What are your thoughts about life in the 1950

1
What are your thoughts about life in the 1950s
when you see this photo?
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From a Home Economics textbook in the 1950's...

• Have dinner ready. Plan ahead, even the night
  before, to have a delicious meal ready on time
  for his return. Most men are hungry when they get
  home and the prospect of a good meal is part of
  the warm welcome needed.
• Prepare yourself. Take 15 minutes to rest so
  you'll be refreshed when he arrives. Touch up
  your make-up, put a ribbon in your hair and be
  fresh-looking. He has just been with a lot of
  work-weary people.
• Clear away the clutter. Make one last trip
  through the main part of the house just before
  your husband arrives. Run a dustcloth over the
  tables.
• During the cooler months of the year you should
  prepare and light a fire for him to unwind by.
  After all, catering to his comfort will provide
  you with immense personal satisfaction.
• Greet him with a warm smile and show sincerity
  in your desire to please him.
• Don't complain if he's late for dinner or even
  if he stays out all night. Count this as minor
  compared to what he might have gone through at
  work.
• Arrange his pillow and offer to take off his
  shoes. Speak in a low, soothing and pleasant
  voice.
• A good wife always knows her place.

3
Decade of the 1950s

• Objective Summarize the 5 Elements of life in
  the 1950s and be able to spot examples of each.

• Define the 5 elements in your notes with examples
  from this Powerpoint
• Conformity
• Fear of Communism
• Increased Consumerism
• Rebellion
• Racial Tension

4
Put the following descriptions of each theme in
the boxes on the front of your paper.

• Increased Consumerism- Experiencing a post war
  boom after WWII. People had money to spend and
  new things to buy (like a house in the suburb and
  the TV!)
• Rebellion-While most people were trying to
  conform into societal norms, some people
  rebelled. (see examples in next slides)
• Racial Tension- This is the decade where the
  Civil Rights Movement started. Some people were
  opposed to this change.

• Conformity-Everything the same, no one challenged
  the normal by being different.
• Fear of Communism-We did a whole unit about this
  (The Cold War). The fear that communist from the
  Soviet Union were infiltrating America.

5
Levittown houses! Example of Conformity and
Consumerism
Little boxes on the hillside,Little boxes made
of ticky-tacky,Little boxes, little
boxes,Little boxes, all the same. And they all
have pretty children,And the children go to
school.And then to the university,And they all
get put in boxesAnd they all come out the same.
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Federal Highways Act (see video!)
Communism and consumerism
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Fear of Communism!
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Rebellion He was the bad boy in Hollywood
Movie Star James Dean
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Rebellion Elvis and Rock Roll Music

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Consumerism and Racial Tension
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Consumerism- New Inventions
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Consumerism Sales of the new television
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