How Is Women Portrayed In The 1950s

Women’s role has significantly changed in today’s world. Back in the 1950s, women were viewed as dedicated housewives whose only goal was to meet the pleasures of their and husband and children’s. Society believed these were the only role for women. During this time, a husband was considered far more important than a degree. In fact, women who chose to work and earn their own money were considered selfish. The number of girls who entered college dropped during the 50s. Many women left college early to marry after World War II and other women who stayed were not planning on working toward a job. Beginning in the 1960s and last 70s, deep cultural changes were altering the role of women in the U.S society. More females than ever began entering into the workforce back in which the only jobs available for them away from their homes were teachers, secretaries, nurses etc.

The 1950s is considered to be the model decade of America. Families were close, children respected their elders, workers worked hard to provide for their families who grew up in nice neighborhoods, and the economy was booming. The forced conformity, neglect of the poor, and segregation are often overlooked when talking about the decade as they were during the time period. The 1950s were a prodigious time period for family life but not for the individual or societal ethics.

During the 1950’s- 1960’s men and women followed strict gender roles that complied with society’s expectation at the time. Women played domestic roles in which it was implied they were only useful in the kitchen and taking care of their husbands. Throughout this time period it was more important for women marry a man than it was to attend college and be educated. Some women had college degrees and still chose to be housewives. At the time even secondary schools prepared young girls for this type of role; lessons were given in cookery, household management, darning, sewing and even how to iron a shirt properly. Women were prepared to take on the housewife role both at school and at home; housewives did not have a career so they depended on their husband. Sexism was rampant during this era; the attitude carried over into advertising, which did little to advance gender roles and ran advertisements that implied women were idiots who cared mostly about pleasing their men.

Television sitcoms of the 1950’s through the 1990’s demonstrated the values and structure of the American family by portraying stereotypes. Since television sets became mainstream and entered almost every American home, the content of American sitcoms has reflected the culture of the times. Thus, as the popular American sitcoms of the 1950’s suggest, families living in the 1950’s were very tightly grouped and did everything together with the roles of males and females clearly defined. In the 1950’s, women did the house cleaning and child care and men worked, providing for the family. In the sixties, women acquired more freedom in their lives. The 1963 Equal Pay Act and the 1964 Civil Rights Act came into effect. It was the end of the baby

In the 1960’s, women had been placed in stereotypical roles for years. But women were tired of these roles and were done with being complacent. They felt like something was missing in their lives, and they desired something more. The typical American

Women of the 1950’s through the 1960’s are ridden with male oppression and self-esteem issues. The book Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates and an episode of Mad Men titled The Shoot have a lot in common. The differences and similarities between the leading women in both of these stories from the 1950’s show that times are different today. The women of the 1950’s had a dream for the future and their dream has finally become a reality for American women. From Mad Men, Betty Draper’s dream of becoming a model and in Revolutionary Road, April Wheeler’s dream of traveling the world are actual realities for women today. Their dreams show similarities, differences and the “American Dream” that every woman has.

the house becoming the homemaker once the war was over. The 1950s has also been

The feminist movement of the 1960’s focused solely on the improvement and well- being of women. The idea of Feminism is a critical theory as it is an analytical examination of social conditions and what tools could be utilized to proactively improve these conditions. Overcoming the consistent barriers women had to endure during this era remains prevalent and continues to have psychological effects. In order to strengthen one’s mindset regarding feminism, we must first refer back and understand the intellectual history of the women’s movement and examine areas of how counseling can assist with overcoming these impediments. The Feminist philosophy is the philosophical dimension of intellectual feminism. Many philosophers understand their intellectual history and the history of the women's movement in terms of three "waves."

Underlying the feminism movement of the 1960s and 1970s was the “white racist ideology.” The women’s movement of the 1960s was in fact the white women’s movement. It was an opportunity for white feminists to raise their voices, but they only spoke about the plight of the white woman and excluded themselves from the collective group of women across all races and social standings. White women assumed that their experience was the experience of all women. When black women proclaimed that the movement was focused on the oppression of white women, the white feminists asserted “common oppression” and retorted with “oppression cannot be measured.” Ironically, feminists in the 1960s compared their oppression to the oppression of African Americans as

Television sitcoms of the 1950’s through the 1990’s demonstrated the values and structure of the American family by portraying stereotypes. Since television sets became mainstream and entered almost every American home, the content of American sitcoms has reflected the culture of the times. Thus, as the popular American sitcoms of the 1950’s suggest, families living in the 1950’s were very tightly grouped and did everything together with roles of males and females clearly defined. In the 1950,’s women did the housecleaning and child care and men worked, providing for the family. In the sixties, women acquired more freedom in their lives. The 1963 Equal Pay Act and the 1964 Civil Rights Act came into effect. It was the end of the baby boomer

How often do you hear your friends, family or acquaintances say they would like to go back to simpler times, the 1950’s? The era where you could wear fancy poodle skirts, drive the elaborate bright cars, eat at your favorite diner, or catch a movie at the drive in. That sounds pleasant, right? The United States has a tendency to think of the lovely aspects that come from the 1950’s. Unfortunately during this era women were treated unfairly. Women obtained rights, but were still not equal to men. Femininity has come a long way since then. Women work “masculine jobs” today. In the 1950’s, job employers would have turned the female away. Although femininity has seen drastic changes throughout the past decades, society still grasps feminine roots that should have been lost long ago. During the course of this essay you will see how femininity has changed and how it has not since the 1950’s. Whether it be in the workplace, at home, or in society, women have roles to play.

1919, the dawn of a new era, the era of war , and the era of women’s votes, this was also an era of elegance, but to some the era was not so kind. Young Lacey’s mother passed away in 1919, leaving her and her brother’s and sister’s to be raised by her aunt Caroline. Aunt Caroline insisted that the children attend a Christian church on Sunday’s, where she served on the missionary board doing charitable works. The church is where Lacey first laid eyes on Larry, seeing him Sunday after Sunday, wearing his loose fitting sack suit, belted high on his waist. Larry was the son of a freeman who stayed on the land that his father was given by his boss in Prince William County, Virginia. He inherited a field and a house that sat on forty acres of

On September 20, 1984 a show aired that changed the way we view gender roles on television. Television still perpetuates traditional gender stereotypes and in reflecting them TV reinforces them by presenting them as the norm (Chandler, 1). The Cosby Show, challenged the typical gender stereotyping of television, daring to go against the dominant social values of its time period. In its challenge of the dominant social view, the show redefined the portrayal of male and female roles in television. It redefined the gender role in the work place, in social expectations, and in household responsibilities. The Cosby Show supported Freidan in her view of “castigating the phony happy housewife heroine of the

When World War II ended most countries began to progress and prosper. Of these many countries, the United States was ready to take on new challenges that lied ahead and eventually become one of the most powerful countries on Earth. Popular Culture and Mass Media had a tremendous impact on people’s lives during the 1950’s which shaped the way that the United States is today. Popular culture and mass media affected the television, the average American family, teenagers, and people involved in the red scare.

Gender roles, the public image of being a particular gender that a person presents to others (gender roles, n.d.), have seen many changes through the years, especially in families. The changes can be seen in many aspects, including television shows, from the traditional family in the I Love Lucy sitcom of the 1950s to the plethora of shows about women and men who balance working and family life of the 2000s. A traditional family can be defined as “… the ‘natural reproductive unit’ of mom, pop, and the children all living under one roof… (Ball, 2002).” The 1940s, a period dominated by this type of family, were primarily a time of single-income families where the father was the ‘breadwinner’ and the mother the ‘homemaker (Hayghe, H.V., 1990).’