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Men in the New Age

In the 1920s, men of all social classes had problems adjusting to the new legal status and the growing self- confidence of women in the Weimar Republic. Duwdiwani comments on this in numerous caricatures that convey both mockery and compassion.

Men in the New Age

In the 1920s, men of all social classes had problems adjusting to the new legal status and the growing self- confidence of women in the Weimar Republic. Duwdiwani comments on this in numerous caricatures that convey both mockery and compassion.

Marital Violence

“If you want to beat your wife, Hein, don’t do it in the kitchen – mine always takes the fire hook.”

A violent husband apparently learned from experience that his wife knew how to defend herself using the fire hook.

ULK, vol. 55 / n. 36, 10.9.1926, p. 274
ULK, vol. 55 / n. 46, 19.11.1926, p. 355. Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Leipzig
The Pervert
“You know, a relationship like that with a mannequin would be ideal.” It appears that the elegant gentleman views a relationship with a mannequin to be less complicated than dealing with his fashionably dressed and very self-confident companion.
A Victim of Morality

“There is always new dirt and trash, and all the while my wife is turning out my bed lamp at twelve at night!”

Dime novels, trashy magazines, and “enlightenment pamphlets” featuring bare-breasted women were popular in the 1920s. As a governmental countermeasure, Reich President von Hindenburg passed the “Law for the Protection of Youth from Dirty and Dirty Writings,” on January 7, 1927. This law was regarded by many cultural workers to be a censorship measure.

In Duwdiwani’s cartoon, additional ‘censorship measures’ by the wife of a gambler prevent him from getting the overview he wants for himself.

ULK, vol. 58 / n. 10, 8.3.1929, p. 78
ULK, vol. 55 / n. 36, 10.9.1926, p. 274
Harald Lloyd

“I swear that Frieda would never have accepted me without horn-rimmed glasses. She raves about Harald Lloyd.”

Harald Lloyd (1893–1971) was one of the biggest American film stars during the transition period between silent and tonal films in the 1920s. In most of his films, he played a young man seeking success and happiness. He was also well known for his glasses, which became a fashion staple for young men at the time.

Phrenology

“That little hillock on the back of your head proves that you have a strong sensual disposition.”

The Württemberg doctor Franz Gall (1758–1828) was the founder of phrenology, the theory that character traits can be read from the shape of the skull. As a result, in the 19th century, the skulls of notorious criminals such as that of the legendary robber Schinderhannes (1779–1803) or that of the composer Joseph Haydn (1732–1809) were to be used for study purposes. With the collection of skulls in the background, the diagnosis of strong sensuality frightens the examinee, especially since the doctor also strongly reminds of the psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud (1856–1939), who was hotly debated again in the 1920s. A year later, he published his essay “The Discomfort in Culture,” in which he dealt with the pleasure principle.

Jugend, vol. 34 / 1929, n. 35, p. 565

Gabriele Metzler / Dirk Schumann (Hg.): Geschlechter(un)ordnung und Politik in der Weimarer Republik. Bonn 2016.

Adelheid Rasche: Der männliche Blick. Das Bild der »Neuen Frau« in Männer-Zeitschriften. In: QUERELLES. Jahrbuch für Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung. 2006/Nr. 11, S. 118–132.

Änne Söll: Mode und Männlichkeit in den Lifestyle- und Männermodezeitschriften der Weimarer Republik. In: Katja Leiskau / Patrick Rössler / Susann Trabert (Hg.): Deutsche illustrierte Presse. Journalismus und visuelle Kultur in der Weimarer Republik (= Mediengeschichte – Media History – Histoire des médias, Bd. 1). Baden-Baden 2016, S. 255–274.

Änne Söll: Der Neue Mann? Männerporträts von Otto Dix, Christian Schad und Anton Räderscheidt 1914–1930. Paderborn 2016.