Jazz Age
李建花 任立艳
What is Jazz Age?
Coined by Fitzgerald in Tales of the
Jazz Age
1918-1929
the end of World War I and the start
of the Roaring Twenties —— the rise
of the Great Depression
Jazz music and flappers
Dissatisfied and disappointed in life,
indulging in social excitement ,moral
standards collapsing
Jazz Music
Jazz, a result of the Harlem Renaissance,
originated from the musical minds of
American Blacks.
Music celebrated the emotions of the people
who believed America was at its peak.
The snazzy tunes ran through the veins of
flappers and their dance partners.
The music gave way to freedom .
Jazz Music
Instead of having a full symphony-sized
orchestra on the grounds, Gatsby requested for
a work that defied tradition.
―Ladies and gentlemen,‖ [the orchestra leader]
cried, ―At the request of Mr. Gatsby we are
going to play for you Mr. Vladimir Tostoff’s
latest work…’Vladimir Tostoff’s Jazz History of
the World.’‖ (chapter 3)
The flappers
In 1920s, a new woman was born. She
smoked, danced, drank and voted.
She cut short hair, had heavy makeup,
worn short skirts, treated sex in a
casual manner and drove automobiles.
She flaunted her scorn to what was
then considered acceptable behaviors
and despised conventional sexual norms.
The Dissatisfied and Disappointed people
It was an epoch full of parties with
orchestras, dances and cocktails.
At Gatsby’s parties ―people were not
invited – they went there […] came for
the party with a simplicity of heart that
was its own ticket of admission.‖
The Dissatisfied and Disappointed people
Music and wine made the guests forget the reality.
They were taken into a totally new world, where
everything seemed wonderful. This allowed them to
go beyond the boundaries that existed and to
discover new things. It was like being tempted, just
like Eve did with the apple.
At parties, they let their body flow as if it was thin
air they were ―holding each other tortuously,
fashionably and a great number of single girls dancing
individualistically‖.
Typical Slang and Foreign Words
The twenties were the first decade to
emphasize youth culture over the older
generations, and the flapper sub-culture had
a tremendous influence on main stream
America.
Many new words and phrases were coined by
these liberated women.
These were the most common words and
phrases of the time, many of which we still
use today!
Typical Slang and Foreign Words
egg: a person who lives the big life - This can be taken as a
reference to the names of the two most significant places in
the novel, East Egg and West Egg, and their underlying
meaning.
fella: fellow. As common in its day as "man," "dude," or "guy"
is today - The words "fella" and "fellow" are used many
times in the novel.
gay: happy or lively; no connection to homosexuality - This
word is can also be found quite frequently.
fish: (1) a college freshman (2) a first timer in prison - Tom
uses the phrase "crazy fish" when talking about Gatsby and
people like him.
Thank You !