Download Modernism vs Antimodernism: 1920s' Economic Shifts, Urbanization, and Cultural Clashes - P and more Study notes World History in PDF only on Docsity! Modernism and Antimodernism (2/28) HIST 2112, Dr. Hamilton Lecture Outline I. Modernism- A. New Economy- 20s marked a fundamental transformation in the economy. GDP rose about 15% between 1921 and 1929. A major reason for this economic boom was mass production 1. Mass production (Ford vs. GM, annual model change, installment buying)- mass production allowed ordinary people to afford a good life. Ford only had black cars, but GM allowed customization of cars. GM introduced the annual modem change, which was basically restyling the cars every year. Gm also introduced credit in car buying so that GM could offer credit to the car buyers. The credit was an incentive to buy cars. This GM's installment car led to a mushroom of credit so that almost everything was able to be purchased with credit. By the end of the credit, Americans acquired a lot of dept through installment buying. 2. āThe Business of America Is Businessā (Calvin Coolidge)- Coolidge (silent cal) was very pro business and he refused to regulate business. B. Metropolitan Life and Mass Consumption- 1. Urbanization and suburbanization- More people lived in cities than in rural areas. People were pouring into cities all over the Nation. LA especially was growing not just in population but in geographic size. This was due to the grow in the automobile industries that allowed people to live in the cities 2. Advertising modernity- advertising became very popular because advertisers drew on the new science of psychology. Psychologists were called in to the advertising agencies to appeal to the people a. Listerine & āhalitosisā- Listerine invented the disease halitosis (bad breathe) so that people felt insecure about having bad breath and bought more Listerine b. National brands- Branded goods had been around since the turn of the 20th century. In the 20s, these national brands swept the nation so that people started buying brand names. Before brand names, consumers turned to the sales clerk when buying product, but with the growth of brand names, people turned to the cooperation when buying products c. B. Barton, Man Nobody Knows (1925)- Barton depicted Jesus as the founder of big business because he gathered 12 men and pretty much took over the world 3. Leisure time and national culture- mass entertainment (sports, radio, talking movies, periodicals like time) a. Sports (Babe Ruth)- college football drew in millions of dollars, baseball. Babe Ruth was a famous baseballer and he drew in millions of spectators C. Literature- 1. H. L. Mencken- disparaged republicans, sentimentalists, and especially, he criticized American society for being so narrow minded and being so tied to Puritanism
