HIS-144-T-5.America after WWII PDF

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Name: Elizabeth Ruiz

HIS144 – America after World War II Using resources from the Topic 5 Readings, including your textbook, materials provided by your instructor through class discussion, and materials from the GCU Library Guide for HIS-144 US History Themes, complete the assignment worksheet. Each answer to the questions should be a minimum of 200-300 words; and, include citations for each question formatted using the GCU Style Guide. The overall assignment must include three to five relevant scholarly sources in support of your content. Each response should show good writing mechanics, grammar, formatting, and proper citations at the end of each question/response. Wikipedia, Ask.com, ehow.com and other online information sites, encyclopedias, or dictionaries are not considered university academic sources and are NOT TO BE USED.

1. Explain the G.I. Bill. In what ways does it change America? The 1944 servicemen readjustment act better known for the G.I bill was created to provide help to veterans after world war two (Bound and Turner, 2020). The G.I bill is a returning opportunity for veterans after serving the country. The G.I provided the opportunity for returning servicemen to get educated and start a new life with more opportunities. In a way it can be consider like a payment for their service in world war two. The G.I provided sometimes cash money for tuition, low interest loans and mortgages. “This cause a flood of returning veterans attending to American colleges and universities, with veterans accounting for about 70% of all male enrollment in the years after V-J Day. Both contemporaneous assessments and subsequent analyses by historians and economists point to the G.I. Bill as a policy instrument with dramatic effects on the level of educational attainment of returning veterans, as well as on the overall landscape of American higher education” (Bound and Turner, 2020). This changed America in many ways but the most important is that it gave credibility to the government because the G.I bill was created to not repeat the failure of world war one. In conclusion, The GI Bill gave World War II servicemen and servicewoman many options and benefits. Those who

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wished to continue their education in college or vocation school could do so tuitionfree and loans this changed the lives of veterans after world war two.

Source: John Bound, & Sarah Turner. (2002). Going to War and Going to College: Did World War II and the G.I. Bill Increase Educational Attainment for Returning Veterans? Journal of Labor Economics, 20(4), 784. https://doi-org.lopes.idm.oclc.org/10.1086/342012

2. Why did suburbanization occur after World War II? What changes does suburbia bring American society? The years after World War Two saw a massive movement of people into new suburbs. The growth of suburbs resulted from several historical forces, including the social legacy of the Depression, mass demobilization after the War (and the consequent “baby boom”), greater government involvement in housing and development, the mass marketing of the automobile, and a dramatic change in demographics. As families began moving from farms and cities into new suburbs, American culture underwent a major transformation. Race and class dynamics began to shift; the longer distance between home and work generated a highway and housing construction boom; and older community institutions began to disappear as the family turned inward. By 1970 America become the first nation in the world to have more suburbanization than cities or farmers. 2

Source: Garcia-Vazquez, C. (n.d.). The suburbanization of the American Sunbelt after the oil crisis. Growth as an ideology and the environmental debate. EURE-REVISTA LATINOAMERICANA DE ESTUDIOS URBANO REGIONALES, 45(136), 233–254.

3. Why is the automobile so important to post war America? American industry for full reconversion to peacetime production. National attention has since been centered on the automobile industry. A rapid resumption of civilian production there would give direct and indirect employment to millions of workers, would stimulate activity in a host of subordinate lines, and would measurably accelerate the transition of the whole economy from war to peace. The growth of the automobile industry caused an economic revolution across the United States. Dozens of spin-off industries blossomed. The social effects of the automobile were as great. Freedom of choice encouraged many family vacations to places previously impossible. Urban dwellers had the opportunity to rediscover pristine landscapes, just as rural dwellers were able to shop in towns and cities. America changed forever, with new opportunities and an end of possibilities it opened minds. Even the federal government became involved with the FEDERAL HIGHWAY ACT OF 1921. GAS STATIONS began to dot the land, and mechanics began to earn a living fixing the inevitable problems. Oil and steel were two wellestablished industries that received a serious boost by the demand for automobiles. Travelers on the road needed shelter on long trips, so MOTELS began to line the major long-distance routes.

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Source: 4. How did consumerism affect American society after World War II? The period from the end of World War II to the early 1970s was a golden era of economic growth. $200 billion in war bonds matured, and the G.I. Bill financed a well-educated work force. Much of the growth came from the movement of low income farm workers into better paying jobs in the towns and cities—a process largely completed by 1960. Congress created the Council of Economic Advisors, to promote high employment, high profits and low inflation. After World War II, consumer spending no longer meant just satisfying an indulgent material desire. In fact, the American consumer was praised as a patriotic citizen in the 1950s, contributing to the ultimate success of the American way of life. Americans invested in items based around home and family life. At war's end, the items people most desired included televisions, cars, washing machines, refrigerators, toasters, and vacuum cleaners: the machines that would help them modernize their lives. American people saw the new consumerism as a way to deemphasize class differences while stressing traditional gender roles. With the things that defined "the good life" within economic reach, working-class people could achieve the upward mobility they craved.

People started

to use credit to buy a lot of things 4

Source: The Rise of American Consumerism | American Experience | PBS. (2020). Retrieved 17 August 2020, from https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/tupperwareconsumer/

5. What was the role of religion in post-World War II American society? Challenges of wartime service provided the impetus and the opportunity to improvise religious practices, refine religious beliefs amid new challenges, and broaden religious understanding through interaction with those from other traditions. The war had put a halt on many of the things that increase religiosity, particularly marriage and procreation. Churches, just like other organizations, were slowed by drain on resources and volunteers during the war. The post-war years turned this around. The economy improved. The baby boom ensued. And religion grew. The 1950s were also a time when America began to see itself as a Christian nation in a cold war with atheistic communism.

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Source: 6. Explain the development of youth culture in post war America. In the 1950s and 1960s, young Americans had more disposable income and enjoyed greater material comfort than their forebears, which allowed them to devote more time and money to leisure activities and the consumption of popular culture. The baby boomers developed a greater generational consciousness than previous generations. They sought to define and redefine their identities in numerous ways. The music of the day, especially rock and roll, reflected their desire to rebel against adult authority. Other forms of 1950s popular culture, such as movies and television, sought to entertain, while reinforcing values such as religious faith, patriotism, and conformity to societal norms.

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