11 | Pu ck M agazi n e

Clara Bow,
the most

An objective prominent flapper

of our time.

opinion on
flapper cultur e

Written by Brooke
Peterman
A scan dalous
lif est yle, excruciat in gly
short dresses, an d
audacious hab it s,
charact erize t he youn g
w om en in t oday?s societ y
w ho p art ake in t he risin g
t ide of f lap p er cult ure. To
t hose w ho are un aw are of
t his m odern n uisan ce, a
f lap p er is t he w om an you
see in t he st reet s p aradin g
t radit ion s.
her yout h aroun d an d
t easin g m en like dogs w it h Flap p er cult ure seem s t o
a b on e. The w om an you have origin at ed af t er t he
see drin kin g glass up on Great War. I t is a sad side
glass of cockt ails in jazz ef f ect of t he dreadf ul
b ars, an d cruisin g t im es in w hich t he yout h
p om p ously in t he b ack grew up . Durin g t he War
seat of an aut om ob ile. m ore w om en w ere join in g
This is t he b ehaviour t hat t he w orkf orce an d gain in g
p lagues our st reet s an d in dep en den ce f rom t heir
craw ls aroun d our p rop er dut ies in t he
n eighb orhoods household. Af t er t he 19t h
t hreat en in g t o seep am en dm en t p assed,
p erm an en t ly in t o our gran t in g w om en t he
b eloved, p ure, cult ure an d f reedom t o vot e, a lot of

w om en self ishly
em b raced t heir n ew f oun d
f reedom b y in dulgin g in
f lap p er like hab it s.
An ot her asp ect of societ y
t hat un w it t in gly
en couraged t he creat ion
of t he m odern f lap p er is
t he 18t h am en dm en t ,
b an n in g t he sale an d
dist rib ut ion of alcohol.
Sp eakeasies, or illegal
b ars, have b een
f lourishin g ever sin ce an d
even our reveren t p olice
f orce can n ot b rin g dow n
t hese in sult in g an d
dep lorab le
est ab lishm en t s. Scan t ily
clad f lap p ers f lock t o
sp eakeasies f or w ild
dan cin g (in cludin g t he
in f am ous Charlest on
Dan ce), illegal drin kin g
(m an y leave even m ore
zozzled t han t he m en ),
an d high f lyin g jazz p art y
m usic (Moos Pick). F.
Scot t Fit zgerald?s w rit in gs
in t he Saturday Evening Post
an d his deb ut b ook This
Side of Paradise w ere t he
f in al b low t o solidif y t he
un f ort un at e im age of t he
f lap p er w e have t oday
(Hist ory.com ).
There are an
im m en se am oun t of
issues I , an d m an y ot hers,
have w it h t he f lap p ers in
our societ y. I t b egin s w it h
t he dreadf ul an d
dem ean in g dress of said
vexat ion . The m ost
dist ract in g asp ect s are t he
short hem lin es, exp osed
Disgracef ul f lap p ers en joyin g
t hem selves at an equally
disgracef ul sp eakeasy.
collars, an d b are legs.
Flap p ers m ost def in it ely do
n ot ref lect t he n ew f oun d
f reedom w om en of t his
age are gain in g, b ut
in st ead rep resen t t he
ab horren t carelessn ess
w it h w hich som e w om en
choose t o p resen t
t hem selves. The
licen t iousn ess in volved in
t heir dem ean or is quit e
ast on ishin g, f rom t he b old
lip st ick an d m ascara t o t he
f ree- f low in g lin gerie, as
op p osed t o t he
w holesom en ess of t he
t radit ion al, resp ect f ul, an d
of course com f ort ab le
corset s. As if t hey w ere
b at hed in cheap gold, t he
shin y, skim p y out f it s t he
f lap p ers w ear, p roudly
revealin g t heir b ub s,
p ract ically scream f or
in ap p rop riat e at t en t ion ,
rat her t han revolut ion izin g
w om en s f ashion . I t
ap p ears as if t hey have lost
all m oral rest rain t an d
12| Pu ck M agazi n e
dign it y. Their im p urit y is
t ain t in g t he souls of good,
p urit an children , exp osin g
t hem t o som et hin g as t oxic
as it is sen sual.
The issues con t in ue
w it h m ore horrif ic
p hen om en on s f lap p ers
have sp urred. Aut om ob iles
are f lyin g of f shelves,
w om en are n ow sm okin g
gasp ers like chim n eys, an d
m ovies like I t st arrin g t he
headst ron g Clara Bow are
en couragin g t he sexual
p rom iscuousn ess of
f lap p ers (Park). Ford?s
rap id p roduct ion of
aut om ob iles of lat e b est
exem p lif ies t he un f am iliar
chan ges occurin g, an d t he
f lap p ers are b ehin d it .
Flap p ers are soilin g t his
t ran sf orm at ive m echan ical
m ast erp iece in t o an ot her
p aw n in t heir schem e t o
corrup t societ y. They are
n ot solely usin g aut os f or
t ran sp ort at ion m et hods as
in t en ded, b ut in st ead are
The st ereot yp ical im age an d
dress of a f lap p er
 13 | Pu ck M agazi n e
drivin g aroun d
p urp oselessly an d goin g
on dat es. Might as w ell rid
our societ y of aut om ob iles
all t oget her t o p reven t
f urt herin g t he f lap p ers
f right en in g f reedom . The
p revalen ce of sm okin g in
youn g w om en is also
n eit her w arran t ed n or
accep t ab le t o p eop le of
class an d t radit ion .
Flap p ers def en d t heir
choices, b ut w hy w ould
t his hab it ever sign if y t hat
w om en are f in ally ab le t o
en gage in t he sam e sort of
act ivit ies as m en ? As if
equals? Prep ost erous. As if
t hat is n ot b ad en ough,
n ow f lap p ers are b ein g
rep resen t ed on our m ovie
screen s. These choice b it s
of calico seduce t he m en in
t he m ovie as w ell as t hose
sit t in g in t he seat s. This
drast ic shif t in cult ure t o a
n ew an d ?im p roved? f orm
of f ree livin g m akes m y
st om ach grum b le in
A gan g of f lap p ers ab usin g t he
f reedom given b y aut om ob iles.
queasin ess, an d I ?m n ot
t he on ly on e. Charlot t e
Perkin s Gilm an an d Lillian
Sym es, b ot h w om en ' s
right s act ivist s, agree t hat
m odern f lap p ers have
t aken t heir n ew f reedom a
m isguided st ep , or t w en t y,
t oo f ar (Park).
There is at least on e
ot her laudab le source in
t his coun t ry t hat shares
m y op in ion of t he
b lasp hem y t hat is f lap p er
cult ure. An art icle in The
Lit erary Digest rep ort s on
t he crit icism f lap p er
cult ure has received f rom
p eop le aroun d t he
coun t ry. They even w isely
in clude a clip of a verse
f rom t he St an f ord college
p ap er com p arin g f lap p ers
t o t he sn ake t hat t ricked
Adam in t o eat in g t he
f orb idden f ruit
(Hat hit rust ). I b elieve t hat
is a just rep resen t at ion of
t hese scan dalous w om en
w ho seduce m en f or f un
right af t er dryin g out
b ot t les of p an t her p iss
t hen run n in g aroun d
ram p an t . I f t his
rep resen t at ion is n ot t rue,
t hen t hey w ould b e just
havin g f un an d en joyin g
t hem selves f or n o ot her
reason t han t he f un of it ,
w hich m akes n o sen se.
There ab solut ely has t o b e
ult erior m ot ives.
Con t rast in g t o t his p recise
op in ion , Ellen Welles Page
argues in The Outlook t hat
p aren t s an d adult s should
Un n am ed f lap p ers in dulgin g in
p rohib it ed alcohol
con sum p t ion .
con sider t he p ersp ect ive of
f lap p ers an d em p at hize
w it h t hem b y t ryin g t o
rem em b er b ein g youn g
an d havin g f un (Page). But
w hen w e w ere youn g, w e
had goals of a f am ily an d
con sidered t he im p act w e
had on ot hers. Havin g f un
t o just have f un w as n ever
an op t ion an d how dare
t hey n ow t ake self ish
advan t age of t hat luxury.
At t he en d of t he
day t here are t w o kin ds of
p eop le in t his w ord. There
are t hose w ho are p at ien t ,
kin d, resp ect f ul, an d
con siderat e. Those w ho
ob serve religious values
an d kn ow t heir p lace in
societ y w it hout
challen gin g t hat role. They
st an d b y p assively an d
hon orab ly w hile in just ice is
don e t o t hem as w om en
b ecause it is n ot t heir p lace
t o say an yt hin g. Then t here
are t he f lap p ers. Those w ho
have b lat an t disregard of
 14 | Pu ck M agazi n e

Flappers
p osin g f or a
p ict ure w hile
som e are
t akin g a drag.

accep t ed con ven t ion s an d

draw at t en t ion t o t heir
f ree f low in g lif est yle. Their
p ub licized drin kin g,
sm okin g, dan cin g, dat in g,
an d disgracef ul dress
con t rast s w it h everyt hin g
in w hich t radit ion al
cit izen s b elieve. How dare
t hey p ursue t heir ow n
hap p in ess an d p leasure,
disregardin g t he
n egligib le ef f ect it has on
ot her p eop le. The act of
claim in g yourself t o b e a
f lap p er is so dem oralizin g
it should b e p un ishab le b y
t he law . So t he n ext t im e a
f lap p er get s escort ed of f
t he b each b y t he p olice f or
w earin g a revealin g
sw im suit , or a crit ic hit s
b ack at a sexually
in t en sive f lap p er f ilm , I
an d m an y ot hers I am
sure w ill n eit her def en d
t hem n or op en an y eyes t o
 15 | Pu ck M agazi n e

Work Cited
Edit ors, Hist ory.com . ?Flap p ers.? History.com, A& E Television Net w orks, 6 Mar. 20 18,
w w w .hist ory.com / t op ics/ roarin g- t w en t ies/ f lap p ers.
Lan g, Nico. ?59 Quick Slan g Phrases From The 1920 s We Should St art Usin g Again .? Thought Catalog,
The Thought & Exp ression Com p an y, LLC, 19 Sep t . 20 18, t hought cat alog.com
/ n ico- lan g/ 20 13/ 0 9/ 59- quick- slan g- p hrases- f rom - t he- 1920 s- w e- should- st art - usin g- again / .
Moos Pick, Margaret . ?Sp eakeasies, Flap p ers, an d Red Hot Jazz: Music of t he Prohib it ion .? The Jim
Cullum Riverwalk Jazz, St an f ord Un iversit y Lib raries , 20 0 5, iverw alkjazz.st an f ord.edu
/ p rogram / sp eakeasies- f lap p ers- red- hot - jazz- m usic- p rohib it ion .
Page, Ellen Welles. ?A Flap p er' s Ap p eal t o Paren t s .? The Outlook, Old M agazine Articles, Mat t Jacob sen ,
6 Dec. 1922, p p . 60 7?610 , w w w .oldm agazin eart icles.com / f lap p er_in t erview _1920 s_f
lap p ers_reb el#.XKGMZJhKg2.
Park, Soo Hyun , "Flap p er Fashion I n t he Con t ext of Cult ural Chan ges of Am erica in t he 1920 s" (20 14).
CUNY Academic Works. ht t p s:/ / academ icw orks.cun y.edu/ gc_et ds/ 263
?Person al Glim p ses: The Case Again st The Youn ger Gen erat ion .? LI TERARY DI GEST: April, 1922-June,
1922 (Classic Reprint), HathiTrust Digital Library, b y Un kn ow n Aut hor, vol. 73, Forgot t en Books,
20 17, p p . 38?51, ht t p s:/ / b ab el.hat hit rust .org/ cgi/ p t ?id=m dp .390 150 2810 1460
;view =1up ;seq=10 30 .
Rogers, Hen ry. ?Radio Boulevard .? 1920s Radios, West ern Hist oric Radio Museum , 1997,
w w w .radiob lvd.com / 20 sRadio.ht m l.
?Four Flap p ers Dan cin g in a Sp eakeasy.? Big M ike's Speakeasy, w w w .b igm ikessp eakeasy.com / .
?Port rait of An it a Page.? Vintage Everyday, Vin t age Everday,w w w .vin t ag.es/ 20 12/ 0 6/ f ab ulous
- p hot os- of - f am ous- f lap p ers- in .ht m l.
?1925, Louise Brooks.? Flapper Style , Ken t St at e Un iversit y Museum , 4 Sep t . 20 16, f lap p erst yle
.w ordp ress.com / f lap p er/ .
?Flap p er Lif est yle.? The Flappers of the 1920's, Weeb ly, t hef lap p ersof t he1920 s.w eeb ly.com / f lap p er
- lif est yle.ht m l.
?Flap p ers Seat ed in Aut om ob ile Ca. 1920 s.? Public Broadcasting Station, Lib rary of Con gress Prin t s an d
Phot ograp hs Division , w w w .p b s.org/ ken b urn s/ p rohib it ion / p op up / S4112/ .
?Four Wom en Lin ed up alon g a Wall, Chuggin g Bot t les of Alcohol. Circa 1925.? All That's I nteresting, 19
Oct . 20 18, allt hat sin t erest in g.com / f lap p ers- 1920 s.
?Vin t age I m age of Wom en Dressed Up f or Part y.? Getty I mages,w w w .get t yim ages.com / p hot os
/ f lap p er ?sort =m ost p op ular& m ediat yp e=p hot ograp hy& p hrase=f lap p er.

Port rait s of w om en
risin g t o t he t op of t he
f lap p er hall of f am e
in cludin g An it a Page
(lef t ) an d Louise
Brooks (right ).

Harlem
Reconnaissance
Written by Stephanievon Rosenberg
In a recent trip to the
city, I took a stroll down Tin
Pan Alley before making my
way to the Cotton Club to get a
taste of the New York night
club life. What I heard and saw
inside those four walls would
make your toes curl. It was
art...simply for the sake of art.
Music...simply meant to
entertain and nothing more
(?Art or Propaganda?). No
secondary purpose. No
political motivations. Why, I?ve
never heard of such an
outrageous thing! How dare
these people use art to express
themselves rather than
16 | Pu ck M agazi n e
Image of the exterior of the Cotton
Club, a whites only jazz club that
featured many Harlem Renaissance
musicians.
conforming to white American potentially be very dangerous
standards. for the reputation of the
American negro. I mean, what if
The neighborhood of
people realize they are
Harlem is largely to blame for
intelligent and creative and
this wave of creativity that has
even...talented! Then we might
flooded the streets of New
have to start treating them
York. After the Great Migration
equally. I?m sure we can find a
when many blacks came to the
new reason to say they are
city from the south, entire
inferior (we always do), but it
neighborhoods were
just makes us white folk look so
unofficially established as
bad when they achieve things!
black communities. From
The worst culprit in this artistic
there, new cultural identities
scandal is that sinful jazz music
emerged and the Harlem
that now plagues every corner
Renaissance was born.
and club of New York. No music
This surge of cultural
should make people want to
pride due to new works of art,
dance that much. The rhythms
literature, and music could