1950s videos

The readings in the “textbook” cover the age of television and some of the popular shows. You will be watching a bit of one of those shows.
1. Watch an episode of Leave it to Beaver – actually, 10 minutes should suffice, so you really only have to watch about 10 minutes. That should give you a decent sense of the show and able to respond to the questions. I have included an episode here. There are also others available on this site as well, I believe. You are free to watch any episode you desire.
There are two (LitB) episodes here, from two different sites in case one has a problem. You only have to watch one.
(I can’t seem to remove these videos that aren’t working. Don’t you only have to watch the ones that do work)
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x4of5jo
Questions:
How is the woman portrayed as a woman, wife, mother?
How is the man portrayed as a man, husband, father?
How are the kids portrayed?
How does this compare to sitcoms today? Or other modern-day comparison if you don’t watch tv.
2. ALSO, you need to watch the following video on housing and segregation. Then respond the questions that follow.
As you know from the reading, many Americans moved to the suburbs in the 1950s as the ideal place to raise a family. This move to the suburbs though was primarily only for white families, and was a phenomenon known as “white flight.” White families moved to the suburbs, which left cities with lower income groups, single parents, elderly people, and minorities. It left a lower tax base in the cities so there was now less money to fund eduction, upkeep in parks, police, fire and other services. Cities began to fall into disrepair and feel less safe. This video covers a portion of why the suburbs in the 1950s and beyond were primarily white and some of the consequences of the policies that created that world.
Segregated By Design
(Links to an external site.)
from Silkworm
(Links to an external site.)
on Vimeo
(Links to an external site.)
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What’s the most surprising piece of information in the video? Is the information in the video new information to you?
Do you see elements of this information in society around you, or does it have relevance in the present? (Recent protests??)

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