Daily Life In The 1950's Essay

During the 1950’s there was a strong sense of uniformity amongst Americans. Both men and women, young and old conformed to the traditional roles of society. Prior to this time period, during World War II, men and women were not bound to certain jobs, but once the war was over the standard roles were reaffirmed. The American Dream was to have the traditional family. This family consisted of a father who supported the family, a mother who acted as a housewife, and multiple children. According to the article “Daily Life in the 1950s: 1938–1960”, Suburban areas became more popular as people moved out of cities, and Between 1948 and 1958, thirteen million homes were built, which 85 percent of them were located in the suburbs. These suburbs made Americans feel safer and as they were away from the hustle of the city. The majority of Americans desired this

As stated by Facts on File, This was a change from the jobs women had been introduced into during the time of the war back to the traditional roles of women. Her main duties for her children during the day were to bring them to and from school and to watch after them in their after-school activities. Her main duties for her husband were to make sure by the end of the day she had a meal on the table to relax him after a hard day of work. Few suburban mothers were able to have hobbies or time to take for themselves. In suburban mothers spare time, she might have volunteered. A “ career” for women at the time was marriage and raising a family. Due to being so isolated, many mothers became depressed and lonely and some even in need of self-medication like antidepressants and sedatives. The ranking of a families success solely was based on the husbands' job, because a woman was not rewarded for her efforts as it was considered her job to take care of her