2.1 Pre-Writing

When you think of the 1950s in America do you assume that we are more "liberated" than "they" were then? What does liberated mean? Who do you think the audience of these films are supposed to be? What prejudices or expectations do you bring to the table?



Gee golly whiz!! Yowsers! Times sure have changed. I watched the film titled, "Sex Attitudes in Adolescence" where the film follows Bill and Mary's sexual development. Bob's mother is a wdow raising her son without a father figure, whereas Mary grew up with both parents. The film follows the protogonists from the time they are infants all the way up to marriage, where it carefully outlines the each stage and what this means for the individual.
I was curious to see what points were highlighted throughout the film. There wer some interesting points throughout the film. For example. around the age of 10 Bill's mother was "prud" that he was accepted by other boys and stopped playing with girls. As the plot thickens Bill's mother finds that some "porn" in her sons room and she just tucks it back into place and ignores it. The narrator explains how this is natural for a boy and the mother ignores a lot of her sons sexual pursuits. For example, Bill's mother listen in on her son's phone conversation and hears how her son talks about girls and bragging about boasting about girls. He goes on to speak of girl who is "ok [and] can do better than her" and has "better prospects". Bill even talks about how he is going to take a girl "by a pond" and we all know for what. It's amazing how in all this he isn't viewed as a bad guy!! His mother "worries" about her son and how girls seem to divert his attention from school. However, mother does nothing about it. She lets him be. Oh yeah, and Bill was the quarterback for his
football team-how convenient.

As for Mary, welp...she's prim and proper! She goes on lots of dates with boys, however, the film portrays her in such a way where she KNOWS HER LIMITS AND STANDS BY THEM. ONe time she went out with a boy and he tried to be fresh and continue to make out with her when she no longer wanted to... being the good girl that she was she stopped him and asked to go home. I'm not saying this is a bad thing but I thought it was interesing that
this added this clip into the film. It's important that Mary brings a "good boy" back home that the parents approve of, whereas Bill can date raunchy girls and her mother can express her concern but nothing is really done. On the contrary, Mary's mother is on her case and even geos as far as asking her not to date a boy. Interesting.

All I have to say is thank GOD I don't live in the fifties!! YIKES!