Prohibition certainly had its ups and downs, but its legacy has lived on for a long time. This has been accomplished through mass media and the romanticization of the subject. Personally, I think that movies, books, and other forms of media portraying prohibition would be kind of boring. I mean, the subject of prohibiting alcohol in itself isn't all that interesting, but it is the effects of it that are. For example, topics such as the mob or speakeasies are what movies and books are made about. So, I believe that prohibition is romanticized so often because of the broad number of topics that it can encompass. Additionally, I believe it is romanticized so much because of the feeling of independence that many who dodged the act felt. People exhibited individual rights to drink alcohol by visiting speakeasies, and it must have been pretty exhilarating. It was a free lifestyle to drink and party right under the nose of the law, and I feel that this kind of mentality is interesting to convey. Therefore, it was easier to romanticize. It really was a desirable lifestyle for many people, and so it was one of those mentalities that rose out of the twenties and the prohibition era.
On a different note, when most people think of prohibition, the first thing they think of is gangsters. The image is usually shifty men with accents in striped black suits and fedoras holding tommy guns. Why do people think this? Romanticization and dramatization have made this image symbolic of prohibition. Another example of dramatization and pop culture taking over prohibition is the Great Gatsby. There are very strong elements of prohibition times in that novel, such as the parties, the post war mentalities, the alleged crime connections, and the lifestyles portrayed. This is obviously a very famous novel, as we took time in class to read it. Do you think that the Great Gatsby accurately displayed prohibition times? Or was it more romanticized that factual?
-Chavez Rodriguez
