Flappers and Jazz during the
Roaring 20’s
To being one shall start off by
knowing the events and how women dressed leading to the 1920s. Prior to the 1920s women dress what many
would call very formal. They wore dresses that were ankle length and that was
considered very “lady like”, and because of such dresses they didn’t show very
much skin. Well a huge impact on how woman dressed and acted was the First
World War. The reasoning behind this is that while the men were off at war the
woman had to step up and leave their everyday life as a stay at home wife, and fill
in the men’s positions at the factories. They did this by keeping factories running
and due to the war many factories were war related. For example they manufactured
war materials such as tanks, ammunition, ships, etc. These events brought about
the new women. Many believed that once the war was over that women would simply
pick up where they left off before the war, by going back to their normal
dressing styles, and being nothing more than the stay at home wife with no
voice or input. However they were wrong. Instead of going back to what many
called the norm women changed how they dressed and acted, bringing about the
term “flapper”. A flapper was a female of the new era. Her physical appearance
was different along with the way she dressed. Instead of have long hair, the
new women cut their hair to chin length. They also wore cosmetics (make-up),
and a significantly huge impact to their change was how they dress. They no
longer wore the traditional long dress. Now they wore dresses that cut off
above the knee exposing their legs, making a more sexual scene to many. They also
cut off the sleaves showing their arms. As if this were not change enough,
women also began to behave differently. The 1920s brought about a new behavior
of women in public. Women were now seen drinking, smoking, and participating in
other activities that before that time were only men would participate in. Jazz
was the beginning of a new era where the cultures, backgrounds, and races could
coexist to an extent. African Americans brought about a new form of entertainment,
a new sound to dance to. And people of all races enjoyed this new style, including
women. Many were shocked to see women participate in a dance known as “The
Charleston”, because at that time they were not accustomed to see women dance
and much less with there new attire. The roaring 20s and jazz not only had a
huge impact on the morals and what people though was right or wrong, but also
on the world of music.
Work Cited
David,
Savran. "The Search for America's Soul:Theatre in The Jazz Age." Pro
Quest, Oct. 2006. Web. 20 Nov. 2012.
http://search.proquest.com/docview/2079717?accountid=7082.
