The Sixties Were A Great Decade

A common saying people have embedded in our minds is that the past between 1950s and 1960s is considered as “The Good Ol’ Days” or “The Golden Age.” These assumptions were made due to the prosperity and growth of the nation however the truth is that many Americans felt disadvantaged. After WWII women became confined to the home where they were expected to care for the family. Many housewives did not like these conditions because they felt as though they were slaves in their own little worlds by losing rights they had gained during the war. The only work women were wanted for was for cooking, cleaning, laundering, sewing, taking care of children, etc. Many women became discouraged due to the fact they no longer felt important in society.

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

In 1980, the United States was emerging from a troubled decade. The 1970s had been marked by an ugly end to the Vietnam War, the demoralizing Watergate spectacle, rampant inflation, unemployment and an energy crisis. The Soviets had just invaded Afghanistan, rejuvenating

Throughout history, people have looked towards past history to recognize the problems that society endured. Some might say certain time periods was the best time to live as others periods were full of failure and the mistakes and should not be repeated. The idea of a perfect time to live is known as “golden age thinking” which is ultimately defined as a certain time period is better than the one they live in today. This hasty generalization bases an entire era with very little evaluation and thought due to people lacking to realize there is no such thing as the best era. However certain times may have accompanied better economic stability or less social oppression such as Stephanie Coontz’s article “What We Really Miss About the 1950s.” The idea of making a golden age by force by structuring society in very detailed manners causes a loss of privacy, choice and ultimately a loss of freedom due to the deprivation of individuality. The loss of individuality causes a loss in competition within a society causing people to lose interest in being more than what is just allowed like in Kurt Vonnegut Jr.’s short story “Harrison Bergeron.” Every era in history has had its setbacks but that is why every time period is run through trial and error.

There were many styles that people were able to work with. First off, one of the most common styles was the retro style. Retro was, in a way, inspired by disco. Americans would often wear flares, which were types of jeans where the legs got bigger and “flared” out towards the bottom of the foot (CITATION, #). This proves that retro was just one of the major fashion statements in the 1980s. Another style that Americans tried out was the Glamour style. This fashion included top of the line designers like CoCo Chanel, Versace, and Oscar de la Renta. These designers made a significant impact on the glamorous lifestyle. Glamorous was over the top, but in a fashionable or unique way that people like to dress (CITATION, #). People would wear skirts with a huge puffball at the bottom of it, or switch it up to a nice tight fitting pencil skirt. The economy was a huge factor. Obviously people wanted the best of the best, but the economy was not doing that well (CITATION, #). There were some bad things about the agriculture. Since the United States is just coming out of a recession, they were working on rebuilding businesses in the city so they could expand their business and try to earn back some of the money they lost. This proves that at this point in the 80s, life was not so glamorous because people had to worry about earning back the assets that they lost along with businesses. The farm economy was

One of the best known decades for music was the eighties. During this generation, there were a number of landmark events. This decade set a standard for music to evolve from for years to come.

    The 1980’s was a time of prosperity throughout America. From the Calendar that went from January 1st to December 31st to the increase of jobs. This decade was full of good changes socially, economically, and politically.

A key turning point in American politics was the election of 1980. It indicated the new electoral power of the suburbs. The success that Reagan had as a conservative would initiate a group of parties because liberals and conservatives would either leave politics or change party affiliations through 1980 's and 1990 's. The research shows this caused the 1980 election to be recalled as one of America 's best historical events.

The events that are affected by the 1980s decade was music, music has influenced the 1980s so much with Madonna and Michael Jackson. Madonnas hair was all the rage, big curly hair with ratted bangs as high as you could get them she was the queen of the 1980s her fashion influenced so much of the 1980s, girls were curling there bangs just like Madonna she was an icon everyone looked up to her.

The 80 's was an eye opener to a lot of new things, new music, new styles, new points of view on life and new technology. Music was a big hit for the 80 's and so was the technology. A home, family, job and fun was basically what everyone needed to live ahappy life. In the 80 's, people saw the American dream, as a simple task of success andthose years defined them. They were the generation in between differences and facing disagreement andnot turning our backs. The 80 's may have made them idealistic, but it 's idealism that will push themand be passed on to their children, the first children of the twenty-first century.

The transition from the multicultural era of the eighties to the postnetwork era of the nineties triggered abrupt changes in American media and culture. [6] From fashions to family life, relationships, and attitudes, many new cultural elements subsequently changed television portrayals of ordinary American culture within this time period. More specifically, the culture of the eighties is often characterized by the rise of MTV and megastars, techno music and club drugs, and popular fashions such as leather, leggings, and Ray Bans. Eighties culture can be described as the ‘bombdigity’ and nineties culture can be described as more toned down, moral, and ‘sweet’.

The Sixties, by Terry H. Anderson, takes the reader on a journey through one of the most turbulent decades in American life. Beginning with the crew-cut conformity of 1950s Cold War culture and ending with the transition into the uneasy '70s, Anderson notes the rise of an idealistic generation of baby boomers, widespread social activism, and revolutionary counterculture. Anderson explores the rapidly shifting mood of the country with the optimism during the Kennedy years, the liberal advances of Johnson's "Great Society," and the growing conflict over Vietnam that nearly tore America apart. The book also navigates through different themes regarding the decade's different currents of social change; including the anti-war movement, the civil

The seventies is often seen as a lost decade, merged between the optimistic sixties and the opportunistic eighties. Bruce J. Schulman argues, in his book titled, “The Seventies: The Great Shift in American Culture”, that this period ignores changes brought by the 1970s. This period brought changes in the economy, shifts in culture, politics, race, family and religious values. The United States faced many transformations that helped shape our country to this day. Schulman begins to explain his thesis, “The Seventies transformed American economic and cultural life as much as, if not more than, the revolutions in manners and morals of the 1920s and the 1960s.” The information that I will present will summarize the changes that affected the United

The 1960’s was a very influential time in the United States of America. The United States began to explore a new culture of people known as hippies. The USA endured a great scare of nuclear war from the Cuban Missile Crisis. This country lost two famous leaders from that era; John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr., who were assassinated. The United States also began the move towards equality by passing the Civil Rights Act. The final major accomplishment from 1960’s was when Neil Armstrong was the first astronaut to land on the moon.

The 1960s are frequently referred to as a period of social protest and dissent. Antiwar demonstrators, civil-rights activists, feminists, and members of various other social groups demanded what they considered to be justice and sought reparation for the wrongs they believed they had suffered. The decade marked a shift from a collective view on politics, to a much more individualistic viewpoint. The 1960s could easily be characterized as a period during which political, ideological, and social tensions among radicals, liberals, and conservatives in American society are seen to have rapidly unfolded. Due to this, the decade has had an overwhelming effect on the decades that have followed. The sixties have had the greatest impact on American society out of any decade in recent history. Whether for better or for worse, the decade has had a profound influence on politics, society, foreign policy, and culture.