How and why did bebop develop? How was it received by whites?

Ideal Answer: The ideal answer should:
1. Explain that bebop featured complex rhythms and harmonies and highlighted improvisation. Dizzie Gillespie (19171993) said that Kansas City-born Charlie Bird Parker (19201955) was the architect of the style.
2. Note that white America resisted bebop. The nation was about to enter World War II and was too preoccupied to switch from the big band swing ballroom dancing music to bebop. Because jazzmen played in small, intimate clubs too small for big bands, they had more freedom from the expectations of white society.
3. Point out that bebop music was of such enduring quality, however, that it shaped American popular culture and style for two generations. Before long, bebop became the principal musical language of jazz musicians around the world.
4. Explain that bebop was a way of life and had its own attendant styles whose nuances depended on class status and, perhaps, age. Gillespie helped create one side of bebop style in dress, language, and demeanor.
5. Conclude by noting that beboppers created their own slang, hip Black English that mingled colorful and obscene language. They also engaged in a freewheeling lifestyle.