There was something unique about the 1950's - young men returning from war to a nation ravished and ripe for one of the greatest booms in civilized history. An explosion in geographic locations, development, corporations, society, and population. At the heart of this growth was the American Dream. Some believe that this dream grew out of the GI Bill, the rush back to normalcy, the government, large corporations.
It was the idea that every young man should marry a young woman and have three darling children. They would live in a cutout house in the suburbs that were connected by these new superhighways. Every house to look the same, with a small TV, cute kitchen, well kept yard, and the white picket fence out back. Rover, the family dog, would be one with the family. Father would be the strong figure - working hard to earn for his family and coming home to teach his son how to play baseball. Mother would stay at home, raise the children, keep house, and tend to her husband once he came home. Johnny, their son, would be a three sport star who never uttered a swear word while Jenny would be the innocent Prom princess and never stay out with a bad boy until three in the morning.
What intrigues me about this idea is how fake it really is, and how bad it would be. I don't want to live like that, and I feel that it would be bad for society. It is also an impossibility. Most everything that happens today has some connection to the American Dream. Inner ring suburbs that thrived in the 1950's are now too small and no one wants to live in these cookie cutter houses. Instead, families move to the outer ring suburbs with fake downtowns that replicate the town center idea, and they live in larger cookie cutter houses. Highways have provided fast transportation and one way tickets for inner cities to see turmoil and stress.
Politics is related to - this idea of family that is being used in so many forums today. Gay rights. Abortion. Public Services. Eminent Domain and redevelopment. This idea of an ideal family for the true American is pushed as a silver bullet for all the problems in America. It isn't. No matter how perfect a family may seem, they will still be full of problems that no one can see. It is human nature. And that family doesn't exist, anyway. http://darthvadermeditations.blogspot.com
Laraymia Williams Fences
1950s American Dream1950's American Dream |
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During the 1950s the most famous sound of music was JAzz and it had a big impact on America but mostly the African american people.  |
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