Postwar Uncertainty(Ch. 15, Sec. 1)

New Scientific Theories Challenge Old Beliefs

• World War I caused many to question religious faith (fear of uncertain future)

• Writer T.S. Eliot described the postwar world as lacking hope and faith

• Einstein’s Theory of Relativity (space and time not constant) challenged Newton’s absolute laws of motion & gravity

• Freud’s theory of unconscious, irrational behavior attacked the idea of reason/choice

New Ideas/Styles in Philosophy, Art, and Music

• Sartre and Nietzsche believed in existentialism (meaning through choice & action)

• Cubism transformed natural shapes into geometric shapes (Picasso)

• Artists rebelled against realism and turned to surrealism (above or beyond reality)

• Jazz , which originated in the US, gained popularity across the US and Europe

Changes in Women’s Lives/Roles

• Women gained right to vote in most democratic nations

• Women wore less restrictive clothing (no more corsets)

• They continued to work outside the home in careers (still responsible for family)

• Cut their hair short (bobbed) and began to wear makeup

• Drove cars, and drank & smoked in public

New Technologies in Transportation and Entertainment

• Automobiles became a part of everyday life (commute to work, vacation, travel)

• People began to travel by airplane (passenger airlines catered to the rich)

• Radio became an important form of family entertainment (news, sports, weekly shows)

• Movies (first silent, then with sound) became another popular form of entertainment