Marina Levair

The Roaring Twenties

From the mountains of British Columbia to the rocky coast of Newfoundland a great country has laid
for many prosperous years. Even though Canada is currently known for its maple syrup production
and delicious poutine, it was formerly known for the bravery shown by its troops in the Great War and
its role in the glorious battle of Vimy Ridge. From its establishment on July 1st, 1867 to the current
day, Canada has lived a long and fortunate life, with many great decades to enjoy along the way.
Even though Canadas first television stations began broadcasting in Toronto and Montral in the
1950s and Lester B. Pearson introduced the new Canadian flag in the 1960s, those two decades
were mediocre at best compared to the 1920s, the only decade worthy of a fitting name. The
Roaring 20s was a name deserved by the 1920s decade due to the entertainment, the new
inventions and the newfound womens rights.

Canada was thriving in the 1920s because of the exceptionally large amount of entertainment that
was available to its citizens. After the Great War ended, people wanted to enjoy themselves.
Returning soldiers finally got to spend time with their families, and they didnt want to waste any more
of their lives. Things such as picnics at a local park or vacations to places like Niagara Falls served
as family time that was much needed and well deserved. These events were also relaxing as they
gave the men and women time off from their job or the housework while giving the children time to
play. Many people also took part in the fun and carefree act of dancing. Now that women were freed
from tight corsets, dance moves became more upbeat and faster paced in the Roaring 20s. Dance
moves such as the Foxtrot, the Shimmy, the Lindy Hop, and the Charleston were wildly popular
throughout the decade. Another thing that the people of the 1920s enjoyed was horse races.
Watching and potentially betting on the horses in a horse race was an upbeat, exciting event to take
part in. A couple other popular forms of entertainment were listening to the radio or going to the
movie theatre. Grand movie theatres, nicknamed "picture palaces", showed silent films which were
usually accompanied by live organ or piano music. People such as Charlie Chaplin and Francis X.
Bushman, who were both popular American actors and directors, were some of the most famous
people in the film industry at this time. If people preferred using their ears, they could listen to the
radio instead of taking a trip to the movie theatre. Rather than watching the action happen, a radio
offered the audio that allowed the people listening to visualize and let their imagination run wild.
Radio stations offered live productions that included music, comedy, drama, education, preaching,
news, poetry or story reading. Therefore, the broad range of forms of entertainment was one of the
main causes of the Roaring 20s.

In order to have more time for entertainment, the lives of people in the 1920s needed improvement.
Countless things invented in the Roaring 20s were solely made for that purpose. Items that made
more time for family were electric ringers and washers, electric irons, and electric vacuums, among
other things. The inventions made a woman's housework easier and faster. Instead of having to heat
up the iron on the stove after every few pieces of clothes, women could now do all the ironing at once
without any disturbances. A similar situation is with the invention of the electrical icebox. Instead of
having to get only a day's worth of groceries, women could now get food to last a couple days and
store it in the icebox. Mothers and wives could provide meals for their families with ease, and not
waste any time having to go out. Inventions like these made more family time easier to achieve.
Another invention that aided family time was the automobile. Families could travel farther for an
outing, and go on frequent picnics to parks that may not be within suitable walking distance. With an
automobile, families could take a vacation to places like Niagara Falls or just simply go for a drive
around town. Automobiles also allowed citizens to commute for work. Families were no longer
limited to where they could live due to a job. Families could live on the outskirts of town while the
father worked in the city. New inventions also created more jobs. For example with the automobile
industry, the factory owners needed workers to manufacture and sell the automobiles. Along with
that, citizens needed something to drive their new automobiles on, which meant the city needed to
build roads. Now with automobiles on the road the city needs police, gas stations, auto repair shops,
auto shops, and the list goes on. When a family has time for entertainment or vacations, someone
needs to provide the services necessary, such as concession stands, tickets, and live music. All
services create job openings for other citizens to fill. To summarize, 1920s was one of the greatest
eras because of the new inventions.

Another thing that made the 20s roar was the newfound women's rights. Women were no longer
confined to their homes but were allowed to pursue involvement in the workforce, as they did during
the Great War, and pursue involvement in politics as well. Following the war, women had to re-
establish their wartime levels of labour-force involvement but by the 1920s they had done just that.
Women were mostly laid off or cutback after the war, but luckily many new female professions
began to surface, such as library work or social work. The most common jobs for women were
clerical. Sixty-five percent of all working women were in clerical, domestic service and professional
occupations, which were mainly teaching and nursing. Women not only re-introduced themselves
into the workforce, but also inserted themselves into the world of politics. In the early 1920s women
won the right to vote in federal elections. Although women were granted the right to hold political
office in Parliament in 1919, the first women to be elected as a federal member was Agnes MacPhail
in 1921. Other events that occurred in 1921 were the the appointment of Mary Ellen Smith, the first
female provincial cabinet minister in the British Empire, the appointment of Irene Parlby, the second
woman to serve as cabinet minister in the British Empire, and the passing of the first maternity leave
legislation in British Columbia. In 1925, the federal divorce law was changed so a woman could order
a divorce on the same grounds as a man. As well as being able to hold office, women were finally
deemed persons and were eligible for appointment to the Senate as of October 1929. During the
1920s, women finally got a chance for things to be more equal than they had been in previous years.
Something else that drastically changed for women in the 1920s was fashion. The popularity of
fashion catalogues rose and began to promote fashion and inspire women everywhere. They
showed their was power in beauty, and allowed women into the world of fashion. Even though
women in rural communities prefered to make their own clothes instead of buying ready-made
clothing, catalogues allowed them to copy styles and follow trends without spending too much.
Popular fashion designers featured in catalogues at the time were Coco Chanel, Madeleine Vionnet,
Paul Poiret, Norman Hartnell, Lucien Lelong, and Salvatore Ferragamo. As trends changed, corsets
were no longer an essential item in a womans wardrobe, and women started embracing their youth
instead of striving to look like older generations. Even though they couldnt wear whatever they
wanted, women still had more freedom when it came to fashion. They were able to show more skin,
but still dress appropriately. Shorter hair became the new style and touches of makeup were added
as well. As the twenties unfolded, and swimsuits became more popular, the sun was a very important
part of a woman's life. Fair skin, inspired by the Victorian era, was replaced with the sun-kissed skin
that catalogues endorsed. Tanned skin was a sign of health and wealth, and showed that the women
had time to lounge on the beach, taking in the golden rays. Many new products for sunbathing
surfaced on the market to prevent sunburns and help tan evenly. Women's lives were improved
greatly with the help of the previously mentioned new inventions. Things like the electric ringer and
washer, the electric iron and the electric vacuum, benefitted the lives of many women. Women were
finally able to enjoy life and have fun with their families rather than being chained to the house with
chores and housework to do. Implementing electricity made the daily lives of women easier by
making the work go faster. Mothers and wives could store food in their electric icebox instead of
having to go to the store everyday to provide for their families. Sports were also a big portion of
women's freedom in the twenties. A women's basketball team from Edmonton, known as the
Edmonton Commercial Graduates, inspired many other Canadian women to participate in athletics
with their success. Ranked number one in the long jump, shot put, and discus in 1925, was Fanny
Bobbie Rosenfeld, who also won Canadas first Olympic medal in women's track and field in 1928.
There was opposition to the participation of women in sports because many believed that women
should not participate in sweaty or graceless sports, but that never stopped the pursuit of many
women. Sports that were considered feminine and graceful were figure skating, diving, swimming,
and tennis. All things considered, the Roaring 20s was definitely an amazing era for women due to
their recently discovered rights.

In conclusion, the Roaring 20s was a name deserved by the 1920s decade due to the
entertainment, the new inventions and the newfound womens rights. Every decade has its ups and
its downs, but the high points of the era known as the Roaring 20s unquestionably outweigh the low
points. Even though every decade has its designation, and every generation has its name, the 1920s
clearly claim the title of the finest decade yet and most likely the finest decade to ever be.

Sources:
https://fccs.ok.ubc.ca/about/links/resources/canadian-history/1946_to_1967.html
http://www.1920-30.com/movies/
http://www.moah.org/movies/movie_theatres_p.html
http://study.com/academy/lesson/1920s-dances-styles-moves-music.html
http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/radio-programming/
http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/women-in-the-labour-force/
http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/status-of-women/
http://www.historymuseum.ca/cmc/exhibitions/cpm/catalog/cat2103e.shtml
http://fashion.just-the-swing.com/1920s-womens-fashion
http://www.ournellie.com/womens-suffrage/canadian-history-of-womens-rights/
http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/the-history-of-canadian-women-in-sport/