Don’t get lost in dullsville…..
dig this warm-up!
• Grab a worksheet at the front of the
room!
• Independently, answer the two “warmup questions”
• Don’t wig out or be a drag, it’s not hairy
• Be ready to discuss!
• This is going to be a swell and far-out
kind of day!
Post-WWII Changes
• Baby Boom:
dramatic increase
in the birth rate
after WWII.
• GI Bill of Rights:
1944 law that
helped veterans
buy homes and
pay for education.
SUBURBS
• Growing families
left the cities and
moved into the
suburbs that
outlined urban
areas.
• Developers like
William J. Levitt
catered to the
huge demand for
housing.
HIGHWAYS
• As suburbs were growing, people began to
rely more on automobiles for
transportation.
• The growth in the car industry created a
need for better roads.
• The 1956 Federal-Aid Highway Act
provided $25 billion to build an interstate
highway system.
Television
• Pre-WWII, American
citizens got
entertainment from the
radio.
• Only 7% had a T.V.
• Post-WWII,
entertainment shifted to
include the television.
• By the 1960’s, 91% of
all households owned
the tube.
CONFORMITY
• “The Silent Generation:” youth in the
1950s who seemed to have no interest
in the larger world.
Conformity - Teenagers
• Young people chose to stay in school
rather than have jobs.
Conformity - Teenagers
• With new opportunities for advertising,
businesses sold products to the youth by
building the image of a “perfect teenager.”
Conformity - Teenagers
Conformity - Teenagers
Conformity - Teenagers
Conformity - Children
Role’s In Society - Men
• Men were expected to go to school, find jobs,
and support their families.
• Made important political, economic, and social
decisions.
Role in Society - Women
• Women were
expected to support
their husbands,
manage their house,
cook meals, and raise
children.
• Took the role of a
domesticated,
suburban housewife.
Conformity - Religion
• Renewed interest in religion – In 1950, 95%
of all Americans belonged to a church.
• In 1954, Congress added the words “under
God” to the Pledge of Allegiance.
• In 1955, Congress
added the phrase
“In God We Trust”
to all American
currency.
Challenges to Conformity – Women
at Work
• Women were supposed to leave their
jobs once they were married.
• Not all women conformed and by
1960, 31% of all married women had
jobs.
• Most women were secretaries,
teachers, nurses, or sales clerks.
Challenges to Conformity – Youthful
Rebellions
• Some youth
rejected the
values of their
parents and
felt
misunderstood
and alone.
Youthful Rebellions
• They wanted a style to call their own,
and they found it in rock-and-roll.
Youthful Rebellions
• Beatniks: group of people who promoted
spontaneity and spirituality.
• Wanted to release society
from the world of money
and property.
• Challenged traditions
with their open sexuality
and use of illegal drugs.
Jack Kerouac
• Kerouac was an author and “father” of
the Beat Generation.
• Published his best selling novel On the
Road Again in 1957.
• This was an autobiographical work
based on spontaneous road trips
across the country and inspired by
jazz, poetry, and drug experiences.
1950 fads
Other 1950 fads
Closure
• Turn to your neighbor and explain to
them:
• What were men and women’s “proper
roles” in 1950’s society?
• How did youth rebel in the 1950s? What
new style emerged as a result of their
rebellion?
• What are beatniks? How did their views
challenge society’s norms?
“Little boxes” by Malvina Reynolds
• Little boxes on the hillside, • And the people in the
Little boxes made of tickyhouses
tacky,
All went to the university,
Little boxes, on the
where they were put in
hillside,
boxes,
Little boxes, all the same.
Little boxes, all the same.
There's a green one and a
And there's doctors and
pink one
lawyers
And a blue one and a
yellow one
And business executives,
And they're all made out
And they're all made out of
of ticky-tacky
ticky-tacky
And they all look just the
And they all look just the
same.
same.
“Little Boxes”
• What do the “little boxes” represent?
• What is the overall tone of the song?
• How does this song portray 1950’s
suburbs?
• Compare 1950’s suburbs vs. today’s
suburbs. How are they similar? How
are they different?
“Little boxes” by Malvina Reynolds
• Little boxes on the hillside, • And the people in the
Little boxes made of tickyhouses
tacky,
All went to the university,
Little boxes, on the
where they were put in
hillside,
boxes,
Little boxes, all the same.
Little boxes, all the same.
There's a green one and a
And there's doctors and
pink one
lawyers
And a blue one and a
yellow one
And business executives,
And they're all made out
And they're all made out of
of ticky-tacky
ticky-tacky
And they all look just the
And they all look just the
same.
same.
“Little Boxes”
• What do the “little boxes” represent?
• What is the overall tone of the song?
• How does this song portray 1950’s
suburbs?
• Compare 1950’s suburbs vs. today’s
suburbs. How are they similar? How
are they different?