Prohibition

18 Pages 4418 Words

This essay deals with the Prohibition that was in effect in the United States between 1920 and 1933. The essay focuses on the reasons that the Eighteenth Amendment, which put Prohibition into effect, was eventually repealed. The thesis is that though the `Noble Experiment' had some good effects, the drawbacks, real and perceived eventually convinced Americans that the country was better off without Prohibition and enabled them to rapidly move to repeal the Eighteenth Amendment.
The causes of repeal that are focused on in this essay are the fact that Prohibition was unenforceable; the fact that the public began to lose confidence in the success of Prohibition; and the fact that anti-prohibitionists capitalized on this lack of confidence to eventually spur the public toward repeal.
The conclusion reached at the end is a rather philosophical one. When all the evidence has been reviewed concerning the problems with Prohibition, the benefits of the same, and the way public opinion changed, it becomes clear that in a democratic society such as the one in which this prohibition was attempted, the will of the people is paramount. If the people of a democratic nation decide to do something to change their situation, they will. This is first seen in the enactment of the Eighteenth Amendment. Later, when public sentiment changed to the reverse of what it had been, Americans were able to quickly reverse what they had done, even though it was the sacrosanct act of changing the Constitution.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Unenforceability
Changing Public Opinion
Uncertainty
Repeal
Conclusion
Bibliography
Introduction
On January 17, 1920, at 12:01 AM, the Volstead Act went into effect all over the United States. This Act made the Eighteenth Amendment law, and officially outlawed the sale, transport, and production of alcoholic beverages. The night before, on January 16, 1920, drinkers all over the country headed to their favorite sal...