The American Dream is the same
in both California and in the mid to late 20th century. The dream
has always been the same from the first people who came to this country to
those who still come in today looking for more then what they left behind. And
it is evident in the way lifestyles were changed with the grand entrance of the
automobile in the Golden State.
The end of WW II gave
Americans the chance to pick up their lives and begin a new transition of
getting a job, starting families and purchasing goods. The American automobile
industry began to expand to meet the demands of the American family. During the
1950’s a new way of life began with the car becoming more than transportation
it became a way of life and a way to prove you belonged in this new car culture
and the people buying new cars were the wealthy. “In terms of new car
purchases, the top two income quintiles of Americans purchased 70 percent of
all new cars” (1) The rest were low income people who would purchased used
cars.
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“This complex interaction between human beings
and this machine was reflected in contemporary literature, music and film” (2)
Television was also booming during these times and it would become a place to
see the American dream right on their television set. Movies with glamour’s
actors and hot red cars gHere is the last blog... good luck ave every man, woman and kid a new kind of dream. “Film
makers used sports cars as their plots” (3) The car would become an
important piece of a movie from “Rebel Without a Cause” (1955) to “Thunder
Road” (1958) (4) Men began to play with cars during these times, and the
car enthusiast was born. “ Hot rods, sports cars, or customs captivated many
who during this prosperity decade had increased leisure time and disposable
income” (5) American families were excited about what the car had to offer,
it was a form of entertainment and it would create a nation of car racers from
the desert roads in California to Florida and places in between. The car gave
the dreamer freedom and excitement, roads and highways changed the path of the
future, safety and environmental issues would become apparent in the 50’s. Cars
were not being built on the basis of safety rather it was built on luxury. Every
year more and more deaths due to car crashes were occurring. In California the
“growth of automobile use from little over 1.1 million cars in 1940 to 2.3
million vehicles in 1954” (6) This caused serious health issues with in the
city of Los Angeles because of the cars combustion and in 1959 before the
government could get involved car manufactures created a ventilation devise.
Americans entered an age of
passion with more wheels on the road, the advancement of the industry created
jobs for American men and women. The UAW and the Big Three (the three biggest automotive
firms) would change working conditions and therefore see bigger profits. By
the 1960, the Big Three paid better wages and offered their workers better
benefits than any other industry in the nation” (7)
America was built by the union
of many people who immigrated to this country, every culture and religion had
their ideal of what this nation would become “ The American Dream is very much
a national, even global, phenomenon, but some dreams have a strong geographic
orientation” (8) The 1970’s changed with the collapse
of the auto industry, many global nations were competing with their own
automobile inventions causing the American industry to lose profits and its
workers to lose their jobs. But the invention for economical car still lured
and Americans moved on with the auto industry and became what is today and even
with all time high in gas prices it does not stop Americans from using their
cars everyday. As for the California Dream the car culture crossed boundaries
and its workers over came job losses, regardless Americas culture has consumed
itself with other riches and other less important lifestyles. The bicycle
became obsolete and the automobile the future.
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“The automobile is perhaps the
most sexual object ordinary people deal with” (9). If that is true the mid
to late 20th century offered people a longing to exist in a materialistic
world especially in the Golden State of California where sexuality, cars, Hollywood
and the coast offers it all and it will continue to welcome those to the Dream.
1. John Heitmann, The Automobile and American Life, (McFarland & Company, Inc., 2009) Pg. 137
2. The Automobile and American Life. Pg. 133
3. The Automobile and American Life. Pg. 142
4. The Automobile and American Life Pg. 158
5. The Automobile and American Life Pg. 134
6. The Automobile and American Life Pg. 145
7. The Automobile and American Life Pg. 150
8. Jim Cullen, The American Dream: A Short History of an Idea that Shaped a Nation,(New York: Oxford University Press, 2010) Pg. 160
9. The Automobile and American Life Pg. 206
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