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Difficulty: MediumCultural and Technological Innovations of the 1920s

“He recognized the basic principle of all successful business, which is that service must precede profit... He would be a national advertiser today, I am sure, as he was the greatest advertiser of his day. Look at the parables. They are the greatest advertisements ever written... He took a group of ordinary men and forged them into an organization that conquered the world.”

— Bruce Barton, *The Man Nobody Knows*, 1925

Which of the following cultural developments of the 1920s is most directly reflected in the perspective expressed in the excerpt?

  1. The growing influence of advertising and consumerism in shaping American cultural values.Answer
  2. B
    The initial transition of domestic manufacturing from home-based production to regional factories.
  3. C
    The total withdrawal of United States corporations from foreign commerce to prioritize domestic consumption.
  4. D
    The successful integration of rural Populist demands into the regulation of corporate finance.

Answer

The growing influence of advertising and consumerism in shaping American cultural values.
The correct answer is correct because Bruce Barton's bestselling book *The Man Nobody Knows* exemplifies how advertising and the values of the business community became highly influential in 1920s American culture, even leading to the reinterpretation of religious narratives to validate consumer capitalism.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the stimulus document, noting the author (Bruce Barton), publication year (1925), and the content describing Jesus as a 'national advertiser' and parables as 'advertisements.'
Identified that the text conflates religious figures and themes with modern business, corporate organization, and advertising practices.
Understanding the core message of the source is necessary to link it to historical trends of the 1920s.
2
Recall the historical context of the 1920s, specifically the rise of a consumer economy, mass advertising, and the social prestige of corporate business culture.
Connected Barton's book *The Man Nobody Knows* to the popular effort in the 1920s to normalize and elevate corporate business and advertising as virtuous pursuits.
This contextualization allows the matching of the source's tone with broader societal shifts.
3
Evaluate the options to identify which 1920s trend aligns with this blending of traditional values (religion) and new economic practices (advertising).
Selected the option noting the growing influence of advertising and consumerism, while rejecting options that mischaracterize the Market Revolution, interwar foreign commerce, or Populist regulation.
Confirms the correct answer by aligning the source's content with the correct historical period and theme.

Key Concept

The rise of consumerism, mass advertising, and business-centric cultural values in the 1920s.
Estimated Time:1m 30s
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Topics

Cultural and Technological Innovations of the 1920s

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