Free Spirit Flapper

Written by Rehana Akudi,
5th January 2020

The Roaring Twenties of America saw a break from the traditional view of women. This new style known as flappers derived from Britain which featured a different way of living and so the ‘new woman’ was created. WW1 had resulted in a shift of many women entering the workforce working in factories. This break in society’s traditional structure meant it became impossible to return to the old values and traditional way of life post-war. The tragedy of WW1 meant many young men had lost their lives. Young women were now without suitors for marriage and growing to be independent. A generation of young women were embracing a new lifestyle which was considered immoral, dangerous, sexual and outrageous. The flappers sought to alter the role of women by pushing for political, economic, social and sexual freedoms for women.

Redefining womanhood

“The corset is as dead as the dodo’s grandfather… The petticoat is even more defunct…”

An Extract from “Flapper Jane”, article from The New Republic, 9th September 1925.

Flappers had a distinctive appearence by wearing short skirts which fell just below the knee, short bob haircuts, wearing more make-up which was previously only done by loose-women, and dancing the uninhibited Charleston. The Roaring Twenties were also known as the Jazz Age. The craze of jazz music required women to dance freely. The very daring smoked and drank alcohol in public. Conservatives disliked such ‘flappers’. The University of Florida President alarmed by the styles said,

“The low-cut gowns, the rolled hose [stockings] and short skirts are born of the devil and are carrying the present and future generations to destruction.”

Zelda Fitzgerald, wife of the author of The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald, declared the flapper girls to be,

“reckless and unconventional, because of their quest in search of self-expression.”

Liberation meant to these young women the freedom to dress how they desired and defy the accepted norms of feminine behaviour.

Famous Flapper Girls
Some of the most well known and iconic flapper girls were Josephine Baker, Zelda Fitzgerald, Colleen Moore, Norma Shearer, Marie Provost, Joan Crawford and Clara Bow.

Clara Bow

Clara Bow was known as the ‘It girl’ (‘It’ with connotations of sex appeal). She specialised in flapper roles and many young women who had seen her films wanted to dress, behave and look like her. It was usual for women to be asking for the Clara Bow cut at the hairdressers.

Minority Experience

The most famous African-American flapper was Josephine Baker, nicknamed the “Black Pearl” who was a dancer and singer. However, many educated African-American rejected the flapper movement as they did not want any controversy in order to win respect for equality. Therefore a lot of ethnic minority women tended to be more conservative.

Limitations
It appears on the surface that the flapper movement would turn into a golden opportunity to revolutionise the role of women but as we look past the sparkling Hollywood advertisements, we know this is not to be the case. The media boom of the Roaring Twenties provided plenty of images of young flappers who had broken the traditional mould wearing new styles and behaving in a masculine fashion. However, these images were only a representation of the minority of women and not the majority. Women during this time continued to be respected for taking on the domestic role.

Significance of the movement

Overall, Historian Vivienne Sanders argues that the Roaring Twenties had a limited impact on women politically and socially. The flapper movement was only a small movement and not embraced by all women. Only a minority of urban women were flappers. According to Sanders, one survey found that only 7% of 2000 middle-class women surveyed had had premarital sex. Also 89% of girls in Middletown said they would like to work but not after they were married.

Married women entering the workforce rose in the 1920s from 22.8% to 28.8%. But not all jobs were available to women. Middle class educated women with degrees and doctorates often took on limited roles and tended to traditional female occupations such as teaching or library work.

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Websites for Further Reading

https://www.history.com/news/flappers-roaring-20s-women-empowerment

https://www.thoughtco.com/flappers-in-the-roaring-twenties-1779240

BBC Clara Bow, The Original ‘It Girl’

Famous Flappers and Summary

Films/Books

The Great Gatsby (Available to watch on Netflix)

Lost Girls: The Invention of the Flapper

YouTube clips

https://youtu.be/npB9ltho-NE – Flapper’s style

https://youtu.be/DcnsXnzIvHg – Clara Bow film clip