The Twenties: Consumer Culture

The Automobile: 
Focusing on the role of the model T in American culture during the early 1920’s, this article traces the development of the automobile industry and the ensuing consumer culture. Although it cost $850 when it was introduced in 1908, the model T, benefitting from Ford’s increasingly efficient mass production, was priced at $298 by 1923. Previously the product of the elite, the automobile became affordable to an ever increasing number of Americans. Despite this impressive reduction in price, the model T continued to outperform more expensive alternatives and, consequently, it captured the lion-sized share of the automobile market.

Postwar Prosperity

Americans in the 1920's witnessed a proliferation of scientific and technical innovations that came to be known by historians as the "Second Industrial Revolution." WWI stimulated development and investment in new technology that contributed to the business boom in the inter-war period. As electricity became widespread and industrial production became more efficient, a range of mass produced consumer goods became available to the public at attainable prices. For the first time, consumers across the nation were reading many of the same books and news stories and purchasing the same goods. Communication innovations in radio, advertising, and film also contributed to the homogenization of ideas that led to the advent of national popular culture. This illustration shows the cycle that created the business boom in the 1920's: standardized mass production led to more efficient machines, which led to higher production and wages, which led to increased demand for consumer goods, which perpetuated more standardized mass production. Questions to consider: 1. Why do some historians consider the 1920's to be the "second industrial revolution"? 2. Based on the economic statistics provided below, in what general ways did the economy change in the 1920's? 3. What changes in the average worker's wage, output, and work day length do you notice? 4. What groups profited the most in the post-war prosperity of the 1920's?

Citations:

This charts and an explanation of these factors appears at: http://us.history.wisc.edu/hist102/lectures/lecture15.html A statistical portrait of the 1920's economy was found at: http://bss.sfsu.edu/tygiel/Hist427/texts/1920seconomy.htm

The Automobile and American Culture

The explosive growth of the automobile industry in the 1920's truly revolutionized American life. Henry Ford's innovative production techniques made cars affordable for average Americans and set new standards for industry. By the end of the decade, there were enough cars on the road for every one in five persons. Related industries sprang up in response to the new American Car Culture, including service facilities, filling stations, and motels. The design of the popular Model T underwent few changes between 1908 and 1927. This 1924 Ford Advertisement appeared in mass publications catering to young men and boys. Note the last line, "Let us tell you how easy it is to buy a Ford on the Weekly Purchase Plan." Part of the growth of consumerism in the 1920's can be attributed to the widespread use of installment payment plans. The document below comes from the sociological study Middletown by Robert and Helen Lynd. The Lynd's researched the impact of industrialization on the small town of Muncie, Indiana in 1924 and 1925. The excerpt focuses on concerns that "the automobile appears to some as an 'enemy' of the home and society." Questions to consider: 1. What kinds of concerns did the residents of Middletown express in relation to the automobile? 2. List some ways that the automobile impacted life in the 1920's. Consider family life, other industries, etc.

Citations:

The Model-T photograph was found on the web at http://www.hfmgv.org/exhibits/showroom/1908/model.t.html The Ford advertisement was found at http://www.hfmgv.org/exhibits/showroom/1908/boy.jpg The "Middletown" study was found on the web at http://ecuip.lib.uchicago.edu/diglib/social/chi1919/dline/d5/angle.html

Credit and the Consumer

As consumerism became a hallmark of Modernism, the stigma of purchasing goods on "installment plans" faded. The automobile industry was one of the first to capitalize on the potential of consumer credit, but other industries quickly followed suit. In the following excerpts from Social and Economic Consequences of Buying on the Installment Plan by Wilbur C. Plummer, some of the main causes and effects of the expansion of credit are explained. Questions to consider: 1. According to Plummer, what are the main causes and effects of the installment plan? 2. How does the furniture advertisement below characterize buying on credit? What does the ad reveal about the motivation behind consumerism in the 1920's?

Plummer Social and Economic Consequences of Buying on the Installment Plan 1927.rtf

Citations:

The photo of President Coolidge posed with members of the National Association of Creditmen appears at: http://international.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/I?coolbib:1:./temp/~ammem_Qakx::displayType=1:m856sd=cph:m856sf=3c11733:@@@ "Social and Economic Consequences of Buying on the Installment Plan" was found at http://international.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/cool:@field(DOCID+@lit(lg25T000))::bibLink=D?coolbib%3A5%3A./temp/~ammem_h6lt%3A%3A A pamphlet extolling the virtues of buying on credit at a household goods store apears at: http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=amrlm&fileName=mc09page.db&recNum=10&itemLink=D?coolbib:2:./temp/~ammem_zokJ:: The "testimonial" from the same pamphlet appears at: http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=amrlm&fileName=mc09page.db&recNum=25&itemLink=D?coolbib:2:./temp/~ammem_zokJ::