Affluent Society in the United States - Essay Example

Affluent Society Affluent society is a term commonly used with reference to a society in which there is wide availability of the material benefits of prosperity. In the 1950s the United States of America citizens experienced a notable increase in affluence. This is specifically true for the people who lived in the suburban areas. There are a number of characteristics that were identified among the suburban consumer society in the United States during the 1950s. This paper aims at discussing the main characteristics of suburban consumer society in the United States during the 1950s. The paper will also review the most important benefits and drawbacks of sub-urbanization and affluence for Americans in the 1950s. The suburban consumers in the 1950s gained much affluence due to the economic prosperity of the US during the period. There was an increase in luxury expenditure and increase in consumer values due to increased enlightening of the suburban population. Prior to the period of 1950s consumer values did not have much dominance in the United States of America. Affluence was not of much meaning before this period. It was during this period that the people of the United States of America gained confidence in the affluence. Material conformity was brought about by mass marketing and consumerism despite that fact that the US market was consisting of people with different characteristics and abilities. Conformity seemed to be the norm in social aspects such as religion and gender roles. The 1950s is commonly referred to as the decade of economic boom. This is a decade that came immediately after the end of the World War II. Therefore, Americans were so eager on spending their money on things that they could not access during the period of war. There wasthe growth of the industries that existed even before the war began. Good examples of such industries are automobiles and steels. There was also growth of new industries such as plastic, electronics, and computers. This is a clear indication that there was an increase in the availability of employment opportunities in the US. There was a resulting increase in workers’ wages and benefits1. This implies that the people of the United States of America were in a better position to spend money on things that were previously termed as luxuries. A research carried out by the Corning Glass company in the 1950s used American women to evaluate the possible performance of their coffee in the market. The research showed just shows the extent to which the specification of customers mattered during this period of time. The research mostly involved housewives. The research reveals just how much the company was able to develop a product that was in accordance to what their target market wanted. During this period it was noted that there was an increase in the need for producers to carry out researches on what their target market wanted so that they could be able to satisfy their need. This led to the shift of power from producers to consumers. The situation is believed to have been contributed to the existence of many players in the market. Many players in the market implies that there is high competition for the US market. During the post war period there was a very big difference in consumer habits. This is just as it has been shown in the animated by the name opportunity unlimited. The film is about middle-income consumers. Through this video there are many patterns and habits of the post war consumption that are brought to light. As opposed to the war period the post war period had many products being available to the middle-earning consumers. What made it even better for them is that the country’s economy enabled them to buy these things. The middle-class people in the United States of America started spending on things that would improve their quality of life and living standards. During the post-war period, many people thought that it would be more beneficial to them if they move from the urban areas to the suburban areas. This is supported by the fact that there was a significant increase in the population in suburban areas during this period. There was also increased investments, the most notable being real estates in the suburban areas. People started enjoying staying in the suburban areas with many investors seeing such areas as areas with very high potentials. People living the suburban areas started having a say on the things that they consumed. Just like in the urban areas the suburban dwellers started having a specific lifestyle that forced many producers to produce products that would match their lifestyles2. Due to the general increase in the population in the suburban areas they became much dominant when it came to determining the nature of the products that were availed to them. With their cooperation and working together they were able to talk in a single voice thus influencing the nature of the products that were availed to them. During this period there was also another observable trend among suburban dwellers. People living in the suburban areas started wisely choosing the places where they bought the products that they used. They started making shopping in places that matched their lifestyle, finances, and were geographically convenient. They would prefer doing their shopping at the local malls instead of having to go a long way to do the same. As a result life became more affordable in the suburban areas. This is because many investors would not mind investing in these areas because they were sure that they will get to market. As a result, there were many businesses that flourished in the suburban areas just like they had flourished in the urban areas. In the 1950s decade, there was a general increase in the number of affluent people who lived in the suburban areas. Prior to this decade, many affluent people would prefer living in the cities to any part of the country. However, it was even harder for the middle class people having a chance of living in the suburban areas.It was during this decade that dwelling in the suburban areas became a reality formiddle class citizens. This was brought about by new building techniques that made it possible to build affordable housing in the suburban area. For the prosperity to be continuous the people of America had to continuously spend on both necessities and luxuries. The access to luxuries was made even easier than before. It also became easier for people in the suburban areas to get access to credit. There was also a notable increase in the rate at which people bought automotive and powered accessories. It was no longer the question of accessibility or affordability, but the people were more concerned about the convenience of the appliances that they used. Companies which previously produced appliances that depended on human power had to go back to the drawing board and produce others that would be more attractive to the American people. During the period in question there was a general decline in class differences. It was a period when it was very hard to instantly identify someone’s social class at the first sight. It is commonly said that the American workers during this decade had acquired social values and consumer habits that were previously only associated with people of the middle and upper classes in the society. Many people would not mind spending their money on luxury products with the main reason being the improved economic status of the country. The 1950s is commonly referred to as the decade of the family. The nuclear ties were given much more emphasis as compared to the previous period. This situation led to the mounting of pressure on both men and women with regard to conforming to the traditional gender roles. During this period the stereotypes on traditional gender regularly contradicted the things that happened in reality. Career related gender discrimination such as payment and responsibility continued to be a very common thing the working places. Those who openly contradicted these stereotypes could in most cases be condemned. This can be said to have been a very big drawback for the period, especially because it stained the heterogeneous nature of the society. During the 1950s decade, there was also a notable persistent in ethnic and racial differences in the United States of America. The differences were not that much between the white ethnic groups. However, the differences between different races were still highly visible. African Americans were often victims of systematic discrimination. There was also a notable increase in the population of the Hispanic people in the United States of America. Native Americans, Hispanics, and African Americans had very little to celebrate of the economic advancement that was experienced in the United States of America in the 1950s decade3. This can also be counted as another drawback of the affluence that was experienced during this people as it was discriminating and only the white American citizen got to enjoy it fully. During this period the media discovered a new group of consumers. It was noted that television networks, record labels, movie studies, and comic books highly targeted the teenagers. There was a development of a distinctive youth culture that was associated with things such as customized cars, rock and roll, premarital sexual exploration, and comic books. The new culture got many adults troubled. Despite the fact that many people would term such cultures as a sign of rebellion, it is reasonable to point out that in most cases the cultures were just exaggerated versions of the kind of life that adults led in the society4. The youth suddenly became influential members of the consumer society. For the first time in history producers would consider the wants of the youths when coming up with new products or marketing strategies. During the same period there was a notable increase of alienation of the old people in the society. This resulted to high tendencies of members of this group in the society trying their level best so that they could be associated to the more prominent groups in the society such as the youth. This was especially seen in their choice of some aspects of lifestyle such as music and clothing. They were forced to act in a way that they never did before. They were even forced into consuming products that were particularly not designed for them because these were the type of products that were dominant in the market. During this period there was a significantincrease in civil rights activism in the United States of America. Civil rights activists were further encouraged by the achievements that they had made in the previous decade. It is notable that there was a general increase in civil right demands of the minorities. The civil rights activists challenge some policies such as segregation. They also carried protest demanding civil rights that they thought that they had been denied. A good example of such a protest was that of Black Americans in 1951 when they demanded that segregation in the transport system be brought to an end. They did this by boycotting the city bus system5. These are some of the ways through which consumers in the 1950s used their power as consumers to make sure that things were made their way. By boycotting some services and products the providers will get losses, forcing them to give in to the demands of the consumers. It is clearly evident that consumers enjoyed a period of affluence during the 1950s decade. This is seen in the way they completely changed their culture of purchasing products or services. They changed the reason, place, means, and nature of purchasing goods or services. The economy of the country had really grown after World War II enabling US consumers to earn enough to spend on luxuries. There was also increased production. In the suburban areas there was a general improvement in living standards with people being able to afford. However, the sad thing is that the affluence that was enjoyed during this period was discriminatory. Women did not enjoy the affluence as much as men did. Members of the minor races and ethnic groups did not enjoy the affluence as much as the white Americans did. Work cited Cohen, Lizbeth. 1996. From Town Center to Shopping Center: The Reconfiguration of Community Marketplaces in Postwar America, American Historical Review, 101:4 (October 1996), 1050-1081. Foner, Eric. 2014. Give Me Liberty! An American History, Volume 2: From 1865, Seagull Fourth Edition (New York: W.W. Norton, 2014), 929-945. Packard, Vance. 1969. The Status Seekers. New York: Pocket Books Ruff, Joshua. 2007.For Sale: The American Dream: American History Magazine (December 2007), 42-49. General Instructions for Essay #2 Whyte, William H. 2013.The Organization Man. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, Internet resource. Read More