In the 1920's there was a new kind of woman born. She smoked, danced, and voted in elections. She cut her hair, and she wore makeup, and went to petting parties. She was a flapper. How did the flapper age change women's dress, behavior, and inflence future generations? No decade in recent history has seen as much change in the status and style of women in the 1920's, also known as the Roaring Twenties. Idealistic and openminded young women of the 1920's were known as flappers. From this attitude the "flapper" was born.

Flappers originated from the Gibson girls in the early 19th century. The flapper was also part of a self-conscious "generation," first of many in American history. They devolped their own attitudes about what it means to be a lady and how she should act in society in contrast from their parents old tradition values. flapper became the image that had represented he large change in women's lives and in attitudes. Young ladies began dressing, dancing, and behaving in ways that their grandmothers and mothers, would have deemed unladylike. This shift in young popular reflects the changing times as women began viewingthemselves differently. The younger generation was breaking away from the old set of values. They wore different clothes, listened to different music, danced different dances. They "dated" which was something new in American life. The flapper also smoked. Flappers also became notorious for their love of the nightlife and for drinking. Many have tried to define flappers. F. Scott Fitzgergald described the ideal flapper as "lovely, expensive, and about nineteen." In William and Mary Morris' Dictonary of Word and Phrase Origins, they state, "In America, a flapper has always been a giddy, attractive, and slightly unconventional young thing who was somewhat of a foolish girl, full of wild surmises and inclined to revolt against the precepts ad admonitions of her elders."

It's easy to look at flappers as being silly, especially when compared to the feminists who had fought for women's right to vote. But in a real way, flappers were making their own feminist statement by saying they did not see any difference between men and women. Women too, could have short hair, hold a job. They could also drink and smoke like men. Flappers redefined the meaning of femininity, moving it away from notions of proper behavior. Flapper culture now defines what it means to be a modern girl in America. Flappers scandalized the older gernation by revolutionizing women's dress, behavior, and life**** Even though flappers were only a small percentage and tended to be middle-****and white, our lives today have their influence stamped all over.

Flappers image consisted of drastic-to some shocking changes in women's clothing and hair. Flappers also shocked conservatives by cutting their hair short and wearing make-up. They cut, or bobbed, their hair just below the ears and curled it in dozens of tiny spit curls. Hemlines had rose above the ankle and dresses became more boxy. This new ****of the short skirt and no waist signaled a new way of behaving.

Despite the youthful energy for flapper **** some people felt threatened by it. It took the stock market crash of 1929 to bring the era of the flapper to a sudden end. The economic depression brought a more serious tone to society. Women's hemlines dropped afain, and the carefree age of the flapper was over. But even after the flapper era, women have still While some no longer have the careless flapper life**** but many women continue to change the way what it means to be a woman.

works cited 1

Zeitz, Joshua. Flapper: A Madcap Story of Sex, **** Celebrity, and the Women Who Made America Modern. Three Rivers Press, 2007.

Gourley, Catherine. Flappers and the New American Woman: Perceptions of Women from 1918 Through the 1920s (Images and Issues of Women in the Twentieth Century). Twenty-First Century Books (CT), 2007.

"Flappers." Http://www.fashionencyclopedia.com/fashion_costume_culture/Modern-World-1919-1929/Flappers.html. 20 Apr. 2009 .

"Flappers in the Roaring Twenties." Http://history1900s.about.com/od/1920s/a/flappers.htm. 20 Apr. 2009 .

"1920s: Fashion: Flappers | 100 Years of Pop Culture Summary." BookRags.com: Book Summaries, Study Guides. 20 Apr. 2009 .

"The Flapper of the Roaring 1920's - Associated Content." Associated Content - associatedcontent.com. 20 Apr. 2009 .