the american dream in the 1950s mr. white’s us history 2

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The American Dream in the 1950s Mr. White’s US History 2

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Page 1: The American Dream in the 1950s Mr. White’s US History 2

The American Dream in the 1950s

Mr. White’s US History 2

Page 2: The American Dream in the 1950s Mr. White’s US History 2

Big Question

What were some of the positive and negative effects of the cultural changes taking place in the United States?

What factors shaped the American Dream? Assess the American Dream

Page 3: The American Dream in the 1950s Mr. White’s US History 2

The Organization and the Organization Man

By 1956, United States was shifting from an industrial production economy to a service economy

More and more men (and some women) were working for large corporations

Page 4: The American Dream in the 1950s Mr. White’s US History 2

Businesses Expand

Conglomerates – Major businesses would buy up smaller businesses with other services. Example?

Franchises – When large businesses offer services or products in multiple locations. Example?

Page 5: The American Dream in the 1950s Mr. White’s US History 2

Standardization and Conformity

Franchises, like McDonalds, were beginning to standardize what people ate – it was becoming the same in many places

Companies would give personality tests to people applying for jobs to make sure they fit into the corporate world

Some Americans were very comfortable with this conformity, or “belongingness”

Others felt it stifled creativity and individuality

Page 6: The American Dream in the 1950s Mr. White’s US History 2

Baby Boom

Baby-boom – After World War II, there was a rapid rise in the birth rate– Husbands and wives reuniting after the war– Lower marriage age for many– Desirability of large families– Economic prosperity– Advances in medicine

Page 7: The American Dream in the 1950s Mr. White’s US History 2

Medicine and Childcare

Dr. Jonas Salk develops the polio vaccine – crippling childhood disease

Dr. Benjamin Spock – wrote a book on child-raising; advised parents not to spank or scold children, thought families should meet so that children could express themselves

Sharp increase caused overcrowding and teacher shortages in schools

Page 8: The American Dream in the 1950s Mr. White’s US History 2

Women’s Roles

Role of home-maker and mother was glorified as the ultimate role of a woman

Do you think all women were happy with this? Many women still held jobs with wages Opportunities were not the same for women; limited to

certain fields, made less money

Page 9: The American Dream in the 1950s Mr. White’s US History 2

Leisure Activities

40-hour work week and vacations gave people a lot of leisure time

Fishing, bowling, hunting, etc. Spectator sports – baseball, football, basketball Reading, cooking, do-it-yourself projects,

comic books

Page 10: The American Dream in the 1950s Mr. White’s US History 2

Automobile Culture

During World War II, gasoline had been rationed; after the war, it was abundant

Car sales and ownership increased dramatically

More car use meant that people could live further from work; suburbs grew

As more and more people moved to the suburbs, more people needed cars

Page 11: The American Dream in the 1950s Mr. White’s US History 2

Interstate Highway System

As more roads needed, local and state governments constructed highways linking cities and suburbs

President Eisenhower authorized a nation-wide highway network – over 41,000 miles of highway

Page 12: The American Dream in the 1950s Mr. White’s US History 2

Effects of the Highway System

More long-haul trucking possible – businesses used trains less

Homogenized the nation – things became more and more similar across the country (country got “smaller”)

More and more Americans would travel for vacations, enjoyment, sight-seeing, etc.

Page 13: The American Dream in the 1950s Mr. White’s US History 2

Negative Effects of the Highway System

Noise and exhaust drastically increased – eventually smog

Automobile accidents become more common Traffic jams raised stress levels – road rage Many middle- and upper-class people left the

cities, taking their money with them

Page 14: The American Dream in the 1950s Mr. White’s US History 2

Consumerism

As the material wealth of the country increased, buying material goods came to be equated with success

“Keeping up with the Jones” Consumerism – buying material goods People would buy things simply to buy them

and show that they were successful Do we see this today?

Page 15: The American Dream in the 1950s Mr. White’s US History 2

Andy Warhol on Consumerism

“What's great about this country is that America started the tradition where the richest consumers buy essentially the same things as the poorest. You can be watching TV and see Coca cola, and you know that the President drinks Coca Cola, Liz Taylor drinks Coca Cola, and just think, you can drink Coca Cola, too. A coke is a coke and no amount of money can get you a better coke than the one the bum on the corner is drinking. All the cokes are the same and all the cokes are good. Liz Taylor knows it, the President knows it, the bum knows it, and you know it.”

Page 16: The American Dream in the 1950s Mr. White’s US History 2

New Products

Labor-saving devices – washing machines, dryers, blenders, freezers, dishwashers

With more and more leisure time, people started buying more leisure items – televisions, tape recorders, record players

More people buying and wearing casual clothing during leisure time

Lawn mowers, barbecue grills, swimming pools, lawn decorations

What other leisure items or activities do we have today?

Page 17: The American Dream in the 1950s Mr. White’s US History 2

Tactics of the Producers

Planned obsolescence – manufacturers designed products to go out of date or wear out so people would buy more

Can we think of some examples? Buy now, pay later – Many people would purchase on

credit Advertising – Ads started appearing everywhere More advertisers were turning to psychology to get

people to buy their products