Economic: New and Growing Companies
In the 1950's the American economy grew with its companies. The American people created a new vision of success which many desired to conform to, so companies began creating ad-campaigns to target this changing audience. This sparked great success for many companies and a large demand for their products. This led to the development of franchises such as McDonald's, Wal-Mart, and Macy's. The high demand for these products also led to the development of International companies, which were pre-existing companies that moved parts of their operations overseas for cheaper materials and employees. These companies included General Elecrtric, Ford, Chevy, and IBM.
Social: Music
Elvis Presley
The 1950's were a time of social change and one of the most important sparks of this change was the music. The 1950's brought with them a new star in the music industry, and his name was Elvis Presley. Elvis' music was something that surprised and disturbed many people. Elvis sang what most people considered "black" music and wore what most considered to be "black" clothes. For teenagers this was a force to unite around causing them to feel more freedom and less parental constraint. Their parents on the other hand despised the music because it didn't conform to their ideals. For the generation of 1950's teenagers this music sparked a rebellion against conformity and the conservative generation of their parents, and for their parents generation it was terrible monstrosity and an attack on the ideals they held in high respect.
Political: The Containment Plan
Political Cartoon of the Containment Plan
During the 1950's fear of communism spreading to the U.S. and the power of the Soviets was rampant across the country. The government tried to solve the problem that was communism through the containment plan, which was supposed prevent the spread of communism from eastern Europe to Western Europe. The U.S. government had a strong opposition to Communism and thought that farther it spread meant that it was coming closer to infiltrating the U.S.
Do these events show progress?
The 1950s showed strong economic and social progress, but not necessarily political progress. The Economy of the 1950s rose with its companies as they expanded and became franchises. These are not always the best part of the economy now, but in the 1950s they were an important sign of growth and progress. The way the music changed people's ways of thinking and their opinions of others brought about important changes that led to such important events as the Civil Rights movement, a major symbol of progress in America. The political changes were significant, but they led to unnecessary wars and nation wide with hunts for potential communist, meaning that it is not an example of progress in history.