s? (CHECK 1)

4. A Time of Prosperity
After the war, the US economy began to boom. Businesses grew and people had money to spend.
Many people moved from rural, farming areas to urban areas (cities). As a result, cities grew.
Americans, especially young Americans began to challenge traditional values.
Ask students what “traditional values” are? How do they think Americans viewed the roles of men and women, boys and girls during the early 1900s? What do they think may have changed people’s ideas about these roles after the war ended?

5. Mass Media & Entertainment
The Twenties
Mass Media & Entertainment
Art, music, and literature transformed into new forms.
The blues and jazz filled nightclubs across the country.
Families listened to comedies, detective stories and jazz music.
The earliest films, Silent Films, became a hit.
Baseball and Boxing events became huge spectator events.

6. Automobiles and Tourism
The Twenties
Automobiles and Tourism
How did the automobile change American culture? (Check 2)
How did the automobile affect South Carolina?
New roads and highways made the broad beaches of the state accessible to many people.
Sullivan’s Island, Hunting Island, Edisto and Pawley’s Island led to a rush of vacationers.
New bridges made it easier to reach these barrier islands.
Myrtle Beach would soon become one of the most popular destinations in North America.

7. The Car Culture Emerges
The Twenties
The Car Culture Emerges

8. The Harlem Renaissance Southern Literary Renaissance
The Twenties
A Cultural Awakening
The Harlem Renaissance
Southern Literary Renaissance
A celebration of black literature, music, theater, and visual arts centered in NYC’s Harlem District.
Its influence spread to urban areas throughout the country.
Langston Hughes
Zora Neal Hurston
Aaron Douglass
Jacob Lawrence
William H. Johnson
Edwin Harleston
The response of southern writers and artists to criticisms that the South was “an unsophisticated cultural wasteland.”
Led by the Poetry Society of South Carolina
Who were the Southern Agrarians?
Julia Mood Peterkin … Scarlet Sister Mary
DuBose Heyward … Porgy and Bess
Have students find artwork, music, poetry, plays, or other literature from one of the people listed and share it with the class. How did the piece they found contribute to either renaissance? How did it contribute to a cultural awakening among all Americans?

9. Actors rehearsing a Langston Hughes play.
A Cultural Awakening
Actors rehearsing a Langston Hughes play.