1946 (Essay)

1946

The year 1946 was quite eventful and consisted of numerous marks in history. Within this year, the Baby Boom, as well as the first US rocket to leave Earth's atmosphere in a private manned spaceflight occurred. Also, the American Dream in this time period is both similar and different from the American Dream portrayed in The Great Gatsby.

The definition of the Baby Boom was a temporary marked increase in the birth rate, which in this case, is the one following World War II. The baby boom generation is the large group of about 80 million people that were born in the United States from 1946 to 1964. After World War II ended, young men (war veterans) returned to the United States, Canada, and Australia. Once reunited with their loved ones, they decided to start families. This soon became a problem, and we are still affected by it today. For the numbers of babies being born, a lot more jobs were going to be needed, as well as government services. The demand for health care and social security are greatly increasing as we speak. Since 2010, the number of Americans over 65 have reached about 40 million, and estimated to be 72 million by 2030.

On March 22nd of the year 1946, history was made. We had built a rocket, the V-2, and it successfully left the Earth's atmosphere. After a couple months of building this fine aircraft and having it successfully launch, the United States Army started to build some of their own. Two V-2's were programmed to take on the task that the first V-2 had completed. On October 24th, one of the two had launched and successfully made it 65 miles above our planet.

In the year of 1946, the American Dream wasn't much different as the one portrayed in The Great Gatsby. In The Great Gatsby, the American Dream was portrayed in terms of good health, hard-working, wealth, and romance, or love. In 1946, the Baby Boom strongly represented the American Dream in its time period. The ideal dream was to have a happy, successful family. The Baby Boom portrays this idea since it was the act of getting married and having children, as well as being financially well and happy. Cars also played an important part of the American Dream at the time. If one had a car, it showed that he was wealthy and if he had a family, he was 'the man'. The American Dream in Gatsby mainly revolves around the fame and fortune and falling in love. The American Dream in 1946 moreover revolved around admiring America- a land of bounty, beauty, and unlimited promise.