1950s+Teenagers+NVCD

1. Fashion in the early 1950's was very strict. Boy's hair was not allowed to touch their ears, and carried heavy consequences if it did. Boy's were also forbidden to wear blue jeans, and Girls were forbidden to wear pants of any form. Even though these forms of dress were looked down on, teenagers rebelled and adapted the style and wore dungarees as casual wear.

2. The emergence of Rock N' Roll in 1955 gave a genre of music just for the teenagers. The teenagers loved the music that dealt with problems and issues of themselves. The music often dealt with topics of sex and racial commingling. The parents hated this music, and had many records burned and banned live performances in their times. Parents often called rock n' roll "the devil's music." Teens would often sneak out to secret clubs where they could dance and listen to the music that they loved.

3.The invention of radio also shaped teenage life. Instead of having to lug around a record and record player, teenagers were able to easily tune to a radio station that is playing rock n' roll. This allowed for easy access of music for teenagers. It also allowed teenagers to listen to music that had been banned, because there was no way to limit the radio and there were many radio stations playing rock n' roll.

4. Teenagers created a society of their own during the 1950s. These teenagers pushed the boundaries of sex, communism, and rebellion. The thriving economy of the 50's allowed the teenagers to spend much more money than any other previous generation. Many parents resented their children, because they believed they had life easy after the war. Teenagers in the 50's had the good life and money which allowed them to go to drive ins, dances, movies, and attend concerts.

5. Teenagers looked forward to marrying young in the 1950's. By 1949, 47% of brides were married by the age of nineteen. By 1951, the average male marrying age was 22.6 years, and 20.4 years for women. The old dating practice of rating and dating was replaced by the new system of going steady. Going steady was when a boy would give a girl some sort of visual token to show that you were interested. A 1959 poll stated that 57% of Americans had gone steady or planned to do so. These new forms of dating differed drastically from their parents' and shaped the unique identity of '50s teenagers.


 * Primary Documents:**

1. This is and image of teenagers dance on Bob Horn's Bandstand. This photo is a great dipiction of how American teenagers danced and hung out during the 50's. At the shows teenagers could be themselves, and not have to worry about their parents complaining about the music or their dance styles.

2. "Rock and roll is the most brutal, ugly, degenerate, vicious form of expression — lewd, sly, in plain fact, dirty — a rancid-smelling aphrodisiac and the martial music of every side-burned delinquent on the face of the earth." – Frank Sinatra (1957)

This a quote from an older musician during the 50's, who shared to same views as many older Americans. Sinatra, along with most older Americans believed Rock n' Roll was the worst form of music on the Earth and represented evil. This showed how many Americans felt about rock and roll at the time.

The 1950's was a time when teenagers could distinctively separate themselves from the adults and form their own identity. Teenagers in the 50's created their own sense of fashion. Instead of wearing strict formal wear for the boys, and dresses for the girls, both resorted to wearing jean styled clothing, a style their parents really hated. Their style of music also shaped their identity. The distinct beat of rock n' roll drove teenagers crazy. Groups of teenagers often went to dances with their friends where they could listen to rock n' roll without the burden of their parents. Teenagers also dated differently than past generations. They engaged in commingling and started talking about and having sex. Sex was considered taboo and premarital sex was frowned on by parents. The 1950's was a drastic change in teenage life, that set the lifestyle for teenagers for years to come.

Work Cited:

. "53d. America Rocks and Rolls." America Rocks and Rolls. N.p., 2011. Web. 15 Nov 2011. . Bailey, Beth.Rebels Without a Cause? Teenagers in the 1950 . N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Nov 2011. .

Bergstein, Effy. "The Pennsylvania Center for the Book - American Bandstand."Philadelphia's Teens Take a "Stand". N.p., 2008. Web. 15 Nov 2011. .

Cox, Erika. "Teenage Life in the 1950's - Fifties - 1950s."Rewind the Fifties. N.p., 2009. Web. 15 Nov 2011. .

Powers, Richard. "1950's Teenagers."The Life of a 1950's Teenager.. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Nov 2011. .

"teenagers, post - World War 2."Facts on File History Online. Facts on File, 2011. Web. 15 Nov 2011. .