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GREENWICH VILLAGE 1913

Greenwich Village, 1913: Suffrage,
Labor, and the New Woman

by Mary Jane Treacy

Greenwich Village has been revised. Please double check your materials to ensure they're suitable for use in the edition that you're using.

Note that this edition is being discontinued and its files will be inaccessible after June 1st, 2024.

 To find the most up to date version of this game please visit the page for Greenwich Village 2nd Edition.

New Century, New America?

This game takes students to the beginning of the modern era when urbanization, industrialization, and massive waves of immigration were transforming the U.S. way of life. As the game begins, suffragists are taking to the streets demanding a constitutional amendment for the vote. What, they ask, is women’s place in society? Are they to remain in the home or take an active role in the government of their communities and their nation? Labor has turned to the strike to demand living wages and better conditions; some are even proposing an industrial democracy where workers take charge of industries. Can corporate capitalism allow an economically just society or must it be overturned? African-Americans, suffering from the worst working conditions, disenfranchisement, and social segregation, debate how to support their community through education and protest, thereby challenging their continuing marginalization in both the South and the North. Members of all these groups converge in Greenwich Village to debate their views with the artists and bohemians who are in the process of remaking themselves into the new men and new women of the twentieth century. The game asks what social changes are most important as well as how one can or should realize these goals.

ABOUT THE GAME

Details

Disciplines
Cultural and Social History; Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies; Labor History


Era 
20th Century; Late Modern History


In a Few Words
Gender vs. Social Class; Social Change


Geography 
North America


Notable Roles

Emma Goldman, Max Eastman, Mabel Dodge

Themes and Issues  
Bohemia, New York City, Revolutionary Movements, Woman Suffrage, Feminism


Player Interactions 
Factional, Non-factional, Competitive, Collaborative


Sample Class Titles
Women's Studies: Roots of Feminism; Freshman Seminar


Level
Published Level 5 game (what's that mean?

Mechanics 
Divided Spaces, Rolling Dice, Randomizer/Lottery/Chance Element, Differentiated Voting, Formal Podium Rule, PIPs, Coup


Chaos and Demand on Instructor 
This game is chaotic and demanding on the instructor.


Primary Source Highlights
 
Stanton, "Solitude of Self;" Marx, "Bourgeois and Proletarian;" Haywood, "The General Strike;" Hapgood, "The Bohemian, the American, and the Foreigner"

Using the Game

Class Size and Scalability 
This game is recommended for classes with 15-35 students. The second edition of the game has increased the number of its roles and included a new category of roles: Visitors.

Class Time  
For this game, 3 setup sessions and 5 to 6 game sessions are recommended. The instructor can lengthen/shorten sessions with optional activities; Mabel Dodge's Evening can be in or outside of class time; game sessions can be condensed.


Possible Reacting Game Pairings
This game can be used on its own, or with other games. These pairings are meant to be illustrative rather than exhaustive or prescriptive. Greenwich Village, 1913 may pair well with:


Assignments
The assignments can be adjusted to fit the desired learning outcomes of your class. This game can include traditional paper/research/thesis-driven writing, journalism, creative writing, letter writing, and speeches. Not all roles are required to give formal speeches.


GAME MATERIALS

Confirmed instructors who are not yet members can access basic instructor materials. Reacting Consortium members can access all downloadable materials (including expanded and updated materials) below. You will be asked to sign in before downloading.

Greenwich Village is currently being revised. Please double check your materials to ensure they're suitable for use in the edition that you're using.

Gamebook

Students need a Gamebook, which includes directions, resources, and historical content. The Greenwich Village, 1913 Gamebook is published by UNC Press.

 Paperback ISBN: 978-1-4696-7069-0
Ebook ISBN: 978-1-4696-7241-0

Published July 2022

 Available wherever books are sold.

Role Sheets and Add'l Materials

Students also need a Role Sheet, which contains biographical information, role-specific resources or assignments, and their character's secret victory objectives. 

.zip file of .pdf files.

.zip file of .pdf and .docx files.

Instructor's Manual

The Instructor's Manual includes guidance for assigning roles, presenting historical context, assignments, activities and discussion topics, and more.   

.pdf file.

.docx file.

.zip file of .pdf files.

Additional Resources 

Resources for Introduction and/or Debrief

  • Charlie Chaplin's Modern Times
  • 100% American (1918 silent film)
  • Other silent films about suffrage

Digital Assets

This includes digital Zoom backgrounds for your students.


Forums for Greenwich Village

Please note that these forums are in a beta phase and that functionality may be limited. Game authors have discretion when deciding what community materials can be publicized on the Reacting website.

 

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR 

Mary Jane Treacy

Mary Jane Treacy is professor emerita of modern languages and literatures at Simmons College, where she was also director of the honors program. She has been involved with the Reacting to the Past pedagogy since 2005, when she played a minor spy in the court of Henry VIII and then set out to write Greenwich Village, 1913, for her course in the roots of feminism. She has taught Greenwich Village in both women’s and gender studies courses and first-year seminars. She is also author of a new Flashpoints game on a labor strike in Paterson, NJ, and a game on the aftermath of political violence in Argentina. A member of the Editorial Board, she has the privilege of reading and play-testing new games that take her to all eras and parts of the world.

QUESTIONS

Members can contact game authors directly

We invite instructors join our Facebook Faculty Lounge, where you'll find a wonderful community eager to help and answer questions. We also encourage you to submit your question for the forthcoming FAQ, and to check out our upcoming events


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Paterson, 1913: A Labor Strike in the Progressive Era

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Harlem 1919: A Question of Leadership

Election of 1912
Progressivism at High Tide: The Election of 1912

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