The Damned and the Beautiful by Paula S. Fass

This first part of the book was really very interesting and eye-opening for me. Young couple could decide now when to have children and even how many children and this resulted in a more satisfying life for the parents and a richer, freer life for the children. It was the idea that the fulfillment of personal aspiration was fine, the shifting of social expectation from a community welfare to a more personal fulfillment, and the advancement in contraception techniques, that allowed that explosion of egocentrism that was the Twenties. The attitude of bourgeoisie families toward children and personal aspirations in Victorian Era was enlightening, because they made sense of many characteristics of that age, especially with regard to man/women relationship. People familiar with the history of family will know these facts, but for me everything was new and very interesting. The book opens with a presentation of the upheaval the new behaviour of youth stirred in the Twenties, then goes back so to relate what life was like for these youths’ parents in Victorian and Edwardian Eras. It presents the social and material change that allowed a loosening of habits with regard to man/woman relationship and gives a vivid image of the life of young people in 1920s America. The book presents a portrayal of family life, with special regard to the education of young people in Victorian/Edwardian Eras.

Maybe a bit too wordy, but very interesting. One morsel review: Well-informed dissertation about life of the new youth of the Roaring Twenties. 24th September 2014 jazzfeathers 1920s, flapper attitude, prohibition, Roaring Twenties, social history, US history 0 Comments

The Damned and the Beautiful by Paula S. Fass