The Fabulous Fifties Essay

The 1960’s era was known as being called the “Golden Age”. The 1960’s were a time for change, counter culture, and political movements. One of the most important events that occurred during the 1960’s was the presidential election between Richard Nixon and John F Kennedy. During this election, the Cold War between the Soviet Union and United States was the main focus. Also at this time there was a rise in the civil rights movement. The election of 1960 was a changing point in American history.

Throughout recent history, the fifties proved to be the most interesting to me because not only was it a time of great economic expansion; but it was also known as a period where current citizens and leaders of the United States frowned upon. The “Golden Age” proved to be one of the most outbreaking movements of the industrial age. This period in American history gave citizens of the United States access to a better standard of living, transformed American agriculture, and brought the rise of the suburban nation. Remarkably, the employment rate for women had skyrocketed during the year of 1955 proving that

As World War Two came to a close, a new American culture was developing all across the United States. Families were moving away from crowded cities into spacious suburban towns to help create a better life for them during and after the baby boom of the post-war era. Teenagers were starting to become independent by listing to their own music and not wearing the same style of clothing as their parents. Aside from the progress of society that was made during this time period, many people still did not discuss controversial issues such as divorce and sexual relations between young people. While many historians regard the 1950s as a time of true conservatism at its finest, it could really be considered a time of true progression in the

World War II had just ended. Women that were working because their husbands were out fighting in the war came back home when the war ended. The 1940’s ended and it was time for a new decade. The 1950’s were looked as a state of mind or a way of living instead of another time in American history. The 1950’s were the most influential decade in American history because the civil rights act began, fashion was completely new and trendy there were more much advancement in entertainment and medicine, and suburban life was much more functional than any other decade in America.

During the 1950’ many public and social booms happened. For instance the Baby Boom was huge in the 1950’s. In 1957 it was estimated that 1 baby was born every 7 seconds. (Silverman 1) Also suburban living was expanding and becoming very common. Starting in

Coontz analyses both the weakness and strengths of the period and takes a ‘sarcastic’ approach. She is able to indicate the ideal time for the Americans pointing positive outlooks such as education, birthrate, economic expansion, jobs, family oriented culture and social environment. Her weakness about the myth of the 1950s includes teen pregnancies, poverty, marital problems, discrimination, racial and gender inequalities. She attacks the political system who continues states the goods of the 1950s but the politicians have not created and advanced the ideals and optimism of the 1950s. She categorically attacks the perceptions of people saying the 1950s was good even though when compared to the freedoms and engagements of these days, the 1950s’ thinkers are misplaced. The following quote summarizes her perspective, “This confidence that almost everyone could look forward to a better future stands in sharp contrast to how most contemporary Americans feel, and it explains why a period which many people were much worse off than today sometimes still looks like a better period for families than our own” (p. 40). Based on the historical and available information, Coontz argument may suffice because currently, nobody thinks about the future since the economic and social challenges are immense. The optimism is absent while challenges of discrimination, prejudice are fading. Hence, the article cleverly covers the

The 1960’s was and important time in American history. Television became popular. John F. Kennedy was inaugurated as president and a few years later was assassinated. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was introduced. The psychedelic movement 1960’s. The Vietnam War. Despite all the things that was happening in the 1960’s it was still a great and bad time of that era.

The 1950s was a huge time of change in the world. After World War ll, a record breaking 4 million babies were born each year, this time period became known as the Baby Boom. This rise in population was well needed, there was tons of factories made during the war that needed employees. The 1950s not only changed population, but it changed

With the overwhelming amount of Levittown houses, the obsession to obtain the perfect American “ideal family” as seen on TV and the unspoken agreement to fear any and all foreign ideas and values, the 1950s were revealed to be a decade of prosperity, conformity and consensus. Just ten years later the atmosphere in America was shockingly different; the 1960s were a decade of turbulence, protest and disillusionment due to the ongoing struggle for civil rights, arising feminism, and the Vietnam War.

Post World War II America was a society full of anxiety. In the late 1950s Americans were deeply troubled by so many social shifts. Major changes were occurring both internally and externally. They were in the midst of the Cold War, and were vastly approaching the atomic age. There was a communist scare and fear of Russian expansion. Joseph McCarthy was hunting down major celebrities for their communist involvement and the 'Red Influence' seemed to be everywhere. The move toward suburbia and the growth of multinational corporations were flourishing. People seemed to be pulled in every direction. Another change that would have a major impact on society for years to come was the

The 1950s was a decade of prosperity, the economy was booming, military was strong, the beginning of the civil rights movement. In the 1960s the decade involved protest, the war in Vietnam, the fight for civil rights, and JFK. Then came the 1970s and it was known as the time of peace and love, equality for all, the ongoing war in Vietnam, and Nixon. Each decade after one another affected the next with foreign policy, domestic policy, politics, political leadership, the economy, and the social terms of each decade.

American culture in the 1950s was based on nuclear family. It was set of a perfect family for example, men go to work and support the family when women stayed home to raise a family. The people in the 1950s who raise their families had morals to have a value of having an ideal family. The women in the nuclear family had a commitment of taking care of their children and staying at home as being a

An award-winning writer and internationally recognized expert on the family, Stephanie Coontz, in her article, “What We Really Miss About The 1950’s,” states that “In a poll by the Knight-Ridder News Agency, more Americans chose the 1950’s than any single decade as the best time for children to grow up.” However, Coontz has her own view of the 1950s, and she illustrates her own opinions about this decade using strong and logical facts. While the nostalgia of the 1950s is vastly strong in some people, some fail to notice the negativity and the reality of it.

In the 1950s, People learned many new things. they created Rock and roll, they changed their style of dress, they even changed how people think about women. During the 1950s, there we many things being addressed. One of these things was women. The ideal women of the 1950s would clean, cook, and care for the people of the house. The ideal man would work a job, and bring home the money. It was indeed a functioning society, the provider and the upkeeper; This didn't suit some women well though. They wanted to be the ones working in factories and making money for themselves. In comes the pink collar workers. Secretarial work became a huge industry for women. They no longer had to sit at home and clean, they could go to work and get even more money.

The 1960s were a very historical decade in America. With the Cuban Missile Crisis and John Fitzgerald Kennedy being shot, Americans had a lot to cope with. In the fifties, cigarettes became a huge fad, and the coming of the sixties did not slow that trend down at all. Cigarettes gave people a way to just go outside (or even inside) and relax and smoke. Other important past events were Martin Luther King Jr’s “I had a Dream” speech and the majority of the space race. Fashion wise, the 1960s brought out a lot of colors when the people were not in full formal attire. For music, one of the main impacts was singer, writer, and musician, Bob Dylan. Another aspect was the use sex being portrayed in ads. Even though the seventies had used sex abundantly to sell, it