At the end of World War II , Americans saw prosperity that they had never seen before. The standard of living had risen, and America was racing for world dominance. Moreover , the events that took place during this decade would change the way we look at this era forever. This decade was an era of turbulence, rather than an era of idealism, due to great fear during the Cold War, the rise of rebellious beats, and the Civil Rights Movements taking place in the segregated south.

First and foremost, the Cold War that began in the 50s created fear about rise of the Communist threat and nuclear power, a fear that dominates the anxieties of fighting a major war today. A very influent man named Joseph McCarthy led the communist threat. McCarthy brought a new word into America's vocabulary, McCarthyism. The legacy he left can be defined as a time in America's history when the government questioned people about their personal ideologies and brought negative exposure to thousands of people's lives. Communism in America during the 1950's was more like a rumor than a real event. McCarthyism left scars on many people's lives by his slander and should be viewed as a lesson of what

From another perspective, the 1950s also had its share of good times. The video, " The Fear and the Dream," showed " the Levittowns that created the suburbs we know of today." In " Selling the American Way," the creation of television "expanded Americans horizons." This video also demonstrated how "credit cards made spending a lot easier." And, of course, who could forget form the video the " road to the Sixties," the " hallmark of the 50s", the automobile? But all these ideas of idealism had a great shadow of turbulence cast over them. The threat of Cold War created Communism and nuclear war, the beats created a rebellion that changed the face of American youth forever and, most importantly, the ideas and events that went on in the segregated south changed the way we view ourselves forever and created the racism that still lurks in our society today.

On another level, the beat generation took the 1950s by storm. During this time of high spending, advertising, and family values, the beats took the time to express the discontent of America youth. The beats drank heavily, smoked dope, traveled on the road, listened to crazy jazz music, and did not hold steady jobs, which was all very uncommon during the 1950s. Poets such as Jack Keroauc and Alan Ginsberg wrote about their discontent with American society and what it has turned out to be: materialistic and selfish. The bea

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Approximate Word count = 932
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)