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Consumer Culture and Conformity
Television: By the early 1960s, television had become essential to family life, with one set for every 3.3 Americans. Programming was dominated by three national networks, featuring comedies, westerns, quiz shows, and sports. Shows like Leave It to Beaver and Father Knows Best reinforced conservative values, depicting white, middle-class suburban families with traditional gender roles.
Advertising: Aggressive advertising in various media promoted common material desires, supported by the rise of suburban shopping centers and credit cards. The spread of chain restaurants and franchise stores symbolized the shift from small businesses to standardized, mass-marketed products.
Women’s Roles
Homemaking: The baby boom and suburban living made homemaking a full-time job for many women, with the media and books like Dr. Spock's Baby and Child Care reaffirming traditional roles.
Workforce Participation: Despite increasing workforce participation, especially among middle-aged women, societal views and lower wages reflected the belief that women were primarily wives and mothers.
Beatniks
Beat Generation: Rebellious writers and intellectuals like Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg led the Beat Generation, advocating for spontaneity, drug use, and rebellion against societal norms. They laid the groundwork for the youth rebellion of the 1960s.
Assassination and the End of the Postwar Era
Kennedy's Assassination: President Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963, in Dallas, Texas. His death, followed by the televised killing of his alleged assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald, marked a tragic end to the optimism of the postwar era.
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