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The Changing Face of theAmerican Family: Modern History

Families in the 1960s

Cultural Myths.In response to the
demands on men to create and support
expensive suburban homes and lifestyles,
a mythical world of adventure and
freedom arose in popular culture.Movies
about spies and western gunslingers stood
in sharp contrast to the restrictive
corporate lifestyles of many men.
Youthful marriage and early childbearing
created a culture of women in their
thirties with diminishing childrearing
responsibilities,but with unrealistic
expectations to be all things to all
people—an attractive wife to her
husband,a self-sacrificing mother for
her children,a prudent shopper,an
imaginative cook,an industrious
housekeeper with a shiny kitchen floor,
as well as an active member of the
community.The resulting anxieties
and dissatisfaction in both men and
women led to an increase in the
divorce rate in the 1960s.Maintaining
the middle-class lifestyle and keeping
up with the Joneses often required the
wife to work at least part-time outside the
home.By 1960,one third of married
women were working full- or part-time
(Women’s History in America,n.d.).
Divorce was once again on the rise.In
an earlier era,a common sentiment was to
stay married“for the children,”no matter
how uncomfortable or abusive the
relationship might be.By the 1960s,the

presence of children no longer hindered

divorce.Parents came to believe it was

better for children to live in a happier,less

stressful environment than to pretend to

maintain a marriage on their behalf.Child

custody became a battlefield adversely

affecting both children and parents alike.

Youth Culture and the Generation Gap.

The ideal suburban life could be a place

capable of providing comfort and

emotional fulfillment for family

members, but it could also be a place

where young people had too much time

and too little to do. Married women

became self-sacrificing and isolated,

while men were harried with the

challenge of providing the consumer

products of the“good life.”Children were

pressured to succeed and conform to

middle-class ideals and, as a result,

became rebellious and created alternative

cultures. The period of childhood had

1960s teens listened to new forms of music, created new

dance forms, developed their own slang expressions and often

embraced much freer attitudes than those of their parents.

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