Were The 1950s An Easier Time Than Today? You Decide!
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Published 2013-04-04
When people say that the 1950s were easier than today, the 1950s may have been easier for certain groups of people. For example the economy was strong, unemployment was low, and the middle class was expanding. Also the post-World War II era brought about a sense of stability and prosperity for many Americans.
Economic prosperity: The 1950s were a time of economic growth and stability in the United States. The post-World War II boom led to low unemployment rates, a rising middle class and a sense of financial security for many Americans.
Simpler lifestyle: Compared to today the 1950s were a simpler time in terms of technology and media. People didn't have smartphones, social media or constant access to news and information. This may have made it easier to disconnect and focus on family, friends and leisure activities.
Social norms: In the 1950s there were more clearly defined gender roles and expectations for behavior. This may have provided a sense of structure and stability for some people.
The 1950s have been described by some of my commentators and by my team in this clip as a socially uptight time period due to the strict social norms and expectations that existed during that era. Here are a few examples:
Gender roles: The 1950s were characterized by rigid gender roles with men expected to be breadwinners and women expected to be homemakers. Women who pursued careers or wanted more independence were often stigmatized and marginalized.
Conformity: The post-World War II era brought about a desire for conformity and a rejection of anything seen as "un-American." This led to a culture of uniformity and homogeneity, with little room for individual expression or diversity.
Sexual repression: The 1950s were a time of sexual conservatism, with premarital sex, homosexuality, and other non-heteronormative behaviors stigmatized and often criminalized. This led to a culture of sexual repression and secrecy, which could be suffocating for many people.
Racism and discrimination: Despite the economic prosperity of the 1950s, many people of color faced discrimination and prejudice on a daily basis. Segregation was still in place in many parts of the country, and the civil rights movement was just beginning to gain traction.
In many ways Americans have more freedom today than they did in the 1950s.
Civil rights: In the 1950s segregation and discrimination were still prevalent, particularly for people of color. Since then, significant progress has been made in advancing civil rights and ensuring equal treatment under the law.
Women's rights: Women in the 1950s were expected to conform to strict gender roles and had limited opportunities for education and career advancement. Today, women have greater access to education, career opportunities, and reproductive rights.
The 1950s were a time of intense stigma and discrimination against gays with homosexuality often criminalized and stigmatized.
Freedom of expression: While the 1950s were characterized by conformity and a rejection of anything seen as "un-American," today's society is generally more accepting of diverse opinions, beliefs, and lifestyles. Social media and the internet have provided greater platforms for free expression and the sharing of ideas.
Prior to my series, there had been a series on PBS called Eyes On The Prize that looked at the civil rights movement during that time. My challenge was to make a series that helped the teenage and early 20s children of those who grew up during these times, the so-called silent generation and the baby boomers, to understand what their parents had gone through. I decided to interview for the most part ordinary Americans and historians - experts - who had spent their time studying this era. The style of my interviews was to let people tell the stories of their lives their ways.
One of the main ways that the "rules" from the 1950s were communicated to kids and teenagers was at school and through educational films like the ones presented. It was here that I found rules stated in obvious and subtle ways that matched what most of the people I interviewed remembered from that time.
Based on what I heard from the interviews and from the historians, my team and I concluded that it was largely the experiences that kids had in the 1950s that created many of the social and some of the political events that took place in the 1960s. Other segments from the series are on my YouTube channel. I do hope you enjoy this and find it thought-provoking.
All Comments (21)
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I was a rural kid in the 50's and 60's. I can remember thinking it was stifling, boring, aggravating. I wanted to break out, be free. I thought I'd die in that place. I hated the farm and the way everybody lived. I tried to hitchhike to Woodstock and failed that attempt miserably. Rules, expectations, dress codes, hair codes, church and all the other things you were supposed to believe. So what did I do? I joined the military and remained there for 10 years. Then I joined a police department and retired from there after 30 years. And the funny thing now is when I think back during my retired years, I remember the smell of pine trees and wood smoke, endless rows of corn, the sound of rain on our barn's tin roof and the sweet smell of magnolias. It's funny how time changes our perspectives.
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Not everyone in the 1960s rebelled and "did their own thing." In fact only a small portion of the population were hippies and most everyone else were conformists despite how that decade is portrayed.
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Politeness, kindness and respect should never go out of style, what does is the way we teach them.
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Anyone who is old enough to know about "the rules" of the 50s can also see our current society has just as many if not more societal rules. The rules are just different now.
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It’s easy to scorn this video and it’s message but people today need to understand America had gone straight from the Great Depression to World War II. The 1950s were the first chance at some peace and normalcy in a long time.
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Man no wonder all our grandparents are or were alcoholics
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Me and my grandad watched this video, he said he recognized the clip of the boy getting ready but nothing else. He said that the people giving commentary were very ignorant to the way things were. They added yellow journalism to the video (which means an exaggeration of the real story) an example he gave was that women were not “ment to be seen but not heard” he could remember his father asking his mother about financial decisions, or would ask for advice on what to do about something going on at work, they were very involved just in different ways. Women had there role in the household and Men had there role in the household as well as the children. Everyone played a part
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I grew up in the 50’s and it was fun; fun for us and fun for our parent’s who didn’t need to hover over us constantly. The reason...we were expected to behave within the ‘rules’ if you will, guidelines set down by our adult family members and those ‘in authority.’ Our parents expected not absolute conformity, for example we wore crinolines under our ‘poodle’ skirts and buck shoes and all the ‘latest’ fads/fashions but also knew that a certain modesty was required within our lifestyles. We had standards of behaviors that we accepted because we knew we shared space in this world with others and those standards didn’t keep us from laughing at lot, fooling around with friends and studying for up coming exams. My mother trusted me and I treasured her trust in return. In the summer my mother’s over seeing my day went like this, “Have fun and be home before dark.” Period. It was a great childhood. I was a very lucky kid. Go figure.
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In the early 1980s I was in high school. One day while sitting in class, out of the blue, for reasons i cant recall, the school 16mm movie projector was rolled into the classroom. And they played for us several of these old, antiquated 1950s instructional films on how to date, how to be polite, how to behave, etc. My classmates laughed through them. The wooden acting, the cheap production values, the heavy handed preaching, the over politeness, the squeaky clean activities (a picnic, a carnival, a weenie roast, bike riding, a day at the park, dinner at home with the family, etc), the innocent slang of the time (gee, golly, swell, etc). I on the other hand, wasn't laughing. To the contrary. As someone who was being raised in a severely abusive, dysfunctional home, i found these films to be quite charming. A sort of a time capsule of a more innocent era. DON'T get me wrong. I had no illusions. I was well aware that the 1950s wasnt so perfect and innocent (no decade is). That there were negative things going on in the 1950s, such as child abuse, divorce, segregation, poverty, crime, corruption in government and private business, for examples. But still, it seems to me that there were SOME things in the 1950s they were doing so right back then that we were doing so horribly wrong in the early 1980s as well as today.
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7:16 This is just extremely good advice for any situation when your emotions start to get out of hand: Slow down--breathe and don't say or do anything. Pause. Calm down--breathe and still don't say or do anything. Pause. THINK---with your MIND: What are the consequences of my actions? This is called "self-control." Something that a lot of people today don't have.
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One thing this film misses is the recessions after the war and the feeling of uncertainty rural families felt in a world where only the big cities had everything. Farm familis struggled well into the seventies to achieve the kind of comfort enjoyed by urban people.
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I lived back then and these films are way over the top. Or maybe our area of the midwest wasn't as crazy. We had rules as kids, but I would have NEVER heard my Dad say "pick out the most popular kids and do like they do" pertaining to clothing or anything. My parents said to be the person you are and not mimic others to be popular. That really popped out at me!
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My parents grew up in the 50’s and they look back on their childhoods as stable and pleasant.
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It is great to have family dinners. It is great to have respect for parents. In every decade teens will rebel a little.
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Another thing about the 50's - we were so very grateful to have our fathers (and mothers) safe at home after the terrible war years - And tried to help and support those who lost family during that time get back on their feet.
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One thing people are missing from these rules is that, these rules help you to be a structured individual. Being chaperoned and not having sex before marriage allows you to focus on the beauty of your girlfriend/boyfriend. And that beauty is both internal and external. Getting to know and really love them for who they are and not their body is extremely important.
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In the 50s there were To many rules but now it's like people have no rules
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"dinner with the family" ME "Wtf is that?"
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Wow, completely different from my upbringing in the 1950s. I was encouraged to think, have an opinion and express it, question things. Through all that I was considered a "good" kid. I obeyed the rules (but only if they could be explained logically to me), felt safe everywhere (no matter where I went, adults were looking out for you), and enjoying life.
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It wasn't easier it was just different. Every time and generation has their own struggles. Things like respecting authority, knowing your neighbors names and being active in your community, taking pride in your appearance and being a hard worker should always be valued and the norm.
