1950’s

By: Meaghan Dunlap

Art

The1950 Yves Klein wanted to “guide the world into a new ‘Age of Space’”, in which “spirit” wouldn’t have form and objects could levitate.He used elements that showed art was more than a picture, its also feelings.

www.lonvig.dk

Art Cont.

1954 Comic publishing industries created The Comics Code, which were censorship guidelines. Parents and teachers thought it would improve the children’s behavior.

1958 Barnett Newman painted Onement I. He wanted to make painting into a more religious experience. www.jade.dti.ne.jp

Pop Art

Pop Art challenged tradition. It mostly used irony to the elements of a culture. It is not unusual for there to be repetition in the piece and it is sometimes difficult for the viewer to understand the artwork. Logos and product labels use pop art.

One of the most famous pop artist is Andy Warhol. He created the Campbell’s Soup Can along with Marilyn Monroe.

www.memeticians.com

www.flickernail.com

Fashion

Women were taught to act and look “every inch the rich lady.”

Clothes-heels, gloves, swing skirts (poodle skirt), pencil style skirts,

www.buycostumes.com

Fashion(girls)

Clothes-portable collars, rolled up dungarees(jeans), dresses, scarves. Girls were dresses everyday, even to school. The dress had to be long enough to cover the knee. Around the house and outside pants could be worn.

Hair-ponytailsShoes-flats, converse,

bobby socks, saddle shoes

www.edsmart.com/stamps/images/3187b.jpg

Pastimes

Some pastimes were the hula hoop, roller skating, bowling, drive in movies, boating, football games, fishing, and horseback riding.

www.kentnewsnet.com

Pastimes

Families would play board games and card games at night.

Family activities included roller skating, boating, amusement parks, camping, going on vacation at the beach, Disneyland.

www.weblo.com

Toys/Games

Some of the popular toys were the slinky, silly putty, mr. potato head, tea sets, pogo stick, scooter, paper dolls, water guns, electric train, raggedy ann doll, and barbie.

Some of the popular games were dodge ball, jacks, Cowboys and Indians,old maid, pick up sticks, tag, and hide and seek.

www.coolest-toys.com

www.toy-tma.com

Literature

If I The Zoo was published in 1950 by Random House publishing company. The author and illustrator was Theodore or Ted Geisel. He had been turned down many times before due to some violent illustrations. He also wrote The Cat and the Hat (1957) and Green Eggs and Ham(1960). Ted is the widely known Dr. Seuss.

www.swapmeetdave.com

www.sewardlibrary.org

Literature Cont.

In 1952 Ernest Hemingway published The Old Man and the Sea. He won the 1953 Pulitzer Prize in fiction for this book. The next year he received the Nobel Peace Prize in literature.

Arthur Miller wrote The Crucible in 1953, which was a play about the Salem Witch trials.

library.wustl.edu

Literature Cont.

Ralph Ellison wrote Invisible Man(1952) and James Baldwin wrote Go Tell it on the Mountain(1953).Both of these novels were about the “black experience.”

J.D. Salinger wrote The Catcher in the Rye, which was about “rebellious adolescence.”

Popular Culture

Elvis Presley became the new teen idol in the mid 1950’s. He was a young rock and roll singer and also a symbol of fashion for the younger generation. Most parents did not approve of Elvis.

Heartbreak Hotel was Elvis’ first number one hit.

www.8notes.com

www.northernlife.com

Moral Standards/Beliefs

Dating-Teens had to practice proper courtesies and etiquette. Girls were to sit, stand, and walk a certain way. After a date they had to say thank you and you had a good time. There were classes on how to act on a date and in public. There were also classes that taught how to social dance. When asked to dance the girl was to graciously accept and then thank the boy at the end of the dance. Some boys and girls would go steady, which meant the girl wore the boys ring or a special heart necklace.

Moral Standards/Beliefs Cont.

Women were expected to stay home and take care of her husband and children. After the war they had to quit their jobs so the men could have them back. She had to depend on her husband’s salary.

Women were judged on how they looked as well as how their home looked. She was to dress nice and not show her intelligence.

The accepted jobs for women were teachers, secretaries and nurses. Even if she had a job, she was to put her family first and would quit her job in order to out them first.

Moral Standards/Beliefs Cont.

Society was strict and more structured than

today. Rules were very important and they were not to be broken. Children were to do what their parents said and not say a word back to them. Children had rules and chores to teach them responsibility. Children were taught morals through reading fairy tales.

Actions held bigger consequences and each person was held more accountable for those actions.

Moral Standards/Beliefs Cont.

Girls occasionally received the title bad girl. This was a difficult thing to over come. She would be called this if she smoked a cigarette, obviously flirted, wore black eyeliner, hung around the bad crowd, wore a revealing top, wore a too colorful dress, or if she was seen “necking” with a boy. If a girl became pregnant outside of marriage it was considered her fault and not the boy’s. One of the only ways for a girl to overcome the title of bad girl was to marry.

Girls were called old maids if they didn’t marry by age 25. She would not be socially respected.

Moral Standards/Beliefs Cont.

Men were to work and provide money to support their family. There were many manufacturing related jobs. These were popular because it was an eight hour work day and work wasn’t brought home.

At home men were to do all the outdoor tasks, fix household items, drive the car, balance the books, write checks, pay bills, and play with and discipline the children.

Men/boys were also to ask the woman/girl for a date. They met the girl’s family, opened all doors for her, and paid for the date. He could try to kiss her but he may get slapped.

Other

Slang from the 1950’s-squares, cops, rebel, chicks, pop, tight, keen, crazy, jacketed, kill, cat, cube, hep

Teen JobsGirls-babysitting,

ironing clothes for family and neighbors, clean house

Boys-bailing hay on family farm, milking cows, stacking hay, driving tractor, cleaning stables, bus boys at restaurants

Bibliography

http://www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/m/a/mas53/timln950,html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pop_arthttp://home.att.net/~boomers.fifties.teenmag/

1950s_fashion.htmlhttp://home.att.net/~boomers.fifties.teenmag/

1950_history.htmlhttp://www.fiftiesweb.com/fashion/fashion-wg.htmhttp://www.associatedcontent.com/article/96893/

literature_and_music_as_a_form_of_expression.html