What We Really Miss About The 1950s By Stephanie Coontz Summary

After World War II the next threat was the Soviet Union and the growing amount of communism. The fear of communism breed the conformist 1950’s, which created suburbs, consumerism, “organization men”, domesticated women, car culture, and explicit gender rules (I&J, 43-58). Communism engulfed everyone so much that people were afraid to be different. The culture of the 1950’s was not only seen in their everyday lives but shown through advertisements.

According to “The Century” films, the 1950s is perceived to be one of the greatest times for Americans. World War II had just ended in favor of the US, fathers, sons and brothers were returning home from war and had build up their savings. It was during this time period in which a new society was created and moving into the middle class—America was reborn. In anticipation to limited jobs for returning veterans, they took advantage of the G.I. Bill which was singed into law on June 22, 1944. The G.I. Bill served as an education assistance program for veterans enabling them to obtain higher education. Prior to the war, home ownership and college education seemed impossible. Wages were increasing at rapid rates, new jobs were created, automobiles

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

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.

‘"Americans turned to the family as a bastion of safety in an insecure world... cold war

The 1950s was a time of prosperity for many Americans. During this time the Cold War was occurring in which the threat of a nuclear bomb attack was looming over America and in addition, The Space Race against the Soviet Union was also occurring. The economy of America was doing well due to the amount of money that people had saved up during World War II and also because of the money that veterans were receiving from the government known as the GI Bill. Another booming thing that was occurring during the 1950s was the rate at which families were growing. Many people believed that they could not be happy if they were single and were also wanting to get married young so that they could avoid the “evils” of premarital sex. The booming economy

The 1950’s in the United States of America were characterized by a strong fear of communism, growing consumerism due to a healthy and fast growing postwar industry and the belief that the nuclear family is the heart of the American society. If we examine these three ideologies closer and oppose them to Stephanie Coontz opinion expressed in her essay “Leave It to Beaver and Ozzie and Harriet: American Families in the 1950s,”, we see that many myths existed about the 1950’s.

The United States was left booming in economy and as an essential power of the world to the extent that markets expanded through technological advancements and housing. However, the 1950’s was a time of prosperity for whites but not for blacks. Prosperity is the condition of being successful but prosperity during the 1950’s was depicted as the stress-free America but no one experienced the “Other America”. Therefore, the 1950’s was a time of prosperity but at the same time it wasn’t.

Although, the 1950’s were looked at as peace and ‘happy times’ it was a tad bit different from what was advertised. The 1950’s were an era of prosperity, growth, and chaos in the United States. The population during this time was about 151,684,000 with an unemployment figure around 3,288,000 (Bradley). Industries were expanding in order to meet the needs for people

Stephanie Coonts, the author of “What we Really Miss about the 1950s”, explains the misconceptions that lead people to believe that the “1950s was the ideal decade for the American family” (Coontz 25). Nostalgia is a common term used throughout this passage to explain the way some Americans could have felt about the time period, and after reading these few pages, another term that could be used is misunderstood. Throughout the passage, Coontz explained how television shows displayed the wrong portrayal of the average 1950s family, how the minority may not have though the same about this time period, and how nonmarital families changed the way that people thought of them.

The US had a large change between the 1920s and the 1950s. There were shifts in the economy, many social aspects, and the US’s level of intolerance. The 1920’s were a time of false hope and the 1950s were a time of true prosperity.

What comes to mind when you think of the 1950’s and 1960’s? This was a time of change in America. People from all walks of life were not longer content with their current situations. Due to this feeling, many people acted on it and helped shape America into what it is today. Between the 1950’s and 1060’s, it was was evident that African Americans, women, and a younger generation all wanted change.

Is it worth going back to the 1950s and experience the workplace of woman and men going to War or staying in the present time. Many people in today’s society see the morals and values of the past of the fifties. Nevertheless, the fifties had its nuclear family to where everyone was set for in life already. The woman became homemakers and men worked at an occupation. In the 1950s men were going to War, so the mother had to do both work and raise the family. However, after the War the woman wanting to continue to work, but the men were overpowering the woman in the past. In today’s culture everyone works and raise a family together. From the past to the present time of the 1950s the culture has changed. The woman finally got rights to do more activities now then it was in the fifties. Therefore, people have opinions to go back to the past to experience of what had happened to the nuclear family. America has changed by the culture and the environment from the 1950s to the present time of men and woman raising a family.

The 1950’s were considered to be a time where life was full of bliss, who wouldn’t want to be untroubled? Life in the 1950’s was simple and structured, and now it seems as though the “Happy days” have disappeared. The 1950’s are considered “The Happy Days” because life was so well put together back then and now, it seems, it has all fallen apart. The 1950 TV shows, like Leave it to Beaver, has the American society believing that life was “perfect”. Seeing the shows makes one imagine that the family life was splendid, the style was flawless and modest, everyone got along, neighbors were friendly, and that the changes happening were for the best. In a way that was very true. People in the society knew their place; In a typical 1950’s family, the father and mother had specific roles they had to fulfill, and even the children had certain responsibilities. The men were the head of the household and usually worked to provide for the family. The women of the 1950’s society were stay at home moms, occasionally working a job as teachers or nurses. Men and women of that time were well mannered, clean, and classy. When the man and woman walked down the street, the man would walk on the outside or the road side to protect the woman from traffic. Men would also tip there hats as a kind gesture when they walked past a woman. Life just seemed to be in place in the 1950’s, yes, it wasn’t perfect, but it seemed much more put together than what society is like now.

It seems impossible that I have lived through so many decades! I have lived through decades from the thirties to the sixties, and there are many similarities between the two decades. In both decades democrats gained control in the political arena. Both decades were a time of rapid change, socially, economically, politically, and culturally. The population in the United States greatly increased by about fifty-four million people between the thirties and the sixties. Both decades were affected by a war; the 1930’s was greatly affected by WWII, and the sixties was greatly affected by the Viet Nam war. It seems like just yesterday that we began the roller coaster ride of the 1930’s.