Every society goes through periods of change every so often. As various forces are at work among the people and conditions are altered, tensions mount and attitudes change. In the United States, the 1920's were just such a time of hesitation between new beliefs and traditional values. Between the drastic occurances of World War I and the stagnation of the Great Depression, many events showed this tension.
In the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, American society was changing rapidly. Many of these changes helped produce the tension of the 1920's. The industrialization and mass-production techniques instituted drastically altered the lives of thousands of people. both their jobs and their lifestyles changed. because of industrialization, the urban population grew, and many new inventions were produced. the new fast-paced lifestyle loosened many of the old values people used to stand by strictly.
Along with industrialization, the invention of the automobile quickened American life and loosened its morals. People had more opportunity to get away and try new things. Because of the great age of radio, the new ideas were spread quickly and larger numbers were exposed to them. However, one of the greatest contributors to the 1920's as a peiod of tension was World War I. During the war, thousands of people endured great hardship and misery. The nation was concentrating on war, not fun. After the return of the soldiers, people wanted some relief and enjoyment. This feeling came through in the revolutionary attitudes of the 1920's.
The new attitudes and inventions were evident in many aspectes of life. For instance, in Sinclair Lewis's Babbitt, published in 1922, he writes of "These standard advertised wares -- toothpastes, socks, tires, cameras, instantaneous hot-water- heaters --." The new products had become the norm rather than the exception. Society had a great emphasis on being comfortable.
