Layout 1

thepeakofthedivorceratein1920during

therebellioustimesoftheroaring20sanda

dipinthedivorcerateinthe1930swhen

couplescouldn’taffordtodivorceduringthe

Depression.

The American Family from

1950 to 1990

Families in the 1950s

Tomany,especiallythoseofthebaby

boomgeneration,thefamilyofthe1950s

characterizesthetraditionalfamily.Similar

tothetraditionalfamilyoftheVictorian

1800s,thepost-warfamilysymbolizeda

havenfromaheartlessworldandawayto

satisfactorilymeettheintimacyneedsof

familymembers.Thenostalgiaconnectedto

thelate1940sintothe1950sstoodinstark

contrasttotheexperiencesofthosewhohad

enduredtheDepressionandthewar.

The Changing Face of theAmerican Family: Modern History

Married women were out of the house and earning their

own money, changing the domestic image of women

from earlier in the century.

U.S. Marriage and Divorce Rate 1940–1950, per 1000 Population

Figure 3.1

18

16.2

14.4

12.6

10.8

9

7.2

5.4

3.6

1.8

0

1940

12.1

2 2.2 2.4

2.6 2.9

3.5

4.3

3.4 2.8

2.7 2.6

12.7 13.2

11.7

10.9

12.2

16.4

13.9

12.4

10.6 11.1

1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950

Marriages

per1000

Population

Divorcesper

1000

Population

Source:National Center for Health Statistics 1973.

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