Summary-of-The-Sad-Young-Men

SummaryofTheSadYoungMenThisarticleisjointlywrittenbyRodW.HortonandHerbertW.Edwards,whichaddressestheedisillusionmentofthepost-WorldWarIyoungergeneration,who,theauthorsargue,wasneverreally“lost”andstillmanagedtoproducenumerousvaluableworks.RevoltoftheYoungerGenerationhasbeenthemostcontroversialanddramatizedaspectofthelifeinthe1920s.Youngpeopleatthattimeappearedwild,irresponsibleandimmoralinsocialbehavior.Infact,thiswasthenecessaryresultofthethencircumstance.TheentireWesternWorld,notonlytheUnitedStates,experiencedtherebellion.ThereasonwhyyoungpeoplestartedtorebelagainsttheVictoriangentilitywasthedevelopmentoftheAmericanindustry.Additionally,thewarhadacceleratedthebreakdownoftheVictoriansocialstructure.Theworldchanging,theyouthwasfacedwiththetaskofupdatingthemores.However,manyescapedtheirresponsibilitiesandindulgedthemselvesintheBohemianimmorality.Therevelersdidnotfaceuptotheirproblemuntilthemoneyranoutandtheeconomicstructurecrashed.DuringtheWarWorldI,suchrebellionstarted.IgnorantofmodernwarfareandinspiredbyoratorslikeTheodoreRoosevelt,youngmenrushedtoenlistandregardedarmyserviceasromanticandofgreatpersonalvalue.Inevitably,theirfevertowardsthewardissolvedoncetheyhadtrulygotinvolvedinit.Whentheyreturnedhome,theywerenotadmiredbytheirfellowmenandwereevendeniedjobopportunities.Moreover,theyrealizedthatthewarwasactuallyforthebenefitofcertaininterestgroupsinsteadofdemocracy.TheyfeltunfitfortheoldworldandthattheVictoriangentilitywasoutdated,leadingtotheircompleteoverthrowofsuchmorality.ThentheywenttoGreenwichVillage,thetraditionalintellectualcenter,wheretheydirectedtheirworksagainstthewarandtheoldworldwhileadvocatinglove,artandsensation.Soon,theirBohemianlivingwithitsunconventionalitybecamepopulararoundthecountryintheformofmaterialindulgence.However,thetrueintellectualswerenotsatisfiedintheslightest.Theywantedpeopletobesensitivetoartinsteadofmaterialgains,buttheywereignored.TheyfeltlostandemigratedtotheEurope,wheretheyaccomplishednumerousmasterpiecesattackingtheatmosphereintheAmericansociety.Actuallythelostgenerationwasneverreallylost.Themoney-orientedsocietymadethemappearcritical,cynic,antisocial,misdirectedandwild,butnotlost.Theystilllovedtheircountryandprovideditwiththemoststimulatingliteraryworksintheword.