2010s VS 1950s (2010s Versus Series Part I)
Dec 15, 2019 17:43:41 GMT 10
Post by Captain Nemo on Dec 15, 2019 17:43:41 GMT 10
Greetings everyone.
So, I've already mentioned this on Discord, but I've decided to do it differently after thinking it through.
This thread is the first part of a hexology of threads where I compare the 2010s, based on music, society, movies/TV/gaming, and overall aesthetic, to each of the six decades preceding it. (1950s - 2000s).
Since the 2010s is now coming to a close, I thought this would be an appropriate time to look back on the decade retrospectively in comparison to each of the six decades preceding it.
Also, I would like to tag SharksFan99 Telso al zeldafan2020 and @mamafrankie , as I am curious to hear your verdicts on this topic at hand.
Anyways, without further a do, let's begin the thread;
So, the first decade I'll be comparing the 2010s to in this series of threads is the 1950s.
For nearly half a century, nostalgia for the 1950s has easily been one of the most influential forms of nostalgia throughout both society and pop culture. Even today, as those who would've been in their 20s at any point in that decade are now past life expectancy age, it is still a heavily influential form of nostalgia in today's society. Conservatives look back on this decade as a nearly Utopian time, when children obeyed their parents, when everyone had good manners, and you could keep the doors unlock at night.
It was the first decade of youth culture, the first decade where the the concept of "teenagers" truly existed. Drive-ins, rock and roll, beatniks, etc. Television became standard in that decade, and "I Love Lucy" is still arguably the most influential sitcom of all time.
But how does this decade compare to the 2010s, a decade succeeding it by 60 years? Is pop culture and society throughout this current decade better or worse than the pop culture and society of the decade preceding it by 60 years?
Let's compare and contrast;
Music
One aspect musically that both the 1950s and 2010s share in common, especially in comparison with the five decades in between (1960s-2000s), is conformity and the overall lack of angst.
Even the youth oriented songs from the 1950s were for the most part fun bubbly songs that fit at high school dances, a criteria it heavily shares in common with the cheesy electronic dance songs of the 2010s.
The main difference in this conformity however are the ideals they are conforming to, with the 1950s conforming to more conservative ideals, and the 2010s to more liberal ones.
So in which aspects are one better than the other?
One big aspect in which the 1950s musically is far better than the 2010s is artistry. For the artists within the genres of rockabilly, rock and roll, doo wop, etc., they were working with a completely new genre that hadn't been truly established yet, and they weren't expected to follow any common rule, which allowed for the implementation of more creativity within these songs. More jazzy musicians such as Frank Sinatra and Bobby Darin released timeless masterpieces that are to this day staples at many jazz bars, and best of all, the music industry wasn't commercialized, one truly had to be talented in order to become successful in the music business.
One aspect in which the 2010s musically is better than the 1950s is having an underground music scene. Sure, an underground music scene did exist in the 1950s, but it consisted about entirely of local musicians who became popular in their community through bars and restaurants. In the 2010s, thanks to the internet, niche musicians are able to gain a following worldwide, and individuals across the planet who support these musicians are now able to connect with each other through the internet and build an online bond through their shared appreciation of that musician or music group.
So which decade do I prefer for music? If we're basing it on the mainstream alone, it's easily the 1950s, but if we're also including underground music as well, my vote slightly goes to the 2010s, just slightly.
Society
Now this specific subject regarding the 1950s I find particularly fascinating. As I already mentioned, conservatives look back on this decade as practically Utopian, when kids respected their parents, when everyone had good manners, and you could leave the doors unlocked at night. They view the 1950s as a high-point in American society, with the 1960s being the beginning of the downfall, or when American society lost its innocence and started becoming more selfish.
Liberals, contrarily, look back on this decade in a more negative light, due to anti-Communist hysteria, sexism, racism, etc.
These sentiments expressed by liberals are true, but while society was certainly more conservative in that decade, it still was certainly taking steps into a more liberal, more humanist direction. It was in 1954 when the US Supreme Court ruled against segregation in Brown VS Board of Education, and it was in the 1950s when the Civil Rights Movement went into full swing and truly began making an impact. It was in 1953 when I would argue the Sexual Revolution truly began with the sex symbol Marilyn Monroe being featured in the initial article of Playboy. It was in the 1950s when "I Love Lucy" broke both racial and social boundaries by featuring an interracial couple, as well as by featuring pregnancy on national television. The 1950s were certainly a conservative decade, but significant steps were made in that decade that led to the formation of the neoliberal society we live in today.
As for the conservatives sentiments about this decade being so ideal, it is noteworthy that those who were living the suburban American Dream in the 1950s did truly appreciate the times in which they were living in, which could help explain why the decade is commonly portrayed by the media in the positive manner that it is. But it's also worth noting that these individuals who lived this American Dream were coming off of a nightmare of the previous decades; The 1930s with the Great Depression, and the 1940s with World War II. Not only that, but most of these individuals would've grown up in an era when most households still didn't have modern plumbing, gas, or electricity, which we take for granted today. Because of these past experiences, being able to raise your family in a peaceful suburban neighborhood truly was a dream come true to these folks.
Now, as for the 2010s, some would say we are currently living in the best of times, while others would argue society is now at a lowpoint not seen in a long time.
Thanks to technology, people around the world are indeed able to live healthier, more pain-free lives. Thanks to how liberal society has gone, people are able to speak about how they feel mentally more comfortably without having to live in fear of being shunned or hurt because of these issues. This is of course, for the better.
However, these conservatives may have a point when they discuss some of the downsides of today's society. For one, we truly have become too dependent on our technology, and its getting to the point where humankind may very well end up to the point where we're all living like the people on Wall-E, and no, that's not a joke, that's a real possibility. Also, the promotion of hedonism in today's mainstream culture has indeed led to a society that has become more selfish and divisive.
However, the ideal of taking us back to the 1950s is an example of the "Nirvana fallacy", which for the sake of length of this thread I'm not going to get into, but what we should do when looking back on society in the 1950s is seek ways to implement the positive aspects while leaving out the negative aspects, to embrace the ideals of good manners, not taking anything for granted, and trying to live a moral civil life, without bringing back the racism, sexism, or anti-Communist hysteria.
Now, to answer this question at hand, society-wise the 2010s are certainly better than the 1950s, but there are still certain positive aspects of 1950s society that we should certainly learn from going forward.
Movies/TV Shows/Games
For movies, the 1950s. The 2010s does have many great films, but the 1950s has an abundance of timeless classics that in my opinion have even aged better than many movies of the two decades succeeding the 1950s, such as "Singing in the Rain", "North by Northwest", "The Seven Year Itch", "The Blob", and "Ben-Hur".
For sitcoms, the 2010s wins easily, it's not even a fair fight since TV shows were still a new concept in the 1950s. Sure, shows such as "I Love Lucy" and "Leave it to Beaver" are timeless classics, but what else is there besides that?
For cartoons, the 1950s wins easily, as animation was still in its Golden Age. Walt Disney was still alive, cartoons such as "Looney Tunes", "Popeye", and "Tom and Jerry" were still in their prime, while nowadays most cartoons just serve as source material for perverts on Deviantart.
For video games, well, they didn't exist in the 1950s, so obviously the 2010s is handed a win there.
Overall, for this category, I'm going to say the 1950s is better, mainly because of the abundance of great movies and cartoons that this decade featured.
Aesthetic
There is a lot of debate over whether anything derfines the 2010s. The best that people can come up with are hispters and social media, but the former is more secluded to a smaller, more niche group of people, while the latter is guaranteed to also define the next decade. The abundance of cookie cutter lo-fi electronic music, and gender-neutral clothing styles one could argue defines the cultural aesthetic of the 2010s.
But nevertheless, the 1950s definitely wins easily in this category. It's a decade with such a novel aesthetic that arguably even rivals the Old West. Diners, rocket-like cars, drive-in movie theaters, rock and roll, beatniks, production advertisement music, old commercials, the 1950s has such a classic identity that it just has to win this category.
Overall Conclusion
If we're a defining a decade solely by entertainment and asthetic, in my opinion the 1950s is definitely better than the 2010s.
But if we're basing it upon which decade I would rather live in, the 2010s I would chose without giving a second thought.
Truthfully, despite the flaws of modern society, we have it better today than we had in the 1950s. Despite claims of censorship, conservatives have a far bigger voice today than liberals did back then.
Are there aspects of 1950s society that we should perhaps learn from? Definitely, but we should never revert back to the racism or sexism of that time period.
What are your thoughts on this topic? Let me know down below.
So, I've already mentioned this on Discord, but I've decided to do it differently after thinking it through.
This thread is the first part of a hexology of threads where I compare the 2010s, based on music, society, movies/TV/gaming, and overall aesthetic, to each of the six decades preceding it. (1950s - 2000s).
Since the 2010s is now coming to a close, I thought this would be an appropriate time to look back on the decade retrospectively in comparison to each of the six decades preceding it.
Also, I would like to tag SharksFan99 Telso al zeldafan2020 and @mamafrankie , as I am curious to hear your verdicts on this topic at hand.
Anyways, without further a do, let's begin the thread;
So, the first decade I'll be comparing the 2010s to in this series of threads is the 1950s.
For nearly half a century, nostalgia for the 1950s has easily been one of the most influential forms of nostalgia throughout both society and pop culture. Even today, as those who would've been in their 20s at any point in that decade are now past life expectancy age, it is still a heavily influential form of nostalgia in today's society. Conservatives look back on this decade as a nearly Utopian time, when children obeyed their parents, when everyone had good manners, and you could keep the doors unlock at night.
It was the first decade of youth culture, the first decade where the the concept of "teenagers" truly existed. Drive-ins, rock and roll, beatniks, etc. Television became standard in that decade, and "I Love Lucy" is still arguably the most influential sitcom of all time.
But how does this decade compare to the 2010s, a decade succeeding it by 60 years? Is pop culture and society throughout this current decade better or worse than the pop culture and society of the decade preceding it by 60 years?
Let's compare and contrast;
Music
One aspect musically that both the 1950s and 2010s share in common, especially in comparison with the five decades in between (1960s-2000s), is conformity and the overall lack of angst.
Even the youth oriented songs from the 1950s were for the most part fun bubbly songs that fit at high school dances, a criteria it heavily shares in common with the cheesy electronic dance songs of the 2010s.
The main difference in this conformity however are the ideals they are conforming to, with the 1950s conforming to more conservative ideals, and the 2010s to more liberal ones.
So in which aspects are one better than the other?
One big aspect in which the 1950s musically is far better than the 2010s is artistry. For the artists within the genres of rockabilly, rock and roll, doo wop, etc., they were working with a completely new genre that hadn't been truly established yet, and they weren't expected to follow any common rule, which allowed for the implementation of more creativity within these songs. More jazzy musicians such as Frank Sinatra and Bobby Darin released timeless masterpieces that are to this day staples at many jazz bars, and best of all, the music industry wasn't commercialized, one truly had to be talented in order to become successful in the music business.
One aspect in which the 2010s musically is better than the 1950s is having an underground music scene. Sure, an underground music scene did exist in the 1950s, but it consisted about entirely of local musicians who became popular in their community through bars and restaurants. In the 2010s, thanks to the internet, niche musicians are able to gain a following worldwide, and individuals across the planet who support these musicians are now able to connect with each other through the internet and build an online bond through their shared appreciation of that musician or music group.
So which decade do I prefer for music? If we're basing it on the mainstream alone, it's easily the 1950s, but if we're also including underground music as well, my vote slightly goes to the 2010s, just slightly.
Society
Now this specific subject regarding the 1950s I find particularly fascinating. As I already mentioned, conservatives look back on this decade as practically Utopian, when kids respected their parents, when everyone had good manners, and you could leave the doors unlocked at night. They view the 1950s as a high-point in American society, with the 1960s being the beginning of the downfall, or when American society lost its innocence and started becoming more selfish.
Liberals, contrarily, look back on this decade in a more negative light, due to anti-Communist hysteria, sexism, racism, etc.
These sentiments expressed by liberals are true, but while society was certainly more conservative in that decade, it still was certainly taking steps into a more liberal, more humanist direction. It was in 1954 when the US Supreme Court ruled against segregation in Brown VS Board of Education, and it was in the 1950s when the Civil Rights Movement went into full swing and truly began making an impact. It was in 1953 when I would argue the Sexual Revolution truly began with the sex symbol Marilyn Monroe being featured in the initial article of Playboy. It was in the 1950s when "I Love Lucy" broke both racial and social boundaries by featuring an interracial couple, as well as by featuring pregnancy on national television. The 1950s were certainly a conservative decade, but significant steps were made in that decade that led to the formation of the neoliberal society we live in today.
As for the conservatives sentiments about this decade being so ideal, it is noteworthy that those who were living the suburban American Dream in the 1950s did truly appreciate the times in which they were living in, which could help explain why the decade is commonly portrayed by the media in the positive manner that it is. But it's also worth noting that these individuals who lived this American Dream were coming off of a nightmare of the previous decades; The 1930s with the Great Depression, and the 1940s with World War II. Not only that, but most of these individuals would've grown up in an era when most households still didn't have modern plumbing, gas, or electricity, which we take for granted today. Because of these past experiences, being able to raise your family in a peaceful suburban neighborhood truly was a dream come true to these folks.
Now, as for the 2010s, some would say we are currently living in the best of times, while others would argue society is now at a lowpoint not seen in a long time.
Thanks to technology, people around the world are indeed able to live healthier, more pain-free lives. Thanks to how liberal society has gone, people are able to speak about how they feel mentally more comfortably without having to live in fear of being shunned or hurt because of these issues. This is of course, for the better.
However, these conservatives may have a point when they discuss some of the downsides of today's society. For one, we truly have become too dependent on our technology, and its getting to the point where humankind may very well end up to the point where we're all living like the people on Wall-E, and no, that's not a joke, that's a real possibility. Also, the promotion of hedonism in today's mainstream culture has indeed led to a society that has become more selfish and divisive.
However, the ideal of taking us back to the 1950s is an example of the "Nirvana fallacy", which for the sake of length of this thread I'm not going to get into, but what we should do when looking back on society in the 1950s is seek ways to implement the positive aspects while leaving out the negative aspects, to embrace the ideals of good manners, not taking anything for granted, and trying to live a moral civil life, without bringing back the racism, sexism, or anti-Communist hysteria.
Now, to answer this question at hand, society-wise the 2010s are certainly better than the 1950s, but there are still certain positive aspects of 1950s society that we should certainly learn from going forward.
Movies/TV Shows/Games
For movies, the 1950s. The 2010s does have many great films, but the 1950s has an abundance of timeless classics that in my opinion have even aged better than many movies of the two decades succeeding the 1950s, such as "Singing in the Rain", "North by Northwest", "The Seven Year Itch", "The Blob", and "Ben-Hur".
For sitcoms, the 2010s wins easily, it's not even a fair fight since TV shows were still a new concept in the 1950s. Sure, shows such as "I Love Lucy" and "Leave it to Beaver" are timeless classics, but what else is there besides that?
For cartoons, the 1950s wins easily, as animation was still in its Golden Age. Walt Disney was still alive, cartoons such as "Looney Tunes", "Popeye", and "Tom and Jerry" were still in their prime, while nowadays most cartoons just serve as source material for perverts on Deviantart.
For video games, well, they didn't exist in the 1950s, so obviously the 2010s is handed a win there.
Overall, for this category, I'm going to say the 1950s is better, mainly because of the abundance of great movies and cartoons that this decade featured.
Aesthetic
There is a lot of debate over whether anything derfines the 2010s. The best that people can come up with are hispters and social media, but the former is more secluded to a smaller, more niche group of people, while the latter is guaranteed to also define the next decade. The abundance of cookie cutter lo-fi electronic music, and gender-neutral clothing styles one could argue defines the cultural aesthetic of the 2010s.
But nevertheless, the 1950s definitely wins easily in this category. It's a decade with such a novel aesthetic that arguably even rivals the Old West. Diners, rocket-like cars, drive-in movie theaters, rock and roll, beatniks, production advertisement music, old commercials, the 1950s has such a classic identity that it just has to win this category.
Overall Conclusion
If we're a defining a decade solely by entertainment and asthetic, in my opinion the 1950s is definitely better than the 2010s.
But if we're basing it upon which decade I would rather live in, the 2010s I would chose without giving a second thought.
Truthfully, despite the flaws of modern society, we have it better today than we had in the 1950s. Despite claims of censorship, conservatives have a far bigger voice today than liberals did back then.
Are there aspects of 1950s society that we should perhaps learn from? Definitely, but we should never revert back to the racism or sexism of that time period.
What are your thoughts on this topic? Let me know down below.
