Culture of 1950s
uniformity pervaded American society
men and women had been forced into new employment patterns
Because
World War II
war was over
traditional roles were reaffirmed
men = breadwinners 🍞
woman = even they worked, assumed their proper place 🏘
Sociologist David Riesman
observed the importance of peer-group
new society "other-directed"
lead to stability as conformity.
Not all Americans conformed 😠
cultural norms
members of "beat generation"
stressing spontaneity and spirituality
challenge the patterns of respectability and shock the rest of the culture
Allen Ginsberg
poem "Howl"
critique of modern, mechanized civilization.
won national acclaim
successful court challenge.
Other artists
Elvis Presley
Jackson Pollock
popularized black music in the form of rock and roll
discarded easels and laid out gigantic canvases on the floor
Elvis and demonstrated that there was a white audience for black music
click to edit