The 1950s was a golden age in the United States.  WWII was over, business was booming, everyone had a house, a car, and a white picket fence. There were, however, sources of discontent brewing beneath the surface, most notably civil rights, women’s rights, and youth rebellion.

• Read How to Be a Good Housewife. It’s probably not a real document, but the ideas in it are 100% accurate is describing “The Cult of Domesticity” – the role assigned to women in the 1950s.

Answer the following:

1. How would you summarize the list and describe the Cult of Domesticity?
2. Why would the United States want to put such a straitjacket on women in the 1950s? (Hint: what were women able to do during WWII?What were women’s rights in the Soviet Union like? How did the US see itself in relation to the Soviet Union? – the answer to these three questions will point you toward the main point)