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The 1950s

The 1950s. The Post WW2 Economy. Inflation at first because no consumer goods produced = fear of depression But demand still great, so once supply caught up to demand = MORE JOBS! Plus after the G.D. and WW2, people were READY TO SPEND!

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The 1950s

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  1. The 1950s

  2. The Post WW2 Economy • Inflation at first because no consumer goods produced = fear of depression • But demand still great, so once supply caught up to demand = MORE JOBS! • Plus after the G.D. and WW2, people were READY TO SPEND! • Next 25 years, America known as the “Affluent Society”

  3. Getting Back to a Normal Life • G.I. bill helped get veterans back into society • Loans for College, Businesses/Farms, Homes • Housing Crisis solved by Mass Produced Homes

  4. $7000 to $8000

  5. Getting Back to a Normal Life • G.I. bill helped get veterans back into society • Housing Crisis solved by Mass Produced Homes • Many settled down into family life • Business sprang up all over, jobs were redefined in America

  6. New Businesses Strategies • Less jobs in blue collar/industrial jobs, More jobs in higher paid white collar jobs • Clerical, managerial, professional occupations • Sales, advertising, insurance, communications • CONGLOMERATE: major corporation that includes a number of smaller companies in unrelated industries • Less Risk!!! • Franchises – a company that offers similar products or services in many locations. • Rights sold to an individual to open a business using the parent company’s name/system

  7. The Loss of the Individual • As Business standardized, so did workers • Business did not want creative thinkers or rebels. • Personality tests were given to people applying for jobs • Large workplaces were often cold and impersonal • Many movies/lit came out describing successful workers who were dissatisfied because of loneliness felt. • Ex. Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller

  8. Suburban Lifestyle • Able to provide the good things in life for their families • Many worked in cities, but fewer and fewer of them lived there • New highways • Affordability of automobiles/gas made commuting possible • Suburbs became extremely popular, embodied the American dream • affordable, single family house, good schools, safe/healthy environment for kids, congenial neighbors

  9. The BABY BOOM!!! • Generation from 1946 to 1964 – birthrate soared • Height of Baby Boom, 1957  one US infant born every 7 seconds • Contributing factors of the baby boom: • reunion of families after the war • decreasing marriage age • desirability of large families • Confidence in continued economic prosperity • Advanced in Medicine • Vaccines against diseases, esp. Polio

  10. The Baby Boom!!!

  11. Dr. Spock’s Babies • Dr. Benjamin Spock’s book Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care in 1946. • Raising children using guidelines • Don’t spank or scold • Hold meetings where children can express themselves • Encouraged mothers to be back at home with Children • Caused huge change in American Market/Education • Toy industry skyrocketed • 10 mil new children enrolled • Caused over crowding and teacher shortages

  12. Women’s Roles • Role of homemaker and mother was glorified in magazines, movies, and on TV • Magazine described the homemaker as the “the keeper of the suburban dream.”

  13. Was it a Woman’s Dream? • Despite the “ideal” in the media, many women felt bored, unfulfilled, isolated • More than 1/5 of suburban wives were dissatisfied with lives. • Betty Friedan, author of the Feminine mystique described the problem as: “For the first time in their history, women are becoming aware of an identity crisis in their own lives…I think this is the crisis of women growing up- a turning point from an immaturity that has been called femininity to full human identity.”

  14. Housekeeping Monthly

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