Persuasive Research Essay/a 1920s Event – Dances

Persuasive Research Essay/a 1920s Event – Dances During the Roaring Twenties young Americans responded to this criticism by expanding on all of these violations, with more outrageous slang, jazzier music and dance, shorter and flimsier dresses and shorter hair. The dance styles of the 1920s were vibrant, lively, exuberant and full of life. In the 1920s many people would dance for long periods of time. Dance clubs became rather popular in the 1920s. Dance contests were nationally held and sponsored where new moves were invented, tried, and competed. Dance Marathons were also a significant part to the culture of the 1920s. Dance marathons became extremely popular during the 1920s. People often attended dance halls and danced dances such as the Charleston, the Bunny Hop, and the Black Bottom. Today dancing is also popular but more so at clubs and parties instead of dance halls, and instead of dancing to jazz music, people often dance to hip hop and more upbeat music. Many dances are still used today that were created in the 20s such as the Fox Trot, the Waltz, and the Tango. The Charleston was probably one of the most popular dances in the 1920s. The Charleston was originally developed by Kathryn Wilson. The Charleston is most frequently associated with flappers and the speakeasy. Here, these young women would dance alone or together as a way of mocking the citizens who supported the Prohibition amendment, as the Charleston was then considered immoral and provocative. “A fast fox-trot named after Charleston, S. Carolina, popularized in NY, 1922, in a song by Cecil Mack and Jimmy Johnson” (Michael Kennedy and Joyce Bourne). “The Charleston is characterized by outward heel kicks combined with an up-and-down movement achieved by bending and straightening the knees in time to the syncopated 4/4 rhythm of ragtime jazz” (Charleston). The Charleston is significant in this time because, women didn’t have any rights in the 1920s and weren’t respected; so for Kathryn