The Flappers and the Feminists: A Study of Women's Emancipation in the 1920s' - Report Example

Introduction Women generally have fewer career opportunities coupled with the legal rights in comparison to men. Wifehood and motherhood are most vital roles. Neverthe3ess, in the twentieth century, most countries acquired the right to vote, which contributed to the enhancement of their job as well as their educational opportunities. The fight of the women is a significant a degree to achievement a re-evaluation of customary views regarding their roles in the society. Ideally, women have been strictly and considered as a creative in human life. Moreover, women are considered intellectually less superior as compared to men and major source of evil as well as temptation. A feasible example is in the case of the Greek mythology in which it was a female, named Pandora, who contributed to unhappiness as well as plagues to humankind specifically through opening a forbidden box. During the U.S. early days, wives were nearly owned by their respective husbands. In such a case, whenever a poor man felt like sending his children to a poorhouse, the wife was completely lawfully defenseless to intervene1. Nevertheless, diverse communities have revised the common law in order to permit women to work as lawyers, own and sue their husbands in demand for property if such husbands concurred. In that situation, women earning their living by themselves normally kept boarding houses or they become tailors2. Certain women worked in jobs as well as professions that were solely available to men. Thus, women worked as doctors, preachers, lawyers, teachers, and signers among other professions. In late nineteenth century, women’s favorable occupations were restricted mainly to domestic work as well as factory labor. The paper mainly discusses womens history within the United States focusing specifically on the 20s flapper women. Flappers Twentieth century has witnessed massive transformation in the style and status of women commonly known as the Era of Wonderful nonsense or the Roaring Twenties3. Trendy women of the 20s were budded as flappers thus turning into the image, which depicting considerable transformation in womens attitudes and lives during 20th century. During the early 20th century, women largely gained their voting rights. They developed the ability to sustain themselves mainly via jobs. Moreover, at the onset of 20th century, there were films to view, vehicles to drive, and jazz music to dance thereby making women endeavored to join the fun. Young women were no more content to extra hours fastening themselves into burdensome clothing layers or with complex hairstyles. The phrase flapper originated from e Great Britain had a minute fad among women, which made then to wear rubber galoshes that left them open to flap when they walked. Moreover, the name stuck and labeled to the young liberation of the women spread throughout United States and Europe4. Flappers were overly bold, confident and considered alluring since they adapted to new fad diets in order to attain a fashionable thinness due the fashion, which entailed emergence of the required of slim bodies, slim hips and flat chests5. The application of the phrase flapper enhanced during the First World War due to widespread emergence of young females into the labor force to cater for the absence of men (Cameron 19). Consequently, this resulted to the alteration of phrase at the expense of the mean independent, khaki-crazy and pleasure seeking young women. Nevertheless, by the year 1920, the phrase had assumed entire meaning, as women were considered irresponsible and incapable to handle their husband. Women concentrated on improving their livelihood (Mowry 88). Coincidence and assumption of fashion among teenage girls depicts common false arguments of the etymology that gives preference of flappers since they flapped when they walked around with galoshes and overshoes unfastened6. Galoshes and overshoes reveal that they never took into consideration tradition as a way of comparable to the untied shoelaces of the 21st century fad. Nevertheless, it was solely utilized for a decade as the fashion craze went up and down during that period. Change in women Womens behavior was regarded outlandish at that period and redefined almost every role that society had placed on them. In the media, the women were stereotyped as reckless and pleasure loving as well as prone to disobeying traditional ways by initiating sexual relationships. Certain scholars have suggested that women of this time were sexual oriented since they are extremely active; "sportish" rode bicycles, openly drank alcohol, and drove cars, which were all defiant acts in the American tradition law. With time came the development of dance moves, which were then regarded as highly shocking. An instance is the Shimmy, Charleston and the Bunny Hug, as well as Black Bottom. Women from this age started working outside their homes thus posing vital challenge to customary gender rules, devotion to plain-living, religion, and hard work7. Progressively, women continued discarding conventional ideas about their roles and embraced personal preferences and the consumerism culture8. They also advocated for their rights and freedoms such as voting. Eventually, it resulted to relatively greater social changes as they were able to vote as from 1920 in the United States. Nevertheless, the main concern is the issue of women getting out of their conventional roles9. In fact, older suffragists, who were constantly fighting for the rights of their fellow women to vote, viewed women participation in political matters as not of significant importance. Moreover, petting had widespread during this era. Petting parties, where petting was the key attraction, became shockingly more popular. Petting is the act of making out or simply foreplay. In a teenage imagination, this gave the lie to the previous clichés of "the only girl" and "the only man". This was usual on college campuses, where students spent a great amount of unmonitored time in mixed company. Flappers were linked to the use of many slang words, for instance "necker", "junk", "necking parties" and "heavy necker," even though these words were being used prior to the 20s. The word "jazz," according to the Flappers, also meant anything fun or exciting. Their language, at times, echoed their feelings about marriage, dating as well as drinking habits. For instance words such as, "I have to observe a man about a dog" at that age normally implied going to buy whiskey; and a "manacle" or "handcuff" was a wedding or engagement ring. Also reflective of their worries were phrases to articulate approval, like "Thats the bees knees", "Thats so Jake", and the famous "cats pyjamas" or "the cats meow". Fashion for Women The dresses worn by women were mainly straight and typically loosen thus leaving their arms bare and unstraps at all at time. Moreover, women sunk the waistlines down to their hips. Garters supported rayon and silk stockings. Skirts were upgraded to be below the knee by 1927, thus permitting flashes of leg to be viewed when a girl walked through a breeze or danced10. Moreover, the manner in which they danced made even long loose skirts rise up to show their legs. Improvement of outlook of particular flappers used rouge to their knees. Popular dress styles included the Robe de style, with high-heeled shoes, which came into vogue at such an age, reaching 5 cm to 8 cm or 2–3 inches high. Flappers mainly did away with pantaloons as well as corsets in support of the "step-in" trousers. Inadequate old preventive corsets, flappers wore plain bust bodies to hold back their chest while dancing. Moreover, the new softer and much suppler corsets, which touched to their hips, smoothing the entire frame, offered a straight up and down look, rather than old corsets, which accented the hips alongside slenderizing the waist and the bust11. Lack of curves of women of a corset created a boyish glance thereby enhancing an even more boyish glance of the Symington Side Lacer, which was developed and turned into a famous essential as a day-to-day bra. Bra was created to bring in the back to even out the chest. Other women were jealous of the flappers because of their flat chests12. Therefore, they purchased the Symington Side Lacer as a way of adopting the same look. Large breasts were considered an attribute of unsophistication. Flat chests became alluring to women, even though flappers were the most known to put on such bras. Boyish cuts were typically in fashion. The most common ones included the Bob cut, the Shingle bob, and the Eton crop. Finger waving was utilized as a form of styling. Hats were still worn and trendy styles comprised of the Cloche hat and Newsboy cap. Jewelry typically comprised of art deco pieces, particularly a lot of layers of beaded necklaces. Rings, pins, and brooches came into fashion. Horn-rimmed glasses were as well well-accepted. In the 1890s, actress Polaire launched a look that included short, unkempt hair, huge eyes heavily outlined in kohl and insistent mouth. The evolving flapper appearance needed "heavy makeup" in comparison to what had earlier been tolerable outside of professional convention in the film scene. With the development of metal lipstick case as well as compact mirrors, bee stung lips similarly came into fashion. Famous Women/Flappers of the Era Lois "Miss Jazz Age" Long Lois Long made a name for herself in a mans industry particularly newspapers industry. He was energetic, clever and sharp having with her finger on the heartbeat of New York City. Long was aware of what was taking place before it took place, often becoming part of the show herself. Lois Long began writing in the early 1920s for The New Yorker Magazine, after being drawn away from Vanity Fair by a $50 a week promise, a kings income in those days, particularly for a woman. She managed her finances, lifestyle and destiny. She danced, drank and slept with whom she wished in every street within the New York City13. She was famous regarding going back to the New Yorker offices during early morning hours, drenched in sweat as well as booze, arising from a long night of dancing, drinking, and the likes, stripping down into her seat, and typing out her column, which was due. Louis Brooks Louise Brooks, an American actoress and a dancer is remembered for supporting the bobbed haircut. Brooks was an alcoholic by the age of 14, but she remained sober to start writing about movies, which turned into her second career. She was a tarnished wastrel for most of her life making her very generous and kind to her friends, nearly to a fault. Through her own admission, she was sexually free and never afraid to test anything such as posturing fully naked to take art photography. Louise’s liaisons with many movie individuals were legendary, even though much of it is mere speculation. Clara Bow Ideally, as the "It Girl" of the 20s, Clara Bow was single-most well-known of the flappers of the 20th century. She was characterized by her beauty, charm, and magnetism and dripping sexuality. At an early age, she began attracting the attention of boys in her area. At only 16, she won a beauty pageant and later started acting. Clara’s mother jealous of her success and looks attempted to stab her to death. In 21st century, Clara had earned the title of the woman of the 20s and featured in a number of movie roles. She became recognized as the "Hottest Jazz Female Actor" in movies coupled with her immensely personal life matched her stunning onscreen personality. Conclusion Flappers of the twentieth century pertaining to women have drastically r changed regarding the customary perception of the society. Prior to the flapper’s features, women were dependent due their undertaking of societal roles. Nevertheless, the flappers changed. The flappers made women to be more independent. The flapper look and lifestyle vanished in America following the Wall Street Crash as well as the subsequent Great Depression. The high-spirited hedonism and attitude were less suitable during the economic challenges of the 30s. Works Cited Cameron, Barbara. "The Flappers and the Feminists: A Study of Womens Emancipation in the 1920s." Worth Her Salt: Women at Work in Australia. Hale & Iremonger, Sydney 4.7 (1982): 257-269. Dalzell, Tom. Flappers 2 Rappers: American Youth Slang. Courier Dover Publications, 2012. Latham, Angela J. Posing A Threat: Flappers, Chorus Girls, And Other Brazen Performers Of The American 1920s. Middletown, Connecticut: Wesleyan University Press, 2000. Print. Melman, Billie. Women And The Popular Imagination In The Twenties: Flappers And Nymphs. Houndmills: Macmillan, 1988. Print. Mowry, George Edwin, ed. The Twenties: Fords, Flappers And Fanatics. Vol. 69. London: Prentice Hall Direct, 1963. Print. Shideler, James H. ""Flappers and Philosophers," and Farmers: Rural-Urban Tensions of the Twenties." Agricultural History 5.3 (1973): 283-299. Print. Read More