Which author criticized the increasing materialism of American society in the 1950s?

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Abstract

This article tests the hypothesis that postwar affluence led to an integenerational shift from Materialist to Post-Materialist values among Western publics, and analyzes the consequences of the economic uncertainty prevailing since 1973. The young emphasize Post-Materialist values more than the old. Time-series data indicate that this reflects generational change far more than aging effects, but that the recession of the mid-1970s also produced significant period effects. As Post-Materialists aged, they moved out of the student ghetto and became a predominant influence among young technocrats, contributing to the rise of a @`New Class.@' They furnish the ideologues and core support for the environmental, zero-growth and antinuclear movements; and their opposition to those who give top priority to reindustrialization and rearmament constitutes a distinctive and persisting dimension of political cleavage.

Journal Information

The American Political Science Review [APSR] is the longest running publication of the American Political Science Association [APSA]. APSR, first published in November 1906 and appearing quarterly, is the preeminent political science journal in the United States and internationally. APSR features research from all fields of political science and contains an extensive book review section of the discipline. In its earlier days, APSR also covered the personal and personnel items of the profession as had its predecessor, the Proceedings of the APSA.

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Founded in 1903, the American Political Science Association is the major professional society for individuals engaged in the study of politics and government. APSA brings together political scientists from all fields of inquiry, regions, and occupational endeavors. While most APSA members are scholars who teach and conduct research in colleges and universities in the U.S. and abroad, one-fourth work outside academe in government, research, organizations, consulting firms, the news media, and private enterprise. For more information about the APSA, its publications and programs, please see the APSA website.

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journal article

Toward a Throw-Away Culture. Consumerism, 'Style Obsolescence' and Cultural Theory in the 1950s and 1960s

Oxford Art Journal

Vol. 10, No. 2, The 60s [1987]

, pp. 3-27 [25 pages]

Published By: Oxford University Press

//www.jstor.org/stable/1360444

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Journal Information

The Oxford Art Journal has an international reputation for publishing innovative critical work in art history, and has played a major role in recent rethinking of the discipline. It is committed to the political analysis of visual art and material representation from a variety of theoretical perspectives, and has carried work addressing themes from Antiquity to contemporary art practice. In addition it carries extended review of major contributions to the field.

Publisher Information

Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University's objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide. OUP is the world's largest university press with the widest global presence. It currently publishes more than 6,000 new publications a year, has offices in around fifty countries, and employs more than 5,500 people worldwide. It has become familiar to millions through a diverse publishing program that includes scholarly works in all academic disciplines, bibles, music, school and college textbooks, business books, dictionaries and reference books, and academic journals.

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Oxford Art Journal © 1987 Oxford University Press
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What was one major criticism of 1950's American society?

Poverty and discrimination plagued some Americans, while others criticized the conformity of middle-class life. The discontents of the 1950s would manifest the first signs of the dissent that would dominate the 1960s. Many social critics complained about the emphasis on conformity in 1950s America.

Why did people criticize 1950s society?

This society was very conformed and citizens were materialistic. Critics believed that these citizens had given up their right to be themselves. They also believed that the newly developed suburbs and shopping centers didn't make things better.

What characterized American society in the 1950s?

During the 1950s, a sense of uniformity pervaded American society. Conformity was common, as young and old alike followed group norms rather than striking out on their own. Though men and women had been forced into new employment patterns during World War II, once the war was over, traditional roles were reaffirmed.

What social factors changed American life during the 1950s?

The first was the birth of the Cold War, and the great fears that it created. The second was the dramatic growth of affluence, which transformed the lives of many, but not all, Americans. The third was a growing anxiety among many Americans who felt that their lives were too constricted by the staid culture of the era.

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