The Fifties The 1950s are characterized as a decade marked by the Cold War and social conformity. It is hard to generalize the lives of millions of Americans, but the values of Americans in the fifties were shaped by two major events: the Great Depression and World War II. After a period of war and poverty conforming to a suburban way of life was a dream come true for Americans. The 1950s almost inevitably invoke an image of the so called "traditional" nuclear family portrayed in famous TV shows like "Happy Days." In this "golden age" of the family, happily married men and women lived in suburban homes raising families. Women gleefully fulfilled their roles as mothers and wives while men contently worked to provide for their families. Everyone--men, women, and children were healthy and satisfied. The nuclear family of the 1950s arose due to particular circumstances involving both America’s past and its future. The 1950s nuclear family differed from previous conceptions of the family in America. Of course, circumscribed gender roles were not new; they had always been around and were particularly reinforced during Victorian times. But the definition of the nuclear family in the 1950s went beyond the concept of the breadwinner husband and homemaker wife. Men found in demeaning for their wives to be working. Women who were in the workforce left because of this concept and fulfill the dreams of motherhood, which required the women’s full-time attention. For the first time in history, Americans were expected to find all their satisfaction and pleasure in the home. Instead of just prosperity, the definition of the American Dream expanded to include the family; the dream became profoundly domestic. The American Dream previo... ... middle of paper ... ...by an increase in automobiles and highways. I spoke with my grandfather, who also agreed that the fifties were a happy time. My grandfather said, “With such a long period of war and depression, the fifties were like a new and refreshing start.” He said that he finally felt okay with settling down and starting a family in this time. He Of course not all families were as perfect as the Cunningham’s and not everyone had a friend like Arthur Fonzerelli, but the fifties were a time where family was the most important thing and changes took place. The civil Rights movement began which eventually succeeded and provided equal rights for all. People weren’t scared to fight for what they wanted and that proved that America finally began to flourish socially economically, and politically. Bibliography: Kallen, Stuart A. The 1950s. Greenhaven Press Inc. 2000
The 1950’s was a decade of traditionalist, middle-class, suburban white family values. At the time, the standard household consisted of a man to work and provide for his wife and children, and a stay-at-home mom who managed cooking, cleaning, and caring for the kids. The 1950’s could very well be compared to the television programs of the day; dull. It was rock and roll that added a vibrant splash of color to mid-20th century American society and continued to impact the world for years to come. It affected our social livelihoods; how we talk, how we dress and interact. Politics were also affected by the music. Decisions regarding the Vietnam War and also formation of new regulatory agencies occurred in part or whole by rock and roll. Many will also argue the influence it had on, as well as the influence it drew from the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960’s.
The 1950s was the decade that saw the birth of the 'suburban dream'. It was an era dominated by
The 1950s seemed to have brought families of all different kinds together and spend quality time with each other. Fathers were the head of the home out working all day to supply money for his family while the children were at school and his wife was at home. The children were gone all day just like their father but they were learning and obtaining a good education from school. The mother was a stay at home housewife doing all different chores, maintenances around the house, and preparing food for the
As gender roles were enhanced, the nuclear family was birthed. This ideal family, mainly portrayed in popular culture, had a working father, homemaking mother, and children. Television shows depicting this type of household, Leave it to Beaver, and I Love Lucy, were not representative of the reality of America. Not all of Americans were white, and not all women were happy living as housewives (Boyer 101). Although most did not fit the mold
With the beginnings of the cold war the media and propaganda machine was instrumental in the idea of the nuclear family and how that made America and democracy superior to the “evils” of the Soviet Union and Communism; with this in mind the main goal of the 50’s women was to get married. The women of the time were becoming wives in their late teens and early twenties. Even if a women went to college it was assumed that she was there to meet her future husband. Generally a woman’s economic survival was dependent on men and employment opportunities were minimal.
Stephanie Coontz's essay `What we really miss about the 1950's' is an essay that talks about a poll taken in 1996 by the Knight-Ridder news agency that more Americans preferred 1950's as the best decade for children to grow up. Coontz doesn't believe that it is a decade for people to remember fondly about, except for financial reasons and better communication within families. Coontz doesn't believe in it as the best decade because of the votes, the 50's only won by nine percent, and especially not by African Americans. Examples from family and financial issues in the 50's that makes it better than other decades from 20's to 80's. She doesn't believe that the 50's should be taken `literally' because from 50's there were changes in values that caused racism, sexism discrimination against women. Even though the 50's were good, it didn't lead to a better 60, 70, and 80.
To some people the 1960s were the best of times, to others it was a
The position that is in favor of the sixties being a good time in America has many supporters. The sixties were the age of youth, as 70 million children from the post-war baby boom became teenagers and young adults. These people are known today as the baby boomers and they are people like my parents and teachers. The movement away from the conservative fifties continued and eventually resulted in revolutionary ways of thinking and real change in the cultural fabric of American life. No longer were people content to be images of the generation ahead of them, young people wanted change. The changes affected education, values, lifestyles, laws, entertainment, and public thinking as a whole. Many of the revolutionary ideas which began in the sixties are continuing to evolve today and help improve the way Americans live.
There is a huge difference between life in the United States as it is today and in the 1950s/1960s. The greatest change is the way in which people lived back then verses how they live today and there are many things that influence these changes. For example, after World War II ended, there was a large increase in childbirth throughout the United States. As a result of this, many Americans moved to the suburbs in hopes of a better life. This would create not only more job opportunities, but some leisure as well. There also has been a significant change in the roles that both men and women played in society in the 1950s/1960s verses today. For instance, women are no longer looked upon as just a “House Wife”. Back in the 1950s/1960s, after a woman started a family her main job was to take care of the household while the men
Some may call it the “fabulous fifties,” but others call it a time of “tensions and insecurities.” Several people think back on the fifties and remember them as the “good old days,” while others think of it as a time of crisis and terror. Although Americans were faced with many hardships throughout the fifties, I think that the positive aspects such as the new technologies, growing economy, higher focus on education, and growing job opportunities of the era outnumber the negative aspects, such as racism that African Americans faced, and the changing roles of women, making the fifties an overall “happy” period in American history.
However, Stephanie Coontz (1997) wanted to take their finding into her own perspectives and research what made it possible to have such a family like that of a nuclear one. While Parsons and Bales completely ignored policies like the FHA and GI Bill and believed modern families would and should be well-off and self-supporting, Coontz found out that it was not only industrialization that was influential to family life but the result of family stability was due to the social factors and economic policies. The Great Depression was an era where the economy plummeted and left people in a financial struggle. However, following the Great Depression and World War II, the economy became stabilized and allowed for families to go back to the values surrounding the nuclear ideal. There policies put into place that made it easier for families to adhere to the nuclear family organization. The first policy was the Federal Housing Act which made it possible for families to buy homes and mainly “restructures home mortgages” (Kelsey, lect. 01/25/17). Moreover, the GI Bill helped approximately 40% of men further their higher education and acquire a college degree due to the fact that the economy needed men in the professional field who had been educated. Coontz (1997) showed how with the arise of social and political policies, men were able to make a good income
When most people think of the 1950’s or 1960’s, they think of Elvis, Greasers, jukeboxes, Woodstock, and rainbow peace signs and hippie love. Although these symbols are somewhat accurate (and very popular), not many people think about the changes society and culture went through. The 1950’s and 60’s were a time of great change and freedom for many Americans. Everything from World War II, to the gay liberation movement, to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 helped to change society. Many of the views American’s had on topics such as war, gender roles and sexual preference were changed greatly after these events and have led to our culture being what it is today. The 1950’s and 1960’s were a time where great changes took place that helped to shape our nation into what it is today.
As mentioned before, sociologists Coontz and Hochschild further elaborate upon Parsons and Bales’ concepts of the American family, but they mostly critique the idea of the male-breadwinner family. One of the main arguments Coontz and Hochschild present is the decline of the male-breadwinner family due to the economic changes of the United States and the arising social norms of consumerism. Because Parsons and Bales never considered how the changes throughout society would affect family, they believed the male-breadwinner family would continue to be a functional type of family for everyone. However, within her text, “What We Really Miss about the 1950s,” Coontz specifically discusses the major expense of keeping mothers at home as consumption norms...
Family life was very important to mothers in the 1950’s, and it was very different than that of the 2010’s. For starters, most families would consist of a two a parent household, both a mother and a father. Divorce was not the norm because society’s pressure would have been on the
The nineteen fifties was a decade of prosperous times in America, but the average lifestyle of an American seemed extremely dull. The average American conformed to social norms, most Americans in the nineteen fifties dressed alike, talked the same way, and seemed to have the same types of personality. Music is what started to change the conformist lifestyle in America. Teenagers started to rebellion against their families by listening to Rock-n-Roll...