Last Leaf Analysis

1161 Words5 Pages
«The Last Leaf» O. Henry 1)In early 20 century almost every aspect of life and culture, such as education, literature, fashion, and technology all evolved to create a society that was more sophisticated than ever before. The nation became industrialized and education became much more important. Even the fashion and transportation of the day can be seen as a precursor for what was to come in the later 1900s. Technology brought with it all sorts of changes to the new century. Many items we use today made their debuts in the first decade of the 20th century. Cars emerged as legitimate vehicles led by the ingenuity of maverick Henry Ford. Clothing during this new century was a preview of what was to come in the roaring 1920s. Women wore very fancy, elegant clothes and men dressed in a very proper manner. With automobiles making their debut, women’s skirts were cut a bit shorter to make stepping in and out of cars easier. Men’s fashion was also affected by the new ways of getting around, and it became common for them to wear a cap and goggles, which were considered to be the typical driving attire. Women also began to sport shorter haircuts and wear hats. Many of the finest books published during this time reflected the great changes happening in American society. One important work of literature was The Jungle by Upton Sinclair. In his novel, Sinclair describes the horrible conditions that immigrants worked in and exposed the disgusting practices of the food industry. Other authors like Jack London, Edith Wharton, W.E.B. DuBois and Mark Twain published work during this first decade of the 1900s. Wharton’s novel, The House of Mirth, came out in 1905. In 1903, The Souls of Black Folk by DuBois was published, and three years later Twain published What is Man? Many of these works became essential to the American canon of literature because they boldly questioned the
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