In any controlled environment, such as the one the United States created for itself during the Fifties, there is bound to be some kind of tension or rebellion, rebellion against the pressure of being normal or conservative. There was a great deal of stress being placed on being "just like everyone else". The voice of the rebellion was usually the entertainers, artists, or writers. Many of these people expressed their feelings about current issues by disguising it in their stories, movies or, paintings. Many of these people challenged the politics of the mainstream or the center. However there were works done that supported the shift towards the center and conservatism. Three works that will be examined are Kurt Vonnegut's, "Player Piano", the movie, "Rebel Without a Cause", and Jack Kerouac's, "On the Road".

The novel is completely on the edge, Kerouac writes about doing things that people would not even consider. Kerouac writes about following the individual's desires, doing whatever one wants to do, living life unconventionally. Kerouac's novel is a contrast to the movie and shares some common ideas with Vonnegut's novel. It contrasts the movie in that it shows individuals living unconventionally, that not everyone is meant to live like that. If we compare Vonnegut's novel to Kerouac's we find that they both share the same ideas that people should be able to choose and live individually.

Vonnegut noted these trends in American society in his novel, predicting what could happen if society continued on this path. America was developing a trend where individuals were no longer recognized; only the whole mattered. Everyone had to be part of the system, if you were not part of the system then you were against it. Just even the idea of radical change would brand you as a "rebel". Writing this kind of literature during the fifties criticizing the American government would have branded Vonnegut as a communist or a "rebel". This is another similarity that can be pointed out between post WWII America and "Player Piano".

The novel may not have much political context, but it fits well into the notion of conservatism and radicalism. Comparing the main characters of all the examples discussed we find pressures of conformity pushing them into the directions they have gone. Through the pressures each of the characters led some sort of rebellion in one way or another. The pressures of conformity during the fifties was brought on by the idea that we had to defeat communism and not let communism defeat us, especially at home.

In Jack Kerouac's novel, "On the Road", he gives the accounts of Sal Paradise and his experiences while traveling on the road.

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1805
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)