theme 1 - cultural conformity and challenge Flashcards
(21 cards)
why was there an increase in conformity after WW2?
those who experienced the hardships of economic depression in the 30s craved economic success, and didn’t want to lose it after the post-war boom
advertisements encouraged everyone to consume the same goods
the period after the war was one of continued tension with the USSR, and Americans believed this danger necessitated national unity, and therefore conformity
what praises did people have of TV?
cheap entertainment which programmes that could be watched by the whole family.
claimed it helped to develop a more national culture, decreasing social divisions, and give people access to new perspectives and understanding of other cultures.
claimed people weren’t passive recipients to conformity, as some documentaries challenges conformity - e.g Martin Luther King’s ‘The Open Mind’ (1957)
what criticisms did people have of TV?
dangerous influence as it promoted conformity due to design for mass appeal and consumerism through advertisements.
it caused a decline in educational test scores and reading, making viewers physically inactive and mentally passive.
why did Hollywood change its treatment of sex?
box office recipients were failing due to television, and sex sold and appealed to the public.
more sexually explicit films drew big crowds - e.g ‘Baby Doll’ (1956).
a 1952 Supreme Court ruling had granted freedom of expression to films.
how did movies challenge racial stereotypes and attitudes?
‘The Defiant Ones’ (1958) - black and white convicts chained together had to co-operate to survive.
Hollywood was gaining confidence in opposing prejudice.
‘South Pacific’ (1958) - interracial romance.
This film was a hit in most of the US but not well received in the South, almost starting a race riot in Long Island.
how did Hollywood challenge traditional female roles?
‘All that Heaven Allows’ (1955) - an upper-middle class widow involved with a somewhat bohemian gardener who is younger than her. This unconventional romance challenges both female roles and middle-class conformity.
However, she still gets married - Hollywood would only go so far in challenging social norms.
how far did Hollywood go to demonstrate teenage non-conformity?
‘The Blackboard Jungle’ (1955) - class shows disruptive behaviour.
Hollywood still had limited sympathy for disaffected youth as the teacher re-established control.
how did advertisements create social change?
ads helped to promote conformity and consumerism.
90% of households had a TV by early 1960s, so ads reached a greater audience.
they promoted the consumer to buy more essential and fashionable items and therefore had an impact on culture.
how successful was the advertisement industry?
highly successful:
- TV companies’ advertising revenue free by 1000% in the 50s
- advertisers spent $10 bill a year during 50s and early 60s trying to persuade customers to buy.
why did teenagers become such a problem?
had more independence from parents who had grown up during the Depression and WW2 and knew what it was like to go without certain freedom and opportunities.
TV and film helped develop the idea of a new social group - ‘juvenile delinquents’, as they were typically portrayed.
how did Margaret Mead explain teenagers?
‘The School in American Culture’ (1951)
claimed that growing disrespect for teachers was the result of rapidly changing society - young people began regarding formal education as irrelevant
how did Alfred Kinsey explain teenagers?
‘Sexual Behaviour in the Human Male’ (1948)
claimed that 95% of males had been sexually active by age 15
how did Fredric Wertham explain teenagers?
‘Seduction of the Innocent’ (1952)
claimed comic books corrupted the youth through inappropriate depictions of sexual content or by resented views that countered traditional family life.
1955: 13 states passed laws regulating the sale of comic books.
what were the supposed influences on teenage behaviour?
violence and brutality in comic books.
mothers who worked disregarded their duties of raising children as they were captivated by consumer culture.
gaining a sense of status and belonging.
escaping the boring and depressing environments of school and home.
demonstrating rejection of the values of parents and society.
peer pressure.
what was the ‘beat’ generation?
dissenters from mainstream culture, who rejected materialism, the consumer culture, and conformity
favoured a lifestyle of spontaneity, drugs, free love, and general defiance of authority and convention.
they were known for experimenting with drugs, rejecting the affluent society, their sexually liberating views, and their opposition to developments in the arms race with the Soviet Union.
what music was teenage culture associated with?
new form of popular music - rock’n’roll, which was very different from popular music when their parents were younger.
this music was popular because it added to their sense of identity, as only they could enjoy it.
greater financial independence allowed them to buy records
why did parents oppose rock’n’roll?
it was often critical of middle-class behaviour and full of sexual longing
some white parents feared black culture contaminating their children as rock’n’roll had derived from black music such as rhythm and blues.
what influenced Elvis Presley’s music?
he was born to a poor family.
when he was 14, he and his family moved into public housing. Most white people hated this as it equated them to black people, but the Presleys loved it as it was the best housing they’d ever had.
why did adults disagree with their children listening to or watching Elvis Presley?
he appealed to female audiences for his movements on stage which were described by a commentator as ‘strip-teases with clothes on … not only suggestive but downright obscene’
what criticisms are the of Elvis Presley?
rock’n’roll focused on social conventions of disapproving parents, rather than major social issues
he stole black music in a sense as he picked it up when he was growing up, and this was exploited for money.
William Whyte’s ‘The Organisation Man’ (1956)
1947-57: number of salaried middle-class workers rose by 61%, fuelled by the growth of large corporations, such as General Motors
White argued that these corporate enterprises created the ‘organisation man’ who had to get along with thousands of co-workers, and suburban life promoted ‘getting along’ and belonging’
believed that suburban life and growth of large organisations threatened individualism
