Effects Of Ww2 On American Culture

What was World War Two’s effect on American culture during the war?

Although World War Two was mainly fought in Europe, Asia, and Africa, there is no doubt that its devastating effects had reached the United States. The war had a profound impact on American culture that touched virtually every aspect of American life, from the foods people ate, the clothes they wore, the jobs they worked, and even the movies and music they enjoyed. The grand shift in American culture during the era can be mainly attributed to the lottery draft of millions, restrictions on food staples, limitations on material resources, along with the great sorrows the war brought to the nation. The strict limitations on food staples and raw resources were enforced by the United

This led to millions of Americans being drafted by lottery into military service, leaving many essential production positions behind. With increasing demand for war material production, the nation constantly encouraged women to pick up the jobs their husbands left behind. Consequently, the war led to a dramatic influx of women taking up industrial jobs. Even though life became increasingly difficult for the nation, with many new obstacles and hardships appearing before them, the American people successfully overcame them by adapting and developing new ways of life that created ripples of innovation, change, and self-sufficiency across the nation, which can be seen even decades after the war were

Many things became immediate priorities during these shortages, such as food and financial support. As one can imagine, fashion wasn’t at the top of everyone’s list of priorities. With cloth, silk, and cotton being rationed, the fashion side of the United States was put on the back burner. An article written about the war’s impact on fashion states that: “The greatest impact on American fashion in the early 1940s came from the U.S. government, which enacted rationing measures that blocked innovation during the war. In March 1942, the United States Government War Production Board issued regulations for all aspects of clothing, including the use of natural fibers. Wool became scarce, silk hard to get and expensive, and rubber unavailable for civilian use. The lack of traditional materials led to increased research toward the production of synthetics.” (Batchelor) Regardless of the strict regulation of fabrics necessary for fashion, along with the scarcity of the materials overall, the United States continued to perform at what it excelled in: innovation. In 1935 the first synthetic fiber was produced, and it released a lot of the strain that was put purely on silk, cotton, and other fabrics. It was mainly used for military