Mass Culture and Family Life 26.3 Mass Culture and Family Life

The Culture of Consumerism Buying as much as they could much of it on credit.

Spending is Easy Median Family Income or average family income rose from 3,319 to 5,400. New and innovative ways to encourage buying on credit.

Buying New Conveniences Home appliances topped the list of the goods that Americans bought. Record number purchased T.V.

Family Life in 50s Women had gone off to work in factories. 1943 25% of the workers in the wartime auto industry. After war women went back to being “homemakers”

Portraying the Ideal family Nuclear family- household of a mother, father, and their children as the backbone of American society. Women challenged homemaker role. By 1960 women held one third of the nations jobs.

Children are the Focus Dr. Benjamin Spock’s Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care was best selling book or era. Nurturing children from earliest days through teen years. Parents also spent a lot of money on children.

Celebrating a Religious Revivial Church attendance rose Congress added the words “In God We Trust to the dollar bill and “under God” to the pledge of allegiance. Idea was to make clear the contrast between the centrality of religion in American society and the atheist basis of communist societies.

Improved Healthcare Benefits Baby Boomers Dr. Jonas Stalk developed a vaccine against polio Antibiotics such as penicillin Longer life expectancy from better understanding diet ect.

Television Takes Center Stage 1945-1960 Americans purchased television sets faster than they had bought either radios or cars during 1920s. Cartoons Sitcoms about families

Rock N Roll Shakes the Nation Alan Freed: disc jockey, began broadcasting “race” or rock n roll” music.

Drawing on African American Roots Originated in rhythm and blues traditions of A.A.

Attracting a Wider Audience Elvis Presley listened to Memphis radio station that played A.A. gospel music. He began to integrate that type of music into the music he made.