We are independent & ad-supported. We may earn a commission for purchases made through our links.
Advertiser Disclosure
Our website is an independent, advertising-supported platform. We provide our content free of charge to our readers, and to keep it that way, we rely on revenue generated through advertisements and affiliate partnerships. This means that when you click on certain links on our site and make a purchase, we may earn a commission. Learn more.
How We Make Money
We sustain our operations through affiliate commissions and advertising. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, we may receive a commission from the merchant at no additional cost to you. We also display advertisements on our website, which help generate revenue to support our work and keep our content free for readers. Our editorial team operates independently of our advertising and affiliate partnerships to ensure that our content remains unbiased and focused on providing you with the best information and recommendations based on thorough research and honest evaluations. To remain transparent, we’ve provided a list of our current affiliate partners here.
Cultural

Our Promise to you

Founded in 2002, our company has been a trusted resource for readers seeking informative and engaging content. Our dedication to quality remains unwavering—and will never change. We follow a strict editorial policy, ensuring that our content is authored by highly qualified professionals and edited by subject matter experts. This guarantees that everything we publish is objective, accurate, and trustworthy.

Over the years, we've refined our approach to cover a wide range of topics, providing readers with reliable and practical advice to enhance their knowledge and skills. That's why millions of readers turn to us each year. Join us in celebrating the joy of learning, guided by standards you can trust.

What is a Flapper?

Tricia Christensen
By
Updated: May 23, 2024
Views: 31,346
Share

The term flapper is most associated with a set of attitudes, behavior, and fashion ascribed to some women of the 1920s. Though most think that the original flapper is an American creation, the UK actually coined the term before that decade. This person was a young woman trying to leave the nest, flapping her wings in awkward fashion as she tried to reach maturity.

For many, the flapper was associated with the many illegal clubs that sold alcohol during prohibition, but she was much more than simply a woman who drank and frequently smoked. In many ways, she symbolized the young woman of the early '20s, rejecting conventional feminine behavior.

This was most obvious in clothing and hairstyles. This young woman shed the restrictive garments of corsets and instead favored a boyish figure in dress styles and undergarment styles. She might wear teddies or bras that actually pushed the breasts inward to minimize her figure.

The hemlines of dresses fell just below the knee, and waistlines were often completely absent. Such clothing and the lack of ironclad undergarments were often considered shocking. Later, however, dresses with higher hemlines and a-line construction became quite normal wear. As well, few went back to corseting, and as a result, women enjoyed more physical freedom and easier breathing.

Hairstyles were also quite “unconventional” at first. The bob, a short, almost mannish cut that was usually chin length, was a trade-up on long, long hair that had to be pinned and placed by maids or by extensive personal effort. Make-up was used to excess, some thought, with dark lips and heavy eyeliners and powder.

Flappers were open to more physical intimacy than women preceding them by a decade. In fact, petting and kissing was considered relatively normal behavior. Many at the time called this very loose and questionable morality, but this was often as far as early sexual behavior went, and many women still waited until marriage to have intercourse. As in any generation, pattern of sexual behavior was varied.

F. Scott Fitzgerald greatly popularized the movement in many of his short stories. In particular, “Bernice Bobs her Hair,” discusses the decision as to whether a woman will succumb to the style and give up her pretty tresses. Furthermore, certain actresses like Clara Bow were examples of flapper actresses.

The movement and the gay times that went with it were considered over by 1929 with the onset of the Great Depression. In fact, displays of conspicuous consumption, like those by the pleasure-seeking flappers were greatly discouraged. Though these young women were often thought of as hedonistic and silly, their legacy was the pervading thought that women did not have to behave conventionally. Actually, unconventional behavior might be celebrated rather than despised.

Share
PublicPeople is dedicated to providing accurate and trustworthy information. We carefully select reputable sources and employ a rigorous fact-checking process to maintain the highest standards. To learn more about our commitment to accuracy, read our editorial process.
Tricia Christensen
By Tricia Christensen
With a Literature degree from Sonoma State University and years of experience as a PublicPeople contributor, Tricia Christensen is based in Northern California and brings a wealth of knowledge and passion to her writing. Her wide-ranging interests include reading, writing, medicine, art, film, history, politics, ethics, and religion, all of which she incorporates into her informative articles. Tricia is currently working on her first novel.

Related Articles

Discussion Comments
By behaviourism — On Nov 13, 2010

@desertdunes, That's it exactly- while the flapper dress fashion doesn't sound like a big deal to us now, at the time it was something unimaginable to wear in public, even somewhere like a nightclub. As for fashion today without the flapper girls, I think it would have changed anyway, some other way, and it would have been seen as just as scandalous.

By desertdunes — On Dec 21, 2009

Weird thinking that a shapeless below-the-knee length dress could be considered shocking, especially when compared to today's "fashion". But compared to the buttoned up head to toe dresses of the earlier 1900's, I guess anything would be rebellious.

Makes you wonder what today's Supermodel would look like and walk the runways in, if not for the flappers of the 20's!

Tricia Christensen
Tricia Christensen
With a Literature degree from Sonoma State University and years of experience as a PublicPeople contributor, Tricia...
Learn more
Share
https://www.publicpeople.org/what-is-a-flapper.htm
Copy this link
PublicPeople, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.

PublicPeople, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.