Clash of Culture: Redefining the American Identity

1. Clash of Culture: Redefining the American Identity

2. “New Morality” • Defined as an idea that glorified youth and personal freedom

3. Mass Culture • Defined as shared sense of national experience • Furthered by mass media: Radio, movies, newspapers, and magazines aimed at a broad audience • Caused • 1) break down provincialism: narrow focus on local interests • 2) unified nation & furthered spread of new ideas and attitudes of the time

4. The Automobile • Symbol of • 1) New 1920s consumer culture • 2) American Individualism • Influenced • 1) Leisure time • 2) Traditional Family Values

5. The “Evolution” of Women • Perceptions of women had changed by 1920s- why? • 1) Women’s suffrage (1919) • 2) Economic opportunities • 3) Access to education • Symbol of the “New Modern” woman: Flapper

6. Fundamentalism • definition: religious movement that focused on defending the Protestant faith against ideas that implied that human beings derived their moral behavior from society, not God • based on view that Bible was literally true and w/o error • Arose from belief that traditional values/ institutions that society was built upon were being threatened and/or lost

7. Scopes Monkey Trial • @ issue: whether or not a public school (State) can teach creationism (Religion) • Significant b/c: • 1) case came to be viewed as example of clash of societal values /division b/t “New Morality” & Fundamentalism • 2) involved issue of State’s ability to enforce social values

8. Supplemental Video: The Scopes Monkey Trial

9. The “Noble Experiment”: Prohibition • Prohibition the result of efforts by a coalition of Women’s Groups (e.g. WCTU), Progressives, & other Fundamentalist groups • Enforcement: 18th Amendment (1920) & Volstead Act

10. The “Noble Experiment”: Prohibition • Prohibition difficult to enforce and ultimately failed • 21st Amendment repealed 18th (1933) • Like Scopes Trial, Prohibition viewed as example of State attempting to regulate social values