Life in 1950s America Essay

Simpler times, simpler minds, and unified visions of family life is what the 1950’s sitcoms brought to television viewers all throughout America. Situation comedies similar to Leave it to Beaver, I Love Lucy, and Ozzie and Harriet set the stage for how nuclear families were supposed to perform and live life on a daily basis. The issues with the sitcoms that were presented at this time were controlled and were not allowed to relay real world issues and portrayed a superficial vision of a family…

These legal bounds segregated America, and was abundant in all aspects of life. Separation, it seemed, was the new motto for all of America, as legalized racism continued to sweep the nation as a whole. The civil rights movement was first and foremost a challenge to segregation, the system of laws and customs separating blacks and whites that whites used to control blacks after slavery was abolished in the 1860s. Racism was apparent in America before the 50ś but became apparent when Jim…

comes to represent a stereotypical middle class woman in the 1950s. There were two options for Jeff- either get married and be content with his present adventurous life in “combat boots and a three day bread” or he can look “handsome and successful in a dark blue flannel suit.” (qtd in Keith 4). Jeff feels that Lisa cannot accommodate herself in his world and be happy with “fish heads and rice” and he cannot either be happy in a domestic life where he himself will be unhappy “rushing home to a…

from the government, religious, and natives' gatherings. The House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) which had been established in 1938, chose to direct hearings on communist influence in Hollywood. The Hollywood Ten case started in postwar America amid the primary rustlings of the cold-war. In November, HUAC subpoenaed 41 individuals required in making suspicious communist films. Amid the hearings, ten individuals declined to answer the council's famous question: "Are you now or have you…

and accept the truth, and it’s because of that-that so many are killed. This is similar to McCarthyism in the 1950s. Senator McCarthy was out to expose all members of the communist party. However, apparently the real communists weren’t enough once he started blacklisting famous people that he only thought were communists. That’s where the similarities happen. In both The Crucible, and 1950s McCarthyism, both consist of faulty accusations due to beliefs. No one was going to stand up up to…

“enlightenment campaign,” in which American films were screened throughout Japan for the duration of the occupation. These films showcased the American way of life and seeked to introduce America as a social, political, and cultural model for Japan (Olson). Films like Steel Town (1952), Country Store (1950), and Border Without Bayonets (1950) all showed America as…

Dismantling Americas Traditional Family, Sexual, and Racial Customs in the 1950s and 1960s? Dating back to as early as 1922 is when rock n roll appeared in blues songs. It then began to tradition and take off into what we know “rock n roll” in the early 1950s. Rock n Roll was a fashion of rhythm and blues, black gospel, and country-western. Dating back to as early as 1922 is when rock n roll began in blues songs. It began to tradition and take off into what we know as rock n roll in the early…

Since its inception America has been viewed as a land of opportunity and a land of freedom, a land in which anyone can make it big and achieve their wildest dreams. Many have come to America’s shores in search of this prosperity, some have succeeded and some have failed. The cycle of people trying and failing to achieve their American Dream is one that has disenfranchised some, however this issue has existed in the past as it does in the present. For example, Arthur Miller’s Death of Salesman…

major fear within America. Americans felt the effects in their personal lives. Many supposed communists and communist sympathizers saw their whole life and their life works destroyed in front of their eyes such as the lost of friends or family members. It destroyed many families: brothers accused brothers, father accused sons. They were fired from their jobs. Friends stopped talking to their falsely accused friends. However the climate of fear and repression began to ease in late 1950s, The Red…

that were enacted by the Congress. They include the right to vote for leaders, right to having equal protection from unlawful discrimination, protection of the laws and the freedom of expression. During the post World War 11 period: between 1945 and 1950, the activists of the civil rights, staged a battle against ethnic and racial discrimination which was directed to the Latin Americans, particularly the Mexicans and the African Americans, who were perceived as the minority (LULAC News, pg.…