Emma Goldman:The Spokesperson Of The New Woman In The 1920s In America

The Congress of the U.S. passed the Nineteenth Amendment to enfranchise women in 1920, which signifies the ending of the first women's movement in America. Then there came one of the most eye-catching decades in American history—the 1920 s. Prosperous economy, individualism and hedonism were the most distinctive features of the 1920 s. Under such circumstances, a group of women called the new woman stepped onto the stage of American history. The rebellion and renovation of the new woman in the 1920 s attracted much attention from the contemporary society. They presented many a feature that the history of American women had never witnessed. After further research, the author finds that the new woman's thoughts and behaviors are in resonance with that of Emma Goldman to a great extent. Therefore, this thesis attempts to argue that Emma Goldman voices the new woman's desires and aspirations, hence she can be regarded as the spokesperson of the new woman in the 1920 s.Firstly, this thesis endeavors to illustrate the consistency between Emma Goldman's idea of women's emancipation and the new woman's beliefs in the 1920 s, which consists of three different points: the disapproval of women's movement, the demand for sexual liberation, and the advocacy of harmony between sexes. Second, this dissertation compares Emma Goldman and the new woman in the 1920 s with respect to values of love and marriage, and finds out that both of them express ideas of pursuing romantic love, emphasizing companionate marriage, and believing in divorce as salvation. At last, through comparative analysis this paper proves that both Emma Goldman and the new woman in the 1920 s appeal to women to pursue economic independence and individual wills.In brief, this thesis discovers the unique charm of Emma Goldman's feminism and reviews the images of the new woman in the 1920 s. And it maintains that Emma Goldman is the spokesperson of the new woman in the 1920 s based on the elaborate comparative study of the ideas and beliefs of both Emma Goldman and the new woman.