social growth in 1950s

Question 1

3 paragraphs

Answer 1

Cars
development of suburbs
entertainment and leisure

Question 2

Why did people want more cars?

Answer 2

1. They looked nice and were available in new features and with new colours
2. They would be able to use them with the 1956 highways act
3. They created mobility and movement to shopping centres and to work.

Question 3

What impact did cars have on American society?

Answer 3

1. People went to shopping malls and drive ins, stimulating the economy and allowing people to spend more money
2. Increased employment, with 1/6 employees being in the automobile industry, wether it be building cars or roads
3. Old war factories could make cars, leading to increased industrialisation.

Question 4

What was Levittown?

Answer 4

1. A town by the Levitt & Co. company with more than 17,000 homes by 1951
2. Used fast manufacturing skills learnt during the war to develop house building kits, leading to poor infrastructure but 2000 homes built a year.
3. Featured all the modern conveniences, such as the dishwasher and bath facilities
4. Built with drive ways to promote car ownership.

Question 5

How did the development of suburbs help American hegemony?

Answer 5

1. Promoted individualism as an American belief
2. America could be seen to have everything under control but not under Comunism
3. The Kitchen Debate in July 1959, where Nixon toured a facility in Moscow with Kruschev, which showed him the benefits of American facilities and was aired on TV in Soviet Russia

Question 6

How was the development of suburbs not a good thing?

Answer 6

1. The flight of all the white middle class people to the suburbs led to the ghettoisation of the cities, particularly Af-Am dominated ones such as Chicago as less money was invested into them
2. The movement of everyone to the cities meant that the elderly had less people to take care of them, although legislation was passed in 1959 to give the elderly loans to buy houses that accommodate their needs
3. The development of the house wife set women’s rights back a few decades as they became once again inferior to men, as heavily highlighted by Betty Friedan in her landmark feminist book ‘The Feminist Mystique’.

Question 7

What evidence is there of growth in the music industry?

Answer 7

1. There was more of a shift onto more ‘sexual’ things, such as legs, as seen with Elvis, and the beat generation seemed to like people’s legs
2. The development of rock and roll from white country artists inspired more rebellion, with lyrics about independence and revolt against parents.
3. Vinyl sale increased, with a revenue shift from $5.6 million to $12.5 million as their RPM went to 45, allowing from longer vinyls

Question 8

What evidence is there of growth in the TV industry?

Answer 8

1. TV sales rocketed as the average price went from $500 to $200; there was 3 million sold in 1950 alone
2. There were more than 440 stations, with them promoting suburbia life with programmes such as ‘Father Knows Best’ and Western’s which satisfied people’s needs for violence

Question 9

What evidence of growth is there in the retail industry?

Answer 9

1. The first shopping centre opened in Minnesota in October 1956
2. They were climate controlled for the hot weather and compiled lots of different shops all together, making retail more efficient and saving money on gasoline
3. Accounted for 14% of retail sales in the 1950s, and it would only go up from there
4. Stimulated the economy, as people would go out and spend days there eating and shopping and bringing their kids to play etc