Alright, here we are at the 1920s! This is one of the most iconic decades not only in 20th century fashion, but in the history of western fashion as a whole. The 20s were a time when the United States was experiencing abundant economic prosperity, and of course with economic development comes social development. Having newly gained the right to vote, American women began challenging the societal standards set by men not only through politics, writings and activism – but through fashion as well!

As seen in the above photo, the conservative dress of the previous two decades was long gone and replaced by the first short sleeve and tank top styled day dresses for women. Earlier bearing the arms had been acceptable while wearing a ball gown and for seldom other instances, however in the 1920s it became the norm for women to bare their arms and shoulders as well as their legs. Although all of this seems simple, it is actually extremely significant. Without the progressive and revolutionary behavior of women in fashion in this decade, modern fashion would not exist as we know it today!

This decade has less to do with perception and more to do with the development of fashion. We associate this decade so often with partying, prosperity and innovation – therefore we associate the fashion with all of those same things. Hence, why so many people throw 20s themed parties. If fashion had never developed as a result of the 20s, we would not be drawing from earlier decades as inspiration simply because they would still be prevalent to our modern day society. By baring their shoulders these women challenged the idea that they were more than sexual objects and that their bodies were not to be used solely to attract men. As said earlier, in 1900 it was only acceptable to bare so much skin at a ball – which was the prime place to attract a husband. However, in the 1920s women were becoming independent (due to the economic prosperity) and no longer were relying on the fortune of a husband to sustain their lifestyles.

In addition, the short haircuts and slim figure of the time are something that we now associate with being a more progressive woman. We often perceive women who have shorter haircuts as being edgy, in part because of the daringness of the 1920s and the women of the time who pioneered this look along with revolutionizing dress. Along with the idea of edginess, comes the flapper outfits that for the time were considered very scandalous. Today many girls wear outfits that are not too different (just more modern) out to parties – which wouldn’t be so if it hadn’t bee for flapper culture.

Again, lets not forget about the boys! Many people forget that the 1920s was also a time that mens fashion changed. Although being well dressed was still essential for men of the 1920s, casual wear also began developing for men – in the form of knickers. Knickers could be equated to our modern day sweatpants, and were worn along with sweaters or sweatshirts. They were very popular among young people (college students especially) and by dressing in this fashion they were creating the perception of being much more carefree and down to earth as opposed to uptight in their professional attire – which is still true today of dressing down vs dressing up

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