Territoire et Mémoire

Prohibition
How did Prohibition impact American society ?
 A) Wet or Dry ?

American Issue Publishing Company, 1920s. Women’s Organization for National

Prohibition Reform, 1930s.
 B) US is voted dry
1) 1. to protect family life (l.9-12) 2. because of a great anti-immigrant feeling (l. 24-25) 3.
to cut off political movements (l. 28-29) 4. to prevent black men from drinking (l. 31)
2) - the stock market crash (1929) (l. 39)
- the Great Depression (1929-1939)
- the implementation of new taxes (l. 43 + 50-51)
The effects of the 18th Amendment were not as positive as expected. First, the crash in 1929
followed by the Great Depression had a negative impact on the US economy. Moreover, the
government had to implement new taxes to compensate the lack of liquidities caused by
Prohibition as taxes on alcohol had dramatically decreased. Prohibition was repealed for
economic reasons mainly.
3) On the bright side, people became aware of the dangers of drinking too much with
the campaign of 'drink sensibly' and the notion of drinking in moderation. (l. 59-61).
 C) The Rise and fall of Al Capone
1) What do you know about Al Capone ?
2) Read the culture tip and the vocabulary.
3) Watch the video and read the questions ‘Step
1’*.
4) Watch the video and answer the questions
‘Step 1’.
5) Answer the questions ‘Step 2’.

*Step 1 = prise de notes, brouillon / Step 2 = résumé, interprétation, rédaction

Culture tip !
C) The Rise and fall of Al Capone
Eliot Ness (1903-1953) was a special agent who enforced Prohibition in Chicago in the 1920s and 1930s. With his
famous elite team, nicknamed the Untouchables, he helped put and end to Al Capone’s bootlegging activities.
Tool box : widespread : très répandu
a loophole : an ambiguity in the law decline/rise
a mobster : a gangster disregard the law : ignore/disobey the law
ineffective/effective take bribes : accepter des pots-de-vin
unenforceable : impossible to enforce provide job
predictable to bootleg : to illegally make, copy or sell something
smuggle : to transport something secretly and illegally
Step 1 :
1) Find information about Al Capone (nickname, profession, activities, image).
2) Focus on the images and the journalist’s comments. Explain what the St Valentine’s Day Massacre symbolises.
3) Pick out examples showing the role of Eliot Ness in the fall of Al Capone.
Step 2 :
1) Explain the two sides of Al Capone’s personality.
2) Describe the St Valentine’s Day Massacre and its legacy in American culture.
3) Clarify the relationship between Al Capone and Eliot Ness.
Tell the story of the battle for Chicago between Al Capone and Eliot Ness to someone who is not
familiar with the subject.
 C) The Rise and fall of Al Capone
1) On the one hand Al Capone, nicknamed Scarface, was seen as a fun-loving bootlegger and a generous man who
ran a soup kitchen for people in need. He was famous for his good public relations skills and his desire to be liked. On
the other hand, he was viewed as one of the mob members behind the St Valentine’s Day Massacre.

2) The St Valentine’s Day Massacre was a terrible tragedy committed by the mob in the Prohibition era. Seven men
were killed in a garage in Chicago. Today, the bullet marks of the massacre on the brick wall are kept at the Mob
museum and the guns are held by the sheriff’s department. They both recall the tragedy of the massacre.

3) Al Capone and Ness were on opposite sides of the law. Ness fought crime. He put an end to Al Capone’s illegal
activities and escorted him before sending him to jaill. But both of them spanned innovations in crime fighting and
revolutionised their respective activities.
 D) NYC’s speakeasies
Culture tip !
Speakeasies or ‘Speaks’ originally refer to clandestine venues that illegally sold
alcohol in the 1920s.

Watch the video and answer the questions. Even/Odd

 E) How Prohibition failed
Prohibition failed because many jobs were lost as breweries and saloons were closed.
Crime increased. Laws couldn’t be enforced because bribes were given in order to
escape trial. Trials were slow, tax revenues decreased, bootleggers were kings and
corruption spread.
 F) The Great Gatsby
1) Gatsby’s name is Jay, he is Nick Carraway’s friend, he is
wealthy and mysterious, and he is in love with Daisy
Buchanan. He has several drug stores in Chicago.

2) Gatsby is accused of bootlegging, letting his friend Walter

Chase go to jail for him, making illegal bets.

3) Gatsby’s expression becomes strange but perceptible

because of the revelations. After a quick look at Daisy, he
starts to talk excitedly to her about protecting himself. He
understands that the truth has been discovered: the masked
accusations are correct and his affair with Daisy has been
revealed. He cannot control himself; his emotions overwhelm
him.
 G) Prohibition’s legacy
1)Watch the video and focus on the characters.
Introduce the plot.

Tools box !
a joint = an establishment
a ringside table = the closest table to the action/show
a pallbearer = the person who carries the coffin at a funeral
the kickoff = the start of an event/activity
to be on the wagon = to abstain from drinking alcohol
to hold the wake = to watch the body of a dead person before
the burial Doc 1 : Some like it hot, Billy Wilder (1959)
 G) Prohibition’s legacy
1)Watch the video and focus on the charcaters.
Introduce the plot.
Three men arriving in a police car :
a police officer (in a police uniform)
Charlie, a mob member and informant (giving
information and looking scared)
the police chief (listening to Charlie and giving
orders, looking confident)
Charlie, a mob informer, is tipping off the police chief
about an illegal drinking venue run by Spats Colombo, a
mob boss. The undercover policeman is about to go
inside the place while the informant must leave before
getting discovered . Doc 1 : Some like it hot, Billy Wilder (1959)
 G) Prohibition’s legacy
2) Focus on the places and music. Describe the
change in atmosphere.

Tools box !
a joint = an establishment
a ringside table = the closest table to the action/show
a pallbearer = the person who carries the coffin at a funeral
the kickoff = the start of an event/activity
to be on the wagon = to abstain from drinking alcohol
to hold the wake = to watch the body of a dead person before
the burial Doc 1 : Some like it hot, Billy Wilder (1959)
 G) Prohibition’s legacy
2) Focus on the places and music. Describe the
change in atmosphere.
Outside, and at the entrance hall of the funeral
parlour :
The sound of a an organ in getting louder and louder.
The atmosphere is grave, mournful and gloomy.
In the ‘Chapel’ :
Jazz music, laughs, shouts, people are having fun,
dancing and drinking. Joyful and festive atmosphere.

The two atmospheres are radically opposite. The

funeral parlour is a ruse and is used as a hidden venue
where people can drink illegally = a speakeasy. Doc 1 : Some like it hot, Billy Wilder (1959)
 G) Prohibition’s legacy
3) Identify humoristic elments. Show how this
comedy depicts the Prohibition era.
Characters Surprises Words
- exaggerated
- the illegal - password = ‘I come
attitudes (Charlie’s
drinking venue to Grandma’s
fear)
behind the funeral funeral’
- stereotypical (the
parlour - ‘to be on the
brave and confident
- the different wagon’
Tools box ! police chief)
a joint = an establishment atmospheres - misunderstanding
- gestures (the
a ringside table = the
- the police chief’s (booze/Canadian
closest table to the employee directing
action/show stupefaction coffee)
a pallbearer = the person the police officer to
who carries the coffin at a the chapel, the
funeral
the kickoff = the start of an waiter winking at
event/activity
to be on the wagon = to
him)
abstain from drinking the name of the
alcohol
to hold the wake = to receptionist
watch the body of a dead (Mozzarella = Doc 1 : Some like it hot, Billy Wilder (1959)
person before the burial
Italian cheese)
Conclusion G) Prohibition’s legacy
Doc 2 : Ten Legacies of Prohibition, Jeff Burbank, The Mob Museum, 2018.

1) Find what changed in certain

US states after the passage of the
Twenty-first Amendment.
2) Say who profited from the
new situation and what they did.
3) Name four prosperous
activities inherited from the days
of Prohibition.
4) In a nutshell, what were the
consequences of Prohibition then
and now ?
Final Task
List of movies you should watch to get inspiration :
The Great Gatsby, 2013
Some Like it Hot, 1959
Scarface, 1932
The St. Valentine's Day Massacre, 1967
Once Upon a Time in America, 1984
Lawless, 2012
The Untouchables, 1987
The Public Enemy, 1931
Chicago, 2002
 Prohibition
Final Task
Territoire et Mémoire
Group work : Create and act out a scene from a film about Prohibition !
Decide on the place (speakeasy, house, street, jail...), the event (police raid, party,
mobster meeting, riot...), the characters (bootleggers, police officers, friends, corrupted
people...).
Use documents from the chapter or what you find on the internet to get inspiration
(music, noises, accents, settings, costumes, ornaments, objects...).
Embody your character(s) and rehearse your dialogue, make sure you do not read
your part and try to imitate the stereotypical tone, accents and gestures from the time
of Prohibition.
Captivate your audience ! Film the scene with a smartphone and edit it with a video
editing software. Add credits, bloopers and a ‘Behind the scene’ part in which you
explain your plot, your choice of story, what was difficult to do for this project, what
you liked/disliked doing... No alcohol drinking
Be creative ! and appropriate
content only !