Chapter six- the economy in the 1950s and the consumer society Flashcards
Was the post war era starting to settle down?
There would be the events from 1945-52 which would help Eisenhower and there would be the death of Stalin in 1953 which would mean that the world would enter a new period of de-stalinisation. The economy was seen to be booming, in 1950 GDP was 355 bil and by the end of his presidency GDP was 488 bil, per capita income was 1720 in 1940 compared to 2699 in 1960. The economy would grow by 37%, the average American family would have 30% more purchasing power and inflation was kept low and this was helped with the cheap wells in the US. Eisenhower also had his experience as a former general to help him.
What were the reasons for economic growth?
There would be 185 billion spent on war bonds.
The government spending on the GI bill would also help the economy, this would lead to 40 billion being spent on the military sector, there was also the increase of business which would help the economy.
The growth of the media and advertising- the power was advertising would grow from 6 billion in 1960 to 18 billion in 1963 the president of NBC would say that advertising was the foot on the accelerator and the hand on the throttle. The use of the TV would help Eisenhower in his 1952 campaign ad and TV would become a widely used way for businesses to advertise their products. From 1950-1960 the use of the daily newspaper would decrease from 68-63 million and the use of the TV would grow from 10 million to 48 million TVs per household.
Increased availability of credit- the use of credit and low interest loans would lead to a building boom, this would lead to towns like Levittown where there would be a mass of houses for 80,000 families that would be 8000 per househol, though people would be excluded from these plots including African American people. Cheap credit would also help the introduction of the first ever credit card the diners club, the American Express would also be created in 1958. private debt would more than double from 104.8 billion to 263.3 billion, this would lead to stimulating the economy and a creation of jobs in manufacturing.
though people would not always pay back their credit and this would lead to the rise in debt levels.
Baby boom- there would be the boomer years from 1946-1964 and birth rates would in crease (thousands) from 3,400- 4,100. This baby boom would lead to a boom in the products that a baby would need for example baby formula and these babies would be referred to as the 10 billion power in 1959.
What was the impact of the consumer society?
By 1960 Americans would own half of all of the cars and 90% of families would have a TV and virtually all workers would have at least two weeks of paid holiday. There was also the growth of the suburbs which would add to the American dream, this was made possible by the boom in cars 5.1 million vehicles on the road in 1949 and 7.9 million in 1955, there would also be the highway act of 1956 which would help this. This standard of living in 1959 would seem unparalleled compared to the rest of the world and was frequently used as Cold War propaganda.
In 1959 there would be the kitchen debate between Nixon and Khrushchev where there would be debate over how long an American family should aspire to live in one house.
What were the warnings from Galbraith?
There is little to no competition between the public sector and the private sector, schools cannot compete with movies. In a world where a consumer society is idealised there is an immense pressure for everyone in the house to earn as much as possible.
The power of the entertainment and leisure industry?
There would be an increase in the tertiary sector with the increase of manufacturing and farming, though the increase of live TV would come at the expense of cinema. The creation of Disney world would take place along with the use of souvenirs, the creation of industry would play a key part in the homogenising of America, people would begin to experience America in the same way, housing had also been homogenised by the creation of the suburb.
There would also be the creation of the shopping mall in Minnesota in 1956 this would have 72 stores with 5200 parking spaces, there would also be the further success of the fast-food industry and this would give way to the success of the drive through, for example Burger King would be created in 1954. There was also further entertainment which give way to youth rebellion fir example the film of James Dean.
Who was Ray Kroc?
He would persuade the brothers who created McDonald’s to franchise their model, by 1961 McDonald’s would have 228 restaurants and Kroc would buy out the brothers for 2.7 million.
What were the limitations of the consumer boom ?
A quarter of Americans would still live in poverty, which was an annual income of under 3000.
There would be two recessions in 1954/8 whic would lead to production having to fall by 14%, this would damage the Republican reputation for financial probity, though unemployment would remain low at 4.5% in 1957, inflation was also low at 2% and Eisenhower was able to balance the budgets on two separate occasions in 1956,57,60. Though this would come at the expense of Eisenhower scaling back the new deal and the TVA, from 185 million to 12 million. Eisenhower was sell of power plants and the money from drilling rights would not go to the federal government. And despite these actions being taken gov spending would rise by 11% and with the real price of food dropping the government were forced to give 5.1 billion in subsidies to farmers. The effects of the consumer boom wee not uniform across society, teenagers would gain new freedoms and middle class/rich Americans would gain from the boom- this was seen to be the American Dream. Many women would lose their jobs and the new found freedom that they had during the war. Ethnic minorities would also still face discrimination as was evident with Levittown, the elderly would soldiers Becontree isolated from families as they moved away, some manual jobs would be made redundant with the new machinery and this would mean that some people were not making money at the very time that this would benefit them.
what was the economy like under Truman compared to Eisenhower?
GDP: 1945/50 226-277
compared to 54-60 is 390/543
in 1952 living per capita would rise by 40% compared to 1939 levels.
in 1960, there would be a 57% rise compared to 1939 levels
in 1952 there would be 28% of the population living in poverty compared to 33% in 1949
there would be 1/4 of people living in poverty in the Eisenhower era.
in 1952 unemployment would be at almost 0 and there would also be low inflation
in 1960 this low inflation would continue and there would be 30% more purchasing power.
there would be recession in 1958 which would affect the republican mid-terms
the influence of print advertising and commercials?
especially for women would help to advertise jobs and there is low unemployment so job roles are valuable.
the company of Gillette would also reap the rewards of the advertising with 60% of the market share and would gain sales of 200 mil to 86 mil.
it was not overly priced at 1.29
KEY IDEA THAT ADVERTISEMENT IS WORKING
CBS would earn a profit of 8.9 million, this links to the rise in technology
this form of advertising would go hand-in-hand with the rise of technology.
what is the rise in population from 1940-60
40- increase by 7.27
50- 14.50
60- 18.50
what is the significance of Disneyland and Elvis Presley?
his debut album would cover him and the blue suede shoes which may denote a greater stance towards materialistic values.
disneyland would open in 1955 and Peter Pan would also be released in 1953 there is a greater stance towards creating a fantasy and a world that is catered for both adults and children, these sites would also be built with car parks so would further encourage the accessibility to the parks.
what were the benefits of a consumer society?
trains would be 60% less expensive to build/operate
there would a be a bigger stance towards the second car- this would be helped by the fact with the increase of the shopping mall this would help the increase of the housewife.
there would be 95% of food stores that would be built in suburban areas.
1955- there are 17% more vehicles
what was the significance of Levittown?
in 1957 a community would be built and these would be planned and all of the houses would look the same. these houses would be affordable and they would be displayed to be picture perfect, they would be built by 37 men and 40 houses would be built in one day, this would help to ensure the suburban living.
some quotes to depict the struggles/negative aspect of consumerism?
the game is to make them the necessities of all classes.
in 1955 Victor lebow would say that we need things consumed, burned up, replaced and discarded at an ever-accelerating rate.
hours of work have been growing between 1950/1990 and the need of consumption doubling per capita.
what was the economy like that Eisenhower would inherit?
between 1940 and 1952, that dollar had halved and national debt would triple so Eisenhower would inherit a bad economy.
