The 1950s in America: Post-War Prosperity and Social Changes
America in the 1950s experienced a period of post-war prosperity marked by a significant increase in consumer culture, suburban growth, and corporate life changes. The era saw a booming economy, the Baby Boom generation, suburban expansion, and shifts in gender roles. However, challenges such as racial inequality and urban migration also emerged, shaping the social fabric of the time.
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Chapter 13.5 America At Home in the 1950s
People Of Plenty Between 1945 & 1960 the GNP almost doubled After the war Americans were most eager to purchase The G.I. Bill was very important b/c it prevented the return of the Depression
People of Plenty: Part 2 The Baby Boom: between 1946 & 1964, 76 million American babies were born Between 1945 & 1960, home ownership greatly increased The role of shopping center increased greatly
Consumer Culture Caused Increased urban populations, credit purchases, the number of shopping centers, and advertising Increased production of homes, cars, appliances, and the most popular TV sets. The fastest-growing periodical of the 1950s was TV Guide
However, During the 1950s The income gap between whites and blacks grew. Most blacks that moved to northern cities from the rural south found new problems and new forms of exploitation The phenomenon of white flight
Suburban Growth was Brought on by: Federally Insured Loans Veterans Benefits Increases in Car Ownership Highway Construction And the most dramatic population growth after the war was in the Sunbelt Suburban life was marked by uniformity Plans for Highway Construction
Corporate Life By the mid-1950s for the first time most workers were white-collar (salaried) During the postwar era, the trend in the corporate sector was toward bigness & concentration In The Lonely Crowd, David Riesman wrote that the dominant worker of this era tried to please & gain the boss s favor Dane Cook kissing Charlize Theron
Women in the 1950s After WWII, women workers were encouraged to give up their jobs to returning veterans Lifemagazine s ideal woman of the mid-1950s was a white suburban housewife This wife would be a mother, volunteer, member of a church, PTA, Campfire Girls, etc.
A Religious Nation In 1940 less than half of the adults in American belonged to a church by 1960 65% belonged to a church One major reason for this was b/c our Cold War enemy was godless Therefore, in 1954 Congress added under God to the Pledge of Allegiance
There are Many Critics of Life in the 1950s Many believe that the Middle-Class society suffered from excessive conformity John Kenneth Galbraith wrote in The Affluent Society of the persistence of poverty It does seem that in the 1950s the poor were ignored
There are Many Critics of Life in the 1950s: part 2 The Cult of Feminine Domesticity kept women at home For some, like John Keats, the idea of suburbia was a homogeneous hell C. Wright Mills believed that when people worked for big companies they sold out their personalities Book by Mills
Youthful Rebels Known as the Beats They rebelled against war and the conformity of middle-class life They favored road trips, Buddhism, and jazz Some of the leaders of this movement were Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsburg, William Burroughs, & Gregory Corso
The Beats Ultimately, the Beats helped inspire the youth revolt in the 1960s
Youth Culture Most teens in the 1950s tended to be supportive of society s prevailing values During this era teenagers became especially important as consumers However, by the late 1950s there was a rise in juvenile delinquency
Juvenile Delinquency By 1956, over a million teens were being arrested each year Car theft was the leading offense but there were some other worst cases J. Edger Hoover blamed this on lack of religious values Others pointed to urban slums, access to cars, & new music
Rock & Roll Disc jockey Alan Freed labeled rhythm & blues rock & roll Black singers like Chuck Berry, & Little Richard were suddenly a success Elvis Presley s recordings blended a variety of musical styles like rockabilly, gospel, R&B
Rock & Roll: part 2 Elvis was especially controversial b/c of his suggestive gyrations on stage One of rock & roll s most important contributions was to bridge class and racial divisions
Looking back at the 1950s In retrospect, the material successes of the 1950s: created new problems that would have to be addressed in the 1960s
