Masculinity In The 1950's

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The Second World War created an opportunity for men whose “self-confidence” had been lambasted by the economic downturn of the 1930s, and could now bravely “risk their lives” and hold true to the most traditional forms of proving masculinity or simply “provide the armed forces” the weapons needed for the war through creation or factory work. All patriotic and thus accepted forms of male actions, methods of proving masculinity proved easy to gain, though other men seemingly saw entering the war a simply “fulfillment of their manly responsibilities,” actions necessary to continue the norms of their society. American victory left then only the expectation of creating families and other forms of proof of economic success left for men to gain. …show more content…
A point of pride for men in the decade to be so wealthy and accomplished that their wives need not work, yet such apparent freedom from work also secluded women into the home, laying the foundation for “destroying a women’s sense of self.” In reality, in the 1950s women could and did work, but often it was only socially acceptable under certain circumstances, such as if “plenty of jobs” remained available for men or if her work was not “traditionally considered men’s,” and most importantly she must also continue any “traditional domestic duties” that she was obligated to. Any women working outside the domestic sphere implicitly was told by society that such work was of lesser importance than her role within the family. This societal view, the refusal of a majority of Americans to acknowledge the increasing “expression of womanliness through wage labor,” was denial of a truth that would become blatant with the arrival of the 1960s. However, appearances needed to be kept, both with society at large and to individual gendered

Masculinity In The Film Rebel Without A Cause

popular and critically applauded films of its time: Rebel Without a Cause, challenged the ideas of masculinity in a society and that was a pure reflection of many teenagers growing up in that generation. How exactly did Rebel Without a Cause change the perception of masculinity in society and why is the film considered to be the movie “poster child” of the 1950s youth rebellion movement? Masculinity in the 1950s was in a state of doubt; half of the men were returning home from the world war and did not…

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Gang Culture In 'The Outsiders'

Module 9 Discussion Based on what I have read from “The Outsiders” reading, gang culture was created in the 1950s by increased violence in youth culture, tensions and conflicts between other cultures and social prestige in America. Throughout history, gangs developed by anger, jealously, bitterness and hatred due to materialistic things and different cultural perspectives. What I did not see at all was racial identity being a factor for rivalry to whether it was goods and resources in the story…

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Japanese War Brides Analysis

arguably starts with the rise of ‘war brides’ in the post-war era. These ‘war brides’ were Japanese women labeled as such due to their marriages with servicemen, mostly American GIs, “during the occupation period of Japan and the succeeding years in the 1950s, as well as in the early 1960s”. In his examination of media representations of ‘war brides’ from the late 1940s to the 1970s, Masashi Iwasa (2016) highlights the largely negative depiction of ‘war brides’ until around the 1970s. He attributes this…

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Essay on Privilege: Copyright and Applicable Copyright Law

Page vii Contents Preface, Michael Kimmel and Amy Aronson, xiii Introduction, xv MEN AND MASCULINITIES Copyright © 2004. ABC-CLIO All rights reserved. May not be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher, except fair uses permitted under U.S. or applicable copyright law. A Social, Cultural, and Historical Encyclopedia Volume I: A–J A Abolitionists, 1 Action Television Series, 3 Adolescence, 5 “Adonis Complex,” 8 Aging, 9 AIDS, 15 Alcohol, 17 Alda…

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What Are Gender Roles In The 1950s

Gender Roles: 1950s vs. Now “Society as a whole benefits immeasurably from a climate in which all persons, regardless of gender, may have the opportunity to learn respect, responsibility, advancement and remuneration based on ability” (O’Conner, borgenproject.org). A gender role is a behavior learned by a person as appropriate to their gender, determined by the prevailing cultural/ traditional norms (dictionary.com). For example, in parts of Latin America, construction work was considered “men’s…

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SOSD HHW Essay

Routine CONNECTIONS TO CONTEXT 27 COMPLETE TABLE Please do not complete these 2 tasks, we will do them in class together after the holidays. TASK 1 – GENDER ROLES READ THE FOLLOWING texts and complete questions Gender roles in the 1950S The 1950s was a time of transition and change in the way Australian men and women saw themselves, and the ways in which they related to each other. This is a major theme of Summer of the Seventeenth Doll, and throughout the play, we see the main characters…

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Betty Friedan Women In The 1950s

In the early 1950s, activists like Betty Friedan or Edith Stern introduced new ways of thinking for a woman in a male dominated society. The first sparks of feminism ignited a flame that would start the huge women’s liberation movement in the 70s. Women joined together, demanding the social, political, and economic equality of the sexes. They would no longer be satisfied without full constitutional rights. In the 1950’s and 1960’s American society’s view on the woman’s place reflected a traditional…

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Advice For Teens

Heterosexuality, 22(3) 83-89. Annotation: According to Adams, parents and the interaction with their children shape the heterosexual framework that is apparent within society today. In the chapter, Sex Advice for Teens, the author explains how the 1950’s and 1960’s were notoriously known as being the party era, which consisted of many social events for young adults. At these functions, the author suggests that teens participated in coed activities and hence were able to express their sexuality with one…

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Gender Roles In The Film 'The Big Heat'

was very empowering and showed a role reversal because Vince seem really scared of Debby. Debby was very much in control and showed her masculinity. Film Noir is very unique category of film. These types of films always have strong leading ladies who go through a gender role reversal. It makes these movies ahead of their time because in many movies in the 1950’s women would not be playing character that were more masculine. When watching The Big Heat it also shows how the clothing colors and shadows…

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Introductory Chapter Summary

She mentions that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, in its 2013 AR5 report, reiterates that since the 1950’s, the atmosphere and ocean have warmed up significantly, the amount of snow and ice has been reduced, sea levels have risen, and the concentrations of greenhouse gases have increased. Throughout the years, these numbers have only increased. It is very…

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