Hardesty1 Cheyenne Hardesty Mr.

Anthony Vasko English 11 B 16 March 2012 The American Dream of the 1940s The 1940s were full of new events and changes that all led up to what we call the american dream. When did the american dream start? Some might say it began in the 1920s, others might say the 1950s, in my opinion it began in the 1940s. The most widely know thought that comes to mind when one thinks about the american dream is a neighborhood with houses similar to one another, a military husband with an education paid for by the GI bill, a stay at home housewife, two kids (one boy, one girl), and a dog. However, the American dream was much more then most have perceived it to be. The 1940s was the turning point of world war two and the great depression, the beginning of inventions that today are used worldwide, african americans received more freedom than ever before, and it all created the start of what we call The American Dream. The American Dream transformed into an ideal in which all U.S. people could achieve financial security whether you were a woman, immigrant, or even black (Trapp). This statement contains many truths, women and African Americans had more freedom than ever before. However, most were still in the eyes of many, treated as if not equivalent to the rest of society. During the war men were sent to become soldiers, leaving women to fulfill their jobs in the factories, giving women the freedom they had wanted for years. After the war, the men returned home while women returned to their housewife duties but they had tasted independence(Goodwin). Segregation was a tremendous issue that not only contributed to but

Hardesty2 also enforced the idea that african americans were not equal to whites. It was most prominent in the south but was still a major issue in the rest of the country. Many African Americans were thought of as dirty because of the color of their skin, so intern were not treated as well as whites. With white only and black only signs on virtually everything from drinking fountains to hospitals, African Americans were treated as the second class americans. The Great Depression ended in early 1940, due to increased war production creating jobs for many. On August 14th 1945 world war two ended and all remaining soldiers who were returned had the choice to go to get an education paid for by the GI bill.