Value: 15 % of term

Instructions: Choose one of the topics below and write a well-organized and thoughtful research essay.  Be sure to use MLA documentation for all your sources. This essay is to be approx. 750 - 1000 words, typed and double-spaced using MLA format.  No cover pages please.  The following items will monitor your progress towards the completion of this essay:

Topics:

  1.  Major changes in fashion occurred in the 1920’s.  What were these changes and how have the changes that occurred in 20’s fashion, and the development of the ‘flapper girl’, influenced the fashion trends of later society and, in particular, fashion today?

  2.  After WWI immigrants began pouring into the US and discrimination escalated.  What factors were behind this discrimination in the US in the 1920’s?  Who were the KKK and what part did they play in this discrimination?  What affect did they have on society in the 1920’s?

  3.  The 1920’s was a leisurely period in history and people began spending more time playing and observing sports.  Who were the major contributors to this “Golden age” of sports and what influence, if any, did they have on future athletes and the sports they played?

  4.  The 1920’s brought with it many new freedoms.  One such freedom was the freedom of transportation.  How did the invention of the automobile in the 1920’s change the world and what positive and negative influences has it had on society?

  5.  With the 1920’s came a new era of music: jazz.  What were the influences behind this new musical genre and how has it influenced modern musicians of today?

  6.  The 1920’s was a time of deception and, for the first time, the public became aware of scandals inside US politics.  What were the major scandals and what impact did they have on society? How do modern day scandals relate and society in regards to them?

  7.  Although the 1920’s is associated with the development of many new freedoms, it was a time of restrictions as well.  Examine the 18^th amendment and prohibition in the 1920’s.  What was the reasoning and who were the key supporters behind a ‘dry’ United States? How did the 18th amendment change the United States and what influence does alcohol consumption have on current day society?

  8.  The 1920’s was an era saturated with organized crime: bootlegging, the fixing of the World Series, and corruption within police forces. Who were the major players in organized crime in the 20’s and what crimes were they involved in?  What impact did these people and their crimes have on society? How has organized crime evolved into the 21st century?  What are the differences between the organized crime of the 1920's and organized crime today?

  9.  Ironically the 1920’s, an extremely luxurious time period, lead to the Great Depression and, ultimately, the worst financial fallout in history.  Contrast the lavish wealth experienced in the 1920’s with the decade of poverty that followed, as well as discussing the factors that contributed to The Great Depression.

10. Women first received the right to vote in the 1920's.  Examine the women's suffrage movement and the people and factors contributing to it.  Besides enabling women to vote, how has this movement affected women for future generations?