Chapter 29 Notes TRADITIONALISM V MODERNISM Traditionalism vs

Chapter 29 Notes TRADITIONALISM V. MODERNISM

Traditionalism vs. Modernism: The “Culture War” In what ways might the first magazine cover exemplify traditionalism? 2. In what ways might the second magazine cover exemplify modernism? 3. So far, what can you identify as some of the differences between traditionalism and modernism? 4. How might some of these differences create conflict? 1.

Make Your Notes Like This The Growing Divide

The Growing Divide � Urban Areas �Economy boomed and demand for workers increased �Standard of living improved ○ Could do new things like go to the movies and museums, drink and gamble �View rural Americans as “behind the times” � Rural Areas �Work was harder and fewer people were left to work after most of the young people moved to cities �Demand for crops fell as did prices ○ Farmers could not repay loans �Viewed modernists as immoral and felt traditional values represented everything good in the U. S. �Very religious and used the Bible for support of their opinions

New Youth Culture � Young people began to spend more time outside of the home � Developed own culture that revolved around music, sports, dating, dances and fads � Flappers wore short dresses and make-up and cut their hair short � Acted in a way that had previously been associated with “loose” women � Many young people rebelled against their parents � Did not respect them for the waste of life they had allowed in WWI � Access to cars and mass media helped fuel the rebellion � Most adults considered the behavior of their children as reckless and immoral � Tried to prevent behavior through censorship of books and movies � Some states passed laws regarding clothing and public behavior

Modernist a person who embraced new ideas, styles, and social trends - Drinking, gambling, and going on casual dates - 19 million people moved from farms to cities

Traditionalist a person who has deep respect for long-held cultural and religious values � saw the Bible as fundamental � valued agricultural production �

Equal Rights Amendment

Equal rights amendment � � � Traditionalist View Minimum wage Limited work hours Union protection Women belong in the home � � � Modernist View Jury service Owning property Guardianship over children Women should have economic independence

Prohibition � 18 th Amendment prohibited the sale, manufacturing or distribution of alcohol �Alcohol linked to crime, violence and the break-up of families � In the beginning, alcohol consumption declined � Prohibition led to an increase in illegal behavior �Made own alcohol, bought bootleg, found private drinking clubs (speakeasies) �Increase in organized crime and violence as “bosses” fought for control of cities

Volstead Act �a law passed by Congress in 1919 to enforce the Eighteenth Amendment, which prohibited the manufacture and sale of alcoholic beverages

Prohibition Traditionalist View � Alcohol caused crime, violence, breakup of families � Would curb beer drinking w ith immigrants � Spend less wages at saloons and more time benefiting families � Modernist View � Argued that drinking was not a sin � Government would need 250, 000 agents to make it work � People started brewing “bathtub gin” �

Charles Darwin’s Theory of Evolution Most controversial idea of the time � All plants and animals had evolved from simpler forms of life � � Worked through natural selection: species that are able to adapt are the ones that survive � New species evolve from old ones � Modernists wanted these new theories taught in schools � Thought both ways of viewing the creation of the world could coexist � Traditionalists saw science and religion as conflicting � Believed Bible was literal word of God ○ He created the universe and everything in it

Scopes Trial � Tennessee passed a law banning the teaching of evolution � John Scopes was substituting in a classes and held a discussion about evolution � Found guilty after only 10 minutes and fined $100 �Tennessee Supreme Court overturned the verdict one year later � Evolution was still taught in schools

Scopes trial Traditionalist � “If evolution wins, Christianity goes. ” � “Scopes isn’t on trial; civilization is on trial. ” � Modernist View � ACLU represented Scopes � “violation of my academic freedom” � “To teach the truth as guaranteed in our Constitution. ” �

Discussion Question Does John Scopes have the Constitutional right to teach evolution in his science class? 2. If you lived in the 1920 s, would you pass the Volstead Act? 3. How did social, economic, and religious tensions divide Americans in the Roaring Twenties? 1.