23. From New Era to Great Depression, 1920

Chapter Chronology

Quiz for Making Historical Arguments: Was there a Sexual Revolution in the 1920s?

Select the best answer for each question. Click the “submit” button for each question to turn in your work.

Question 23.6

1. The “New Woman” of the 1920s was defined, in the eyes of older Americans, primarily by her new attitude towards

sex.

politics.

work.

education.

Question 23.7

2. Why did older feminists like Charlotte Perkins Gilman criticize the way young women expressed their freedom in the 1920s?

Young women now had the right to vote, which feminists had worked so hard to obtain, but they frequently voted for conservative or regressive politicians.

They argued that young women were using their freedom to merely imitate the vices that were previously reserved for men, such as smoking and drinking.

Young women so enthusiastically embraced their burgeoning economic freedom that they often neglected their children, which frustrated women like Gilman.

They were disappointed that young women seemed to lack a sense of common cause with other Americans who lacked power, such as African Americans and the poor.

Question 23.8

3. How did the automobile affect romantic relationships between young men and women in the 1920s?

Cars allowed young couples to go on dates (or engage in petting) away from adult supervision, enabling new possibilities for sexual behavior.

Many young men became so focused on working part-time and saving up money to buy a car that they frequently neglected their relationships.

Working in an automobile plant was such a lucrative job that many young men dropped out of high school—a traditional site for young couples to meet.

Young women began to gauge a young man’s potential as a prospective marriage partner by judging the kind of car he could afford to drive.

Question 23.9

4. Considering the increased frequency with which young women in the 1920s engaged in sexual behavior like dating and petting, in what way were these women still upholding traditional notions of morality?

Just as their parents and grandparents before them, most young women refused to begin a relationship with a young man if he did not attend church.

Young women in the 1920s were no more likely to use contraceptives during sexual intercourse than women of previous generations.

Despite the prevalence of divorce laws by the 1920s, divorce was still very rare among “New Women,” most of whom married a single partner for life.

Young women’s dating and petting occurred as part of their search for a husband, demonstrating a continued emphasis on marriage and family.

Question 23.10

5. The new ideas, expectations, and practices of the “New Woman” of the 1920s illustrate how young Americans increasingly believed that women

should date many different men before settling down.

possessed, on average, greater sexual desire than men.

had social roles that extended beyond motherhood.