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The
Roaring '20s
Your
Key to These Notes:
 A
Major Point  A
Sub-bullet, or a point related to the one above.
A point of
interest that will most likely not be on the AP test.
» Therefore,
or Ergo.
(3-28)
Chapter 34
The 1920s-
Literature-
Henry James (WWI refutes idea of human progression » morality goes down
in the 20s); Sinclair Lewis (Main Street- put down life in the
Midwest's simplicity); Thomas Wolfe (Look Homeward Angel- put
down life in a North Carolina town and small-town life in general); H.L.
Manken (Coined the term "boo-boisies" in a put-down of the
common man); F. Scott Fitzgerald (This Side of Paradise- college
"petting" parties, put down new morality » sex discussed with
new frankness); Freud (Three Contributions to the Theory of Sex-
libido, Oedipus Complex, etc.); Tabloids, movies, songs on radio.
Politics-
Warren Harding is President- people were tired of Wilson's intense,
serious preachiness- Harding promised return to "normalicy"--
affable, friendly-- advocated return to isolationism --but-- not too
smart, preferred to get out with the Ohio Gang (drinkers, parties)
Convinces
businesses to abolish 7-day workweek
Pardoned
Eugene Debbs (Socialist candidate who ran for office from prison due to
previous misdeeds)
Created
minimum wage, child labor --but-- these were declared
unconstitutional.
Teapot
Dome- (Naval Petroleum Reserves)- Albert Fall invested all of his money
in Mexican mines. When the investments failed, he took bribes from
oil companies (amounting to $400,000 in "loans") in exchange
for allowing them to explore and exploit government land.
Harding
goes to Alaska, has a heart attack in Seattle, moved to San Francisco
and dies.
Nativism-
The Passing of the Great Race (1916)- Nordic people were racially
superior to other kinds of people; by the end of WWI, 65% US immigrants
came from southeast Europe »
Immigration
Act of 1921- based on the 1910 census- the US would accept 3% of 1910
population in immigrants.
Immigration
Act of 1924- US accepts 2% of 1890 census in immigrants.
150,000
people came in 1929- North and West Europe represented 85%, Asia 0%; No
limits on Western Hemisphere » many Hispanic migrants » Catholic
increase » 1915 increase in KKK » Fundamentalists react.
KKK
(1915) resurrection » Thanksgiving 1915- brought back nationwide
(strongest in Indiana and Oregon)- anti-black, anti-Catholic,
anti-Jewish; enforced prohibition, against organized crime; taken over
by dentist in 1922- kicks out criminal element- peaked @ 8 million
members » 1924 immigration act » people stopped caring, dropped out;
new leader rapes and kills a woman » KKK collapses.
Fundamentalism-
(from Fundamentalist prophets in 1910)- hostile to other faiths;
reaction to Darwin's book.
The
Scopes Trial- Tennessee brought in Scopes to teach evolution for
publicity » Scopes arrested and prosecuted- ACLU brought in Clarence
Darell for defense; prosecution was William Jennings Bryant.
At one point in the
trial, Darell got Bryant to admit that he thought the Earth was created
in 4,004 B.C. Darell called him a fool and that led to a fistfight in
the courtroom.
Scopes
was found to have been illegally teaching evolution, fined $100;
Tennessee Supreme Court waived the fee.
Bryant called the trial
a duel to the death, and ironically, three days later, he died of a
heart attack.
Led
to the decline of fundamentalism.
Prohibition
(18th Amendment, enforced by the Volstead Act)- All alcohol was
prohibited except: religious services or medicinal reasons- organized
crime bought drugstores, ordered liquor for medicine and hijacked their
own trucks
Al Capone was the most
successful drugstore owner. The FBI infiltrated his operation and
arrested him for tax evasion. He served 11 years on Alcatraz.
Massachusetts
Consumption Economy- Technology allowed for 40% productivity
increase, but no rising wages » people bought on credit
1929-
A family needed $2,000 a year to survive, and only 60% of Americans made
enough. Business leaders ignored this, which eventually lead to
the stock market crash.
Companies
would sell products on credit and then get loans from the bank to
expand. Seeing this, people would buy stock in the expanding
company. When the bank needed money, they turned to the company,
which in turn looked to the people who had bought on credit. The
people could not pay their bills, and so the company had to lower wages
and fire workers to pay off their debts. This caused the money
flow to slow down, and stock buyers sold off their stock to supplement
their dwindling income. Additionally, they went to the banks to
withdraw money, but the banks had never received payment for their
loans, and so the system crashed.
Cars
created the suburb by allowing people to move out of the cities.
First
talking movie: The Jazz Singer.
(3-30)
Chapter 35
Shop Scrapping @
Washington Naval Conference- produces three treaties (495)
Four-Power
Treaty: 4 countries with Pacific colonies agree to respect those
colonies (US, Britain, Japan, China).
Nine-Power
Treaty: 9 countries with interests in China agree to practice open-door
policy (fending off Japan)
Five-Power
Treaty: supposed to stop arms race- US, Britain, Japan, France, and
Italy agree to produce a battleship ratio (between them) of
5:5:3:1.67:1.67 » US scraps 30 battleships, Japan is the
"winner"- US & Britain agreed not to strengthen Pacific
military; no restriction on cruisers, subs, and destroyers.
Kelogg-Briand
Treaty stated that war was illegal.
Henry
Ford- building success until Sloan built cars for varying incomes (like
General Motors: had a hierarchy of cars, from most luxurious to least-
Cadillac, Buick, Oldsmobile, Pontiac, Chevrolet) » Ford had to create
additional models; sold on credit, only required 1/3 of the price down-
decrease in auto sales, no price drops because tariffs still in effect
denied competition.
Companies
way overpriced (one company had $600 in assets but was valued in stock
at $612 million) due to credit buying.
David
Copperfield was the #1 best-selling novel.
"Greatest
Men in History"- Shakespeare, Longfellow, Tenison, Dickson.
Began
historical preservation in the 1920s.
(4-2)
Calvin Coolidge-
President when Harding died, father gave him oath of office-- known as
"Do Nothing Cal"- said to have favored big business, but
neither was true. Quoted as saying "The law is always
right."
Put
down Boston police strike; wanted to give the government back to the
people; liked being called "Silent Cal."
Served
2 years of Harding's administration and four of his own, thought he
would be a disappointment if he ran again, wanted to leave when he was
still liked, thought the market was going to crash and didn't want to be
there for it.
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