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New York City and the Urban Corruption, Screen Shot 2021-06-16 at 3.04.16…
New York City and the Urban Corruption
The Roaring Twenties
After World War I ended in 1918, the United States and much of the rest of the world experienced an
enormous economic expansion
. The surging economy turned the 1920s into a time of easy money, hard drinking (despite the Prohibition amendment to the Constitution), and lavish parties.
Though the 1920s were a time of great optimism, Fitzgerald portrays the much
bleaker side of the revelry by focusing on its indulgence, hypocrisy, shallow recklessness, and its perilous—even fatal—consequences.
Class (Old Money, New Money, No Money)
The Great Gatsby portrays three different social classes in New York: "old money" (Tom and Daisy Buchanan); "new money" (Gatsby); and a class that might be called "no money" (George and Myrtle Wilson).
"Old money" families have fortunes dating from the 19th century or before, have built up powerful and influential social connections, and tend to hide their wealth and superiority behind a veneer of civility in NYC.
The "new money" class made their fortunes in the 1920s boom and therefore have no social connections and tend to overcompensate for this lack with lavish displays of wealth. - lessen the gap which lay between present and past
The American Dream
hard work can lead one from rags to riches
a core facet of American identity since its inception.
Settlers came west to America from Europe seeking wealth and freedom. The pioneers headed west for the same reason.
The Great Gatsby shows the tide turning east, as hordes flock to New York City seeking stock market fortunes.
The Great Gatsby portrays this shift as a symbol of the American Dream's corruption. It's no longer a vision of building a life; it's just about getting rich
.
New York City in 1920's
hub of maritime commerces
handled half of Americas international trade
centre of manufacturing, export and culture
In 1920, oceangoing steamers entered or left the port about every 20 minutes.
POPULATION around 6 million
production
Foreign-born residents played a crucial part in the city’s economic, social, and cultural life. At a time when America’s ready-made clothing industry was centered in New York, immigrants provided much of the labor that made the nation’s suits, coats, and dresses.
As part of the great migration of African Americans from the South to northern cities, some 200,000 African Americans moved to New York between 1917 and 1925.
Immigrants
entering through the port and migrants coming by road and rail fed the city’s thriving economy. In 1923 New York
produced 1/12th of all manufacturing in the nation.
Unemployment in this period was, indeed, lower than it had been in previous decades, but continued high unemployment and job turnover characterized the industrial working experience. A continued labor surplus fueled by migration along with the
displacement of both skilled and unskilled workers with machines insured continued levels of high unemployment and job insecurity along with limited improvements in wages and working conditions.
A major cause of economic inequality within modern economies is the determination of wages by the capitalist market
women
The 'new' woman
In the United States in the 1920s, the label was applied to young women who flaunted their freedom from convention and constraint in conduct and dress.
woman insisted on her right to unrestrained behavior—to drink and smoke in public and to obtain
sexual satisfaction—and in general sought greater personal freedom and equality with men in her social life.
Millions of women worked in blue collar jobs, as well as white-collar jobs (as stenographers, for example) and could afford to participate in the burgeoning consumer economy. The increased availability of birth-control devices such as the diaphragm made it possible for women to have fewer children. And new machines and technologies like the washing machine and the vacuum cleaner eliminated some of the drudgery of household work.
clothing
“The development of a more convenient, modern female wardrobe was a major trend of the 1920s and was achieved through the progressive simplification of dress as the decade advanced – a rejection of formality and multiple layers, in favour of comfort and a lighter, more natural effect.”
Culture/lesuire activities
In the 1920s money spent on leisure activities such as movies, dances, and sports rose by 300 percent.
music scene
many African American artists and performers were drawn to New York to take part in Harlem’s dynamic jazz and blues
