By: Esha Aphale
The Roaring ’20s, as the prefix suggests, were, well, roaring. The glamour, festivity, and lifestyle was full of exuberance and excellence. Everything was over the top, every emotion was over-felt, and every occasion was over-celebrated. It was filled with the oddest but sweetest summers, similar to an over-ripened peach fruit left outside for a while. The pioneers of the roaring ’20s, the ones who helmed at its creation and helped it come into existence were the gorgeous flapper girls. The Great Gatsby, a book loved by one and all, was set in the frivolous times of the ’20s where it was perfectly acceptable to fill your long, lost love’s house with flowers that were their namesake.
It was a period of social, artistic, cultural, and economic dynamism that morphed into the Great Depression but for the nine years it lasted, it made sure to leave an impact for the future generations to fantasize about experiencing them once (minus the economic downfall).
Everything about the roaring ’20s made it seem like the perfect place to romanticize existence in. Even if the political situation was a mess there was a sense of normalcy; the culture, art, and food had reached its peaks of dynamism. Even if people had to sneak away into speakeasies to have a good time, the alcohol was cheap and the morals were loose. All that everyone seemed to want was to have a good time, feel glamorous and party hard. Something about the naughtiness of breaking the law just for a sip of elixir seemed to unite the most unexpected of people together.
There is a reason everyone wants to experience the ’20s at least once; some cope with re-reading their favorite Prohibition-era books, some cope with throwing themed parties. Others just wish it made a comeback. And in many ways, it is making a comeback with the year 2020 approaching us with great speed and velocity.
The socio-cultural and political situation of the modern almost-20s is in complete disarray; every day, with changes happening all over the world, many claims that it feels like being transfixed in a Black Mirror episode. This is why my wishlist for the new year and decade is short: the modern ’20s to be a semblance of normalcy and mimic the roaring ’20s in more ways than one.
The unity, the love and the glamour in caring about things that actually matter — having a good time with everyone till our time is up.
That’s why party like it’s the ’20s, make the owl-like man in Gatsby’s library happy by reading literature and go to extreme lengths for things, ideas, situations and people you care about. After all, we can hear the ’20s roar again.
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This is so good 🤩