WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.319 Let's talk about the 20s. Welcome back to the 00:00:03.319 --> 00:00:06.019 Learn English podcast, the podcast teaching English 00:00:06.019 --> 00:00:09.119 in context so you can learn naturally. On today's 00:00:09.119 --> 00:00:11.900 episode, I want to talk about one of the most 00:00:11.900 --> 00:00:17.390 famous decades in history, the 1920s. The 1920s 00:00:17.390 --> 00:00:21.350 was a very unique time in American history. There 00:00:21.350 --> 00:00:24.070 were some very specific things that were going 00:00:24.070 --> 00:00:27.829 on here in the United States. And for that reason, 00:00:27.910 --> 00:00:31.269 there are some very specific vocabulary words 00:00:31.269 --> 00:00:35.609 that we use to describe this time period. If 00:00:35.609 --> 00:00:38.490 you are not familiar with American history, you 00:00:38.490 --> 00:00:41.170 might not know what these words are, but they 00:00:41.170 --> 00:00:44.390 are words that are very well known by the average 00:00:44.390 --> 00:00:47.570 American. So on today's episode, I want to talk 00:00:47.570 --> 00:00:50.810 about these cultural events and these very specific 00:00:50.810 --> 00:00:54.289 vocabulary words. If you're interested in learning 00:00:54.289 --> 00:00:59.189 more about the Roaring Twenties, as we say, then 00:00:59.189 --> 00:01:07.790 follow along because we're about to begin. Before 00:01:07.790 --> 00:01:10.109 we get started, I want to remind you to look 00:01:10.109 --> 00:01:14.019 at the description of this podcast episode. You 00:01:14.019 --> 00:01:16.560 will find helpful links like how to take a lesson 00:01:16.560 --> 00:01:20.900 with me and of course the vocabulary list. The 00:01:20.900 --> 00:01:23.280 vocabulary list is the words and phrases that 00:01:23.280 --> 00:01:26.299 I used in the episode so you can take them and 00:01:26.299 --> 00:01:29.370 build your English vocabulary. Now let's talk 00:01:29.370 --> 00:01:33.329 about the 1920s. When we talk about a decade 00:01:33.329 --> 00:01:36.310 from the previous century in English, we usually 00:01:36.310 --> 00:01:39.609 don't say the 19 part. We just say the years. 00:01:39.890 --> 00:01:44.689 So, for example, the 1990s becomes the 90s. The 00:01:44.689 --> 00:01:49.450 1980s becomes the 80s. And the 1920s becomes... 00:01:50.189 --> 00:01:54.709 The 20s. Now, it is 2025, so we are actually 00:01:54.709 --> 00:01:58.489 in the middle of the 20s right now, but no one 00:01:58.489 --> 00:02:01.909 in English calls this current decade the 20s. 00:02:01.969 --> 00:02:04.590 I actually don't know what it is going to be 00:02:04.590 --> 00:02:08.870 called. I haven't really heard a name for this 00:02:08.870 --> 00:02:12.650 decade that we are in, and we'll see what it 00:02:12.650 --> 00:02:15.229 ends up being. But if you say the 20s, you are 00:02:15.229 --> 00:02:17.490 not referring to this current decade. You are 00:02:17.490 --> 00:02:21.289 going to be referring to the 90s. during the 00:02:21.289 --> 00:02:26.689 1920s there was some major events going on and 00:02:26.689 --> 00:02:30.330 the 1920s when you talk to an American about 00:02:30.330 --> 00:02:32.789 that decade they are going to have a very specific 00:02:32.789 --> 00:02:36.870 image of that particular time period if you are 00:02:36.870 --> 00:02:39.830 someone who likes watching movies I'm going to 00:02:39.830 --> 00:02:42.780 recommend the movie The Great Gatsby There are 00:02:42.780 --> 00:02:45.699 two versions of this film. There's one from the 00:02:45.699 --> 00:02:48.800 1970s starring Robert Redford, but if you want 00:02:48.800 --> 00:02:51.599 an image of what people think of when they think 00:02:51.599 --> 00:02:54.620 of the 1920s, I would recommend the version that 00:02:54.620 --> 00:02:58.229 is starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tobey Maguire. 00:02:58.430 --> 00:03:01.009 It's about 10 years old now or probably a little 00:03:01.009 --> 00:03:04.870 bit more, but it's a pretty good film and at 00:03:04.870 --> 00:03:07.710 least gives you an idea of what we're talking 00:03:07.710 --> 00:03:10.430 about when we refer to the 20s or what the person 00:03:10.430 --> 00:03:13.750 thinks about when you mention the 20s. It is 00:03:13.750 --> 00:03:16.469 a little bit of a stereotype, but this is kind 00:03:16.469 --> 00:03:19.169 of what the decade was famous for. So if you 00:03:19.169 --> 00:03:21.870 talk about the 1920s with an American, this is 00:03:21.870 --> 00:03:24.400 the image that they get in their head. If you're 00:03:24.400 --> 00:03:26.460 not someone who likes watching movies but you'd 00:03:26.460 --> 00:03:28.860 rather read a book, you can also read the book 00:03:28.860 --> 00:03:31.800 The Great Gatsby. The movie is based on the novel 00:03:31.800 --> 00:03:34.539 by F. Scott Fitzgerald and the novel itself is 00:03:34.539 --> 00:03:37.520 one of the most famous American novels. Every 00:03:37.520 --> 00:03:40.159 student in the United States has to read The 00:03:40.159 --> 00:03:42.460 Great Gatsby when they are in high school so 00:03:42.460 --> 00:03:45.580 it is a very famous novel here and most people 00:03:45.580 --> 00:03:48.680 are at least familiar with the name and some 00:03:48.680 --> 00:03:50.819 of the characters even if they don't remember 00:03:50.819 --> 00:03:54.789 everything about the story. It is a really good 00:03:54.789 --> 00:03:57.370 book. I actually reread it recently and if you 00:03:57.370 --> 00:03:59.409 are someone who likes to read books that's another 00:03:59.409 --> 00:04:02.030 great resource that you could use to help improve 00:04:02.030 --> 00:04:04.710 your English level. The first thing to know about 00:04:04.710 --> 00:04:07.770 the 20s is that besides just being called the 00:04:07.770 --> 00:04:12.169 20s it's also called the roaring 20s. So that 00:04:12.169 --> 00:04:15.030 roaring part usually means that something's very 00:04:15.030 --> 00:04:19.310 loud and when we say the roaring 20s what we 00:04:19.310 --> 00:04:21.629 talk about is this period of time where it seemed 00:04:21.629 --> 00:04:23.829 like everything was just a party. That's what 00:04:23.829 --> 00:04:26.209 I mean when I say that that great Gatsby movie 00:04:26.209 --> 00:04:29.889 is a really good visual image for what an American 00:04:29.889 --> 00:04:32.089 is going to think about when they mention the 00:04:32.089 --> 00:04:35.490 20s because that movie has that feel to it at 00:04:35.490 --> 00:04:37.329 least at the beginning where it has this great 00:04:37.329 --> 00:04:40.170 party scene and this party that's occurring at 00:04:40.170 --> 00:04:43.389 Gatsby's house. That is the image that comes 00:04:43.389 --> 00:04:47.209 to mind. The 1920s were known for this period 00:04:47.209 --> 00:04:50.170 of time when It seemed like life in America was 00:04:50.170 --> 00:04:52.430 really good and people were partying. And the 00:04:52.430 --> 00:04:55.949 reason is, is that the First World War had just 00:04:55.949 --> 00:04:59.089 ended. World War I ended right before the beginning 00:04:59.089 --> 00:05:02.629 of the decade. And the U .S. and the rest of 00:05:02.629 --> 00:05:04.970 the world was really recovering after that first 00:05:04.970 --> 00:05:07.529 war. In general, the economy was doing pretty 00:05:07.529 --> 00:05:10.870 well. People had money. And it was just known 00:05:10.870 --> 00:05:13.730 as a time where people were kind of enjoying 00:05:13.730 --> 00:05:18.519 life after spending a few years. in World War 00:05:18.519 --> 00:05:20.959 I. If you are someone who likes listening to 00:05:20.959 --> 00:05:23.000 music, there's actually a song called The Roaring 00:05:23.000 --> 00:05:25.920 Twenties by the band Panic at the Disco. You 00:05:25.920 --> 00:05:28.600 can check that song out and it's just a way to 00:05:28.600 --> 00:05:31.579 reinforce this term Roaring Twenties and also 00:05:31.579 --> 00:05:33.899 to show you really how popular and how well known 00:05:33.899 --> 00:05:36.800 that term is. Another reason why it's called 00:05:36.800 --> 00:05:39.680 The Roaring Twenties is because of prohibition. 00:05:40.110 --> 00:05:42.910 Now, prohibition, you might not have heard that 00:05:42.910 --> 00:05:47.209 term, but every American knows that term. Prohibition 00:05:47.209 --> 00:05:50.410 refers to a period of time when alcohol was actually 00:05:50.410 --> 00:05:53.310 banned in the United States. That's right. If 00:05:53.310 --> 00:05:56.350 you were in the U .S., you could not legally 00:05:56.350 --> 00:06:00.029 buy alcohol. This was actually an amendment to 00:06:00.029 --> 00:06:04.149 our Constitution, and it took effect in 1920, 00:06:04.550 --> 00:06:06.610 right at the beginning of the decade, and it 00:06:06.610 --> 00:06:11.410 ended in 1933. said you couldn't legally buy 00:06:11.410 --> 00:06:14.670 alcohol because it was against the law to buy 00:06:14.670 --> 00:06:18.310 any type of alcohol however there were some ways 00:06:18.310 --> 00:06:22.430 to get around it if you know anything about human 00:06:22.430 --> 00:06:25.209 behavior you know that when people get told they 00:06:25.209 --> 00:06:28.290 cannot do something they definitely want to do 00:06:28.290 --> 00:06:30.170 it and that's especially true when it comes to 00:06:30.170 --> 00:06:33.329 alcohol it is very hard to take alcohol away 00:06:33.329 --> 00:06:37.610 from a society and during that time of prohibition 00:06:37.610 --> 00:06:40.180 there were people who were very much against 00:06:40.180 --> 00:06:42.579 alcohol and drinking alcohol, but there were 00:06:42.579 --> 00:06:46.060 a lot of people who still wanted to drink. Prohibition 00:06:46.060 --> 00:06:49.800 did eventually end, like I said, in 1933, and 00:06:49.800 --> 00:06:53.259 that was because it really was a failed experiment. 00:06:53.620 --> 00:06:56.399 Even though it was banned, people were buying 00:06:56.399 --> 00:06:58.779 alcohol, people were drinking alcohol, people 00:06:58.779 --> 00:07:02.019 were partying, and people who were selling that 00:07:02.019 --> 00:07:05.199 alcohol illegally just made a lot of money. It 00:07:05.199 --> 00:07:07.600 made life a lot more difficult for the police. 00:07:07.819 --> 00:07:10.399 It made criminals very rich because they were 00:07:10.399 --> 00:07:13.220 able to sell a lot of alcohol to everyday people. 00:07:13.279 --> 00:07:15.879 And it really just didn't work. There wasn't 00:07:15.879 --> 00:07:19.339 less alcohol that was consumed in general during 00:07:19.339 --> 00:07:21.860 prohibition because people found ways around 00:07:21.860 --> 00:07:26.060 the law. How people did that was through speakeasies. 00:07:26.199 --> 00:07:31.100 So a speakeasy is a type of club, a type of bar 00:07:31.100 --> 00:07:33.899 that you could go to, but you usually had to 00:07:33.899 --> 00:07:37.259 have a certain password in order to get in. You 00:07:37.259 --> 00:07:40.060 had to know somebody, you had to know where it 00:07:40.060 --> 00:07:42.699 was located, you had to know the right thing 00:07:42.699 --> 00:07:45.060 to say to the person who was standing at the 00:07:45.060 --> 00:07:48.100 door in order to get in. Again, that goes to 00:07:48.100 --> 00:07:51.459 the part of prohibition because alcohol was illegal. 00:07:52.079 --> 00:07:55.439 They didn't advertise that the place was a nightclub 00:07:55.439 --> 00:07:58.259 or a bar. They didn't just let anyone in because 00:07:58.259 --> 00:08:00.660 they didn't want to get in trouble from law enforcement. 00:08:00.879 --> 00:08:03.600 And so you really had to have some type of connection. 00:08:03.680 --> 00:08:05.800 You had to know somebody in order to be able 00:08:05.800 --> 00:08:08.899 to get in to this particular place. Once you 00:08:08.899 --> 00:08:11.600 got inside, there was alcohol that was served 00:08:11.600 --> 00:08:14.920 and you could drink and enjoy your night. And 00:08:14.920 --> 00:08:18.560 that's what a speakeasy is. The speakeasy term 00:08:18.560 --> 00:08:21.910 comes from that password being able to know what 00:08:21.910 --> 00:08:23.949 to say when you get to the door. And the phrase 00:08:23.949 --> 00:08:27.910 itself, even though Americans think of a speakeasy 00:08:27.910 --> 00:08:30.329 as being an American thing, it actually started 00:08:30.329 --> 00:08:33.570 in Great Britain. However, the term was very 00:08:33.570 --> 00:08:37.389 much popularized in the 1920s as people started 00:08:37.389 --> 00:08:40.730 establishing these speakeasy nightclubs and people 00:08:40.730 --> 00:08:44.059 started attending them. The concept of speakeasies 00:08:44.059 --> 00:08:47.139 is really romanticized by Americans. Americans 00:08:47.139 --> 00:08:50.000 think of it as kind of this glamorous fun time 00:08:50.000 --> 00:08:52.899 and there still are some speakeasies. People 00:08:52.899 --> 00:08:55.879 know about them obviously and they're advertised 00:08:55.879 --> 00:08:58.820 as a speakeasy. People just like that whole idea 00:08:58.820 --> 00:09:01.179 of going to some secret place and spending their 00:09:01.179 --> 00:09:04.159 night drinking alcohol in some little hideaway 00:09:04.159 --> 00:09:06.940 kind of a thing. You can see them on Google or 00:09:06.940 --> 00:09:09.340 on Yelp for example but Americans definitely 00:09:09.340 --> 00:09:12.429 like this whole concept of a speakeasy. easy 00:09:12.429 --> 00:09:15.909 now when you would have entered a speakeasy during 00:09:15.909 --> 00:09:18.750 the roaring 20s you would have seen a number 00:09:18.750 --> 00:09:21.409 of different things one thing is is that you 00:09:21.409 --> 00:09:24.590 probably would have seen a jazz band the reason 00:09:24.590 --> 00:09:28.070 is is that jazz music was incredibly popular 00:09:28.070 --> 00:09:31.210 during the 1920s it's actually referred to as 00:09:31.210 --> 00:09:35.529 the jazz age because jazz music was so popular 00:09:36.279 --> 00:09:39.360 African Americans were usually in these jazz 00:09:39.360 --> 00:09:42.539 bands. African Americans were the pioneers when 00:09:42.539 --> 00:09:46.340 it came to jazz music and the increase in popularity 00:09:46.340 --> 00:09:50.740 of jazz is tied to a particular part of New York 00:09:50.740 --> 00:09:53.840 City which is called Harlem. Harlem traditionally 00:09:53.840 --> 00:09:56.580 was an African American neighborhood and during 00:09:56.580 --> 00:10:00.419 the 1920s it went through a really important 00:10:00.419 --> 00:10:04.379 part of growth and cultural impact. African American 00:10:04.379 --> 00:10:08.019 art, music, and literature became more and more 00:10:08.019 --> 00:10:11.539 important. And that period is also called the 00:10:11.539 --> 00:10:15.159 Harlem Renaissance. Harlem, of course, from the 00:10:15.159 --> 00:10:17.220 neighborhood that it was in. And Renaissance, 00:10:17.539 --> 00:10:20.080 meaning that it's undergoing this time of change 00:10:20.080 --> 00:10:23.059 and importance and greater cultural significance. 00:10:23.679 --> 00:10:26.720 From the Harlem Renaissance and from the increase 00:10:26.720 --> 00:10:29.840 in jazz, you really get that combination that 00:10:29.840 --> 00:10:35.279 created the jazz age. Part of the jazz culture 00:10:35.279 --> 00:10:40.620 and the speakeasy culture. also included flappers. 00:10:40.960 --> 00:10:43.940 Now I had a English speaking student who had 00:10:43.940 --> 00:10:46.299 no clue what a flapper was and maybe you have 00:10:46.299 --> 00:10:48.679 never heard the term but you probably know what 00:10:48.679 --> 00:10:51.779 they look like. Women dressed in a certain type 00:10:51.779 --> 00:10:54.620 of way in the 1920s when they would go to these 00:10:54.620 --> 00:10:57.039 speakeasies and when they would go to these parties 00:10:57.039 --> 00:10:59.799 and that was called a flapper style of dress. 00:11:00.100 --> 00:11:02.679 Kind of like how there was a hippie style of 00:11:02.679 --> 00:11:05.360 dress and a hipster style of dress nowadays. 00:11:05.860 --> 00:11:09.159 The flapper had a very kind of unique look to 00:11:09.159 --> 00:11:13.399 her usually she had short bobbed hair so a bobbed 00:11:13.399 --> 00:11:16.039 haircut is a shorter type of haircut usually 00:11:16.039 --> 00:11:19.360 above the chin length she would also wear some 00:11:19.360 --> 00:11:23.100 type of decoration in her hair maybe a headband 00:11:23.100 --> 00:11:27.080 that went around her head or some type of clip 00:11:27.080 --> 00:11:30.620 or something in her hair she would also have 00:11:30.620 --> 00:11:34.820 this dress that moved a lot when she danced it 00:11:34.820 --> 00:11:37.259 tended to be a shorter type of dress dress above 00:11:37.259 --> 00:11:39.879 the knee but it would have a lot of movement 00:11:39.879 --> 00:11:42.500 to it so when she would dance the dress would 00:11:42.500 --> 00:11:45.700 move around when you say the term flapper that 00:11:45.700 --> 00:11:47.779 really should be the image that comes to mind 00:11:47.779 --> 00:11:50.940 a young woman with a headband on this really 00:11:50.940 --> 00:11:54.059 beautiful fun dress and maybe even holding a 00:11:54.059 --> 00:11:57.179 cocktail drink and smoking a cigarette the reason 00:11:57.179 --> 00:11:59.620 that the dress would move around so much was 00:11:59.620 --> 00:12:02.460 of course in part due to jazz music and women 00:12:02.460 --> 00:12:05.879 dancing to that jazz music if you have seen that 00:12:06.090 --> 00:12:08.710 gatsby movie you have seen the scene where these 00:12:08.710 --> 00:12:11.970 flappers are dancing at the party and that's 00:12:11.970 --> 00:12:14.529 really the the type of image that comes to mind 00:12:14.529 --> 00:12:18.610 here One of the most popular dances at the time 00:12:18.610 --> 00:12:21.370 was called the Charleston. It was a particular 00:12:21.370 --> 00:12:24.990 type of dance. And again, it is just one of those 00:12:24.990 --> 00:12:27.049 things that when you think of the Roaring Twenties, 00:12:27.090 --> 00:12:29.750 when you think of a flapper, it is that particular 00:12:29.750 --> 00:12:33.590 type of dance that they would do. And a reason 00:12:33.590 --> 00:12:36.750 why their dress was made to move around so much. 00:12:36.769 --> 00:12:40.549 So it really just looked more spectacular. Spectacular 00:12:40.549 --> 00:12:42.690 means that you really just want to look at it, 00:12:42.690 --> 00:12:45.399 that you're really amazed by it. you want to 00:12:45.399 --> 00:12:48.279 look at because it is so so cool to look at and 00:12:48.279 --> 00:12:50.480 that's really what you think of when you think 00:12:50.480 --> 00:12:54.340 of a flapper now a flapper is a woman that is 00:12:54.340 --> 00:12:57.159 definitely not a man when you want to describe 00:12:57.159 --> 00:13:00.360 the way men dressed in the 1920s you might want 00:13:00.360 --> 00:13:03.899 to use the word dapper Dapper means that the 00:13:03.899 --> 00:13:05.919 person looks very nice. It usually means that 00:13:05.919 --> 00:13:07.980 they're in a suit or some type of dress, clothes, 00:13:08.259 --> 00:13:11.700 that they look better than someone who's just 00:13:11.700 --> 00:13:14.039 wearing everyday street clothes, right? Someone 00:13:14.039 --> 00:13:16.720 who maybe has a little bit more attention to 00:13:16.720 --> 00:13:18.840 how they're dressed. When you think of a dapper 00:13:18.840 --> 00:13:21.799 man from the 1920s, you think of a man who has 00:13:21.799 --> 00:13:24.919 his hair slicked back, who's wearing a suit, 00:13:25.080 --> 00:13:29.139 who looks very well put together and very nice. 00:13:29.639 --> 00:13:32.580 He might also have a hat, he for sure has a tie, 00:13:32.799 --> 00:13:35.600 maybe even a cigarette and a cocktail just like 00:13:35.600 --> 00:13:38.919 the flapper does. While they are here at the 00:13:38.919 --> 00:13:41.720 speakeasy dancing and listening to music and 00:13:41.720 --> 00:13:45.120 drinking alcohol, the alcohol that they are drinking 00:13:45.120 --> 00:13:49.480 is bootlegged. Now bootlegged is a term that 00:13:49.480 --> 00:13:53.299 refers to the sale and the manufacture of alcohol 00:13:53.299 --> 00:13:57.019 during that prohibition time period when alcohol 00:13:57.019 --> 00:14:00.500 could not be manufactured. legally, there were 00:14:00.500 --> 00:14:03.840 people who made it illegally, who made it even 00:14:03.840 --> 00:14:06.539 though it was against the law. People would make 00:14:06.539 --> 00:14:10.539 alcohol and then would drive it across the country 00:14:10.539 --> 00:14:14.700 and sell it. And that process of making and selling 00:14:14.700 --> 00:14:17.860 alcohol was called bootlegging. If you were someone 00:14:17.860 --> 00:14:22.860 who was a person who sold the alcohol, you would 00:14:22.860 --> 00:14:26.460 have been called a bootlegger. In the book The 00:14:26.460 --> 00:14:29.159 Great Gatsby and in the movie, the character 00:14:29.159 --> 00:14:33.860 Gatsby is thought to be tied to the bootlegging 00:14:33.860 --> 00:14:36.549 business. is thought to be someone who is dealing 00:14:36.549 --> 00:14:40.450 with the sale of alcohol and dealing with this 00:14:40.450 --> 00:14:43.210 whole criminal organization of making money from 00:14:43.210 --> 00:14:46.549 alcohol. It's never really said exactly, but 00:14:46.549 --> 00:14:49.590 that's what's hinted at in the book is that he 00:14:49.590 --> 00:14:52.529 is definitely involved with some criminals and 00:14:52.529 --> 00:14:54.950 probably making his money from selling alcohol. 00:14:55.659 --> 00:14:59.220 Now how people got to and from the speakeasies 00:14:59.220 --> 00:15:03.620 was probably in one of the early automobiles 00:15:03.620 --> 00:15:06.379 of the time and probably one of the most famous 00:15:06.379 --> 00:15:10.620 was the Model T. The Ford Motor Company is a 00:15:10.620 --> 00:15:14.120 car company here in the United States and the 00:15:14.120 --> 00:15:17.759 founder was Henry Ford. So the Ford Motor Company 00:15:17.759 --> 00:15:22.019 is named after him, Henry Ford, and he is known 00:15:22.019 --> 00:15:26.179 for using the assembly line. How we think cars 00:15:26.179 --> 00:15:29.299 are made today really kind of goes back to what 00:15:29.299 --> 00:15:32.740 he put in place with this particular car called 00:15:32.740 --> 00:15:36.240 the Model T. The Model T was made on an assembly 00:15:36.240 --> 00:15:38.899 line. He actually wasn't the person who created 00:15:38.899 --> 00:15:41.679 this technology, but he is the one who used it 00:15:41.679 --> 00:15:44.779 and used it to make the Model T, that specific 00:15:44.779 --> 00:15:49.220 type of car. And by doing that, he made the Model 00:15:49.220 --> 00:15:52.919 T very affordable. People before were only able 00:15:52.919 --> 00:15:56.279 to buy a car if they were very rich because it 00:15:56.279 --> 00:15:58.620 took so much time to make a car. They weren't 00:15:58.620 --> 00:16:01.460 mass produced at the time. However, during the 00:16:01.460 --> 00:16:04.759 1920s, the Model T was mass produced, which meant 00:16:04.759 --> 00:16:08.779 that the cost of the car went way down, and everyday 00:16:08.779 --> 00:16:11.600 Americans could afford to buy a car for the first 00:16:11.600 --> 00:16:14.639 time. This really revolutionized transportation. 00:16:15.240 --> 00:16:17.840 It was the first time that people were able to 00:16:17.840 --> 00:16:20.509 buy cars, and it really started that whole car 00:16:20.509 --> 00:16:23.809 culture in the United States. If you watch The 00:16:23.809 --> 00:16:26.450 Great Gatsby you will hear a reference to Henry 00:16:26.450 --> 00:16:28.669 Ford. To be honest he wasn't that great of a 00:16:28.669 --> 00:16:30.889 person so if you hear that reference it's not 00:16:30.889 --> 00:16:34.429 really for anything very good but it is true 00:16:34.429 --> 00:16:37.029 and it is definitely mentioned in the book and 00:16:37.029 --> 00:16:39.490 in the movie. And you'll also see how cars play 00:16:39.490 --> 00:16:42.850 in a very important role in the film and in the 00:16:42.850 --> 00:16:46.409 book. The car culture of the time is really what 00:16:46.409 --> 00:16:48.929 was starting to happen because cars were finally 00:16:48.929 --> 00:16:52.299 becoming a for purchase and especially for people 00:16:52.299 --> 00:16:55.679 who were very wealthy they were able to afford 00:16:55.679 --> 00:16:59.120 to buy very nice cars and you can see that if 00:16:59.120 --> 00:17:00.779 you read the book or if you watch the movie you 00:17:00.779 --> 00:17:03.899 can see how the car culture was starting to form 00:17:03.899 --> 00:17:06.779 and how people were really starting to buy cars 00:17:06.779 --> 00:17:11.460 and use cars to get around during the 1920s And 00:17:11.460 --> 00:17:14.420 the last part that's associated with the 1920s 00:17:14.420 --> 00:17:18.880 is silent film. So before the end of the decade, 00:17:18.960 --> 00:17:21.799 before the end of the 20s, it was really common 00:17:21.799 --> 00:17:24.740 that movies did not have any sound. These were 00:17:24.740 --> 00:17:28.019 called silent films because there was no sound. 00:17:28.079 --> 00:17:31.819 You couldn't record the actor speaking and you 00:17:31.819 --> 00:17:34.980 just kind of watched the story unfold, but you 00:17:34.980 --> 00:17:39.200 didn't have the same sound as we do now. When 00:17:39.200 --> 00:17:42.269 movies were able to be recorded with sound when 00:17:42.269 --> 00:17:44.930 they were able to film the actors and record 00:17:44.930 --> 00:17:48.230 the sound of their voice. That really changed 00:17:48.230 --> 00:17:52.049 the movie industry and that occurred in the 1920s. 00:17:52.089 --> 00:17:54.589 It wasn't however until the end of the decade 00:17:54.589 --> 00:17:57.109 so most of the decades still had silent film 00:17:57.109 --> 00:18:00.869 but towards the end of the 20s there were movies 00:18:00.869 --> 00:18:03.829 that had sounds and those were called talkies. 00:18:03.910 --> 00:18:07.009 That was because you could finally hear the actors 00:18:07.009 --> 00:18:09.589 talking to one another. You could actually get 00:18:09.589 --> 00:18:12.170 this sound of their voices, and those type of 00:18:12.170 --> 00:18:16.250 films became known as talkies. If you are interested 00:18:16.250 --> 00:18:19.690 in kind of getting a modern day depiction of 00:18:19.690 --> 00:18:22.210 this transition from silent films to talkies, 00:18:22.250 --> 00:18:25.569 you can watch the movie The Artist. This came 00:18:25.569 --> 00:18:29.130 out in 2011, so it is a new film, but it is a 00:18:29.130 --> 00:18:31.410 silent film and it is filmed in black and white 00:18:31.410 --> 00:18:34.529 because it is about this period of the 1920s. 00:18:34.529 --> 00:18:37.609 It is a good movie and I think it won the Academy 00:18:37.609 --> 00:18:41.740 Award that year, but... It isn't a movie I would 00:18:41.740 --> 00:18:43.920 recommend for English learning because it is 00:18:43.920 --> 00:18:45.640 a silent film. You're not getting that English 00:18:45.640 --> 00:18:47.759 content. But if you're interested in just kind 00:18:47.759 --> 00:18:50.019 of seeing more about this time period and this 00:18:50.019 --> 00:18:52.819 transition in the film industry, you can check 00:18:52.819 --> 00:18:55.519 that out. The Roaring Twenties were fun, but 00:18:55.519 --> 00:18:58.400 sadly, of course, they didn't last. In October 00:18:58.400 --> 00:19:02.519 of 1929, the stock market crashed and it began 00:19:02.519 --> 00:19:06.079 the Great Depression. The party was over, the 00:19:06.079 --> 00:19:08.480 Roaring Twenties ended, and the United States 00:19:08.480 --> 00:19:11.160 entered it. into a depression that took a number 00:19:11.160 --> 00:19:14.859 of years to come out of. But from 1920 to the 00:19:14.859 --> 00:19:19.079 end of 1929, you really have this decade of partying 00:19:19.079 --> 00:19:22.759 and of fun and just this unique image that comes 00:19:22.759 --> 00:19:25.660 to mind when you think of those roaring 20s. 00:19:26.299 --> 00:19:29.019 I hope you found this episode interesting. I 00:19:29.019 --> 00:19:31.319 hope you learned these vocabulary terms, but 00:19:31.319 --> 00:19:34.240 if you struggled with any of them, if maybe you 00:19:34.240 --> 00:19:37.380 don't remember everything that I said, a reminder 00:19:37.380 --> 00:19:39.759 just to look at the description of this podcast 00:19:39.759 --> 00:19:42.640 episode. You will find the vocabulary list of 00:19:42.640 --> 00:19:44.839 these words and phrases that I used so you can 00:19:44.839 --> 00:19:47.440 refer to them and use them to build your English 00:19:47.440 --> 00:19:50.220 vocabulary. If you did like this episode, please 00:19:50.220 --> 00:19:52.839 leave a comment. Let me know. Tell me if you 00:19:52.839 --> 00:19:55.829 enjoyed it and if you want more podcasts. episodes 00:19:55.829 --> 00:19:58.910 like this. If you like the podcast in general, 00:19:58.950 --> 00:20:01.069 if it's helping you learn English, please consider 00:20:01.069 --> 00:20:03.930 leaving us a rating on whatever app you are using 00:20:03.930 --> 00:20:06.589 to listen to this podcast on. Tell a friend, 00:20:06.670 --> 00:20:08.650 tell a family member, tell someone who is learning 00:20:08.650 --> 00:20:11.150 English so we can continue to grow our audience. 00:20:11.529 --> 00:20:14.069 You can also follow us on social media at Learn 00:20:14.069 --> 00:20:17.309 English Pod. The website is learnenglishpod .com 00:20:17.309 --> 00:20:19.890 and remember to like and subscribe so you don't 00:20:19.890 --> 00:20:21.809 miss our next episode when it comes out next 00:20:21.809 --> 00:20:25.839 week. Until then, keep learning English.