The document summarizes language changes that occurred in the 1950s due to various social, political, economic, and technological factors. New words entered the lexicon related to nuclear weapons ("nukes"), space exploration ("cosmonauts"), computers ("bootstrap"), medicine ("bypasses"), and transportation ("helicopter"). Youth subcultures emerged ("Beatniks") amid social changes, and television and new foods became more common. Overall, the 1950s saw significant linguistic innovation driven by events like the Cold War and new scientific discoveries during this transformative decade.

1. Twentieth Century
contextual research –
the 1950s.
By Jasper King

2. War and it’s impact on
language change.
• A huge nuclear lexicon developed throughout the 1950s
as nuclear weaponry became a significant background
to everyone’s lives. W.H. Auden’s poem ‘the Age of
Anxiety’ certainly defines the 1950s as the ‘Nuclear’
decade.
• As a result of the development of nuclear weaponry
during the 1950s words such as ‘nukes’, ‘H-Bomb’, V
Bomber’ ‘thermonuclear’, ‘fallout’, ‘overkill’ and ‘mega
death’ were just some of the new words that entered
this new nuclear lexicon.
• Many of these Compound Words reflect the idea of
emphasising nuclear importance in withholding a
country’s power and status.

3. How Politics and Economics
affected language change.
• At the beginning of the 50s a new Communist regime had
established itself and the west had a new enemy ‘Maoism’,
(Which was a new political term). Mao contributed to the anti-
Communist fear which was already rife in the West through
Stalin’s reign of terror in the Soviet Union.
• In response to war tensions, the 50s were therefore also a
decade where new economic terms such as ‘common
market’ and ‘EEC’ entered our vocabulary to counteract the
growing political threat of Communism.
• New Economic and Political Terminology grew through the
battle of Capitalism in the West and Communism in the East.

4. New Inventions in the
1950s.
• Towards the end of the 50s as the US were preparing for
their space race against the Soviet Union people
became familiar with new aerospace Jargon. Words
such as ‘soviet sputnik’, ‘cosmonauts’, ‘moon shot’, ‘soft
landing’, ‘space programme’ and ‘UFO’ were all
associated with this new Space/Discovery lexicon that
was developing in the 50s.
• Computers were also beginning to move out of
university laboratories and into normal everyday
establishments and as a result of this new terms entered
the English vocabulary including ‘bootstrap’, ‘modem’,
‘on-line’, ‘real-time’, ‘print-out, ‘RAM’, ‘Algol’ and
‘FORTRAN’.

5. New Inventions in the
1950s continued…
• During the 1950s the Double Helix was also discovered
by Watson and Crick with other scientific discoveries
such as the Big Bang also being postulated.
• Within Medicine, surgeons started operating on the
heart. This meant that new words from the lexicon of
Medicine were beginning to be used including ‘by-
passes', 'transplants’ and ‘pacemakers’.
• Other advances in Medicine included the Salk Vaccine
which banished the mid-century scourge of Polio.
However, ‘Thalidomide’ had appeared on the scene
and Asian Flu was becoming a worldwide pandemic.

6. Social factors influence on
language change in the 1950s.
• The 1950s was an era rejecting stratified deference, with World
War 2 allowing greater social mobility amongst the classes. As
a result of this the 1950s is recognised as the teen age, the age
where young people thrust themselves into the spotlight. The
‘teddy boys’, ‘Hell’s Angels’, ‘Beatniks’ and early ‘Hippies’ all
developed in protest (sometimes violent!) against the social
and political climate of the 1950s.
• Music was a key element to the developing youth culture of
the 1950s – notably rock and roll from the likes of Elvis Presley
but other favourites included Country, Skiffle and Western.
• Record buyers were playing their albums on the new Hi-Fi’s
and Stereo Systems.

7. Social Factors and Changing
attitudes in Britain.
• The biggest development in electronic entertainment
during the 1950s was the television which became the
world’s leading medium in communication. In Britain the
turning point for televisions was when thousands of
people bought televisions to watch the coronation of
Elizabeth the 2nd in 1953.
• Technology was also beginning to dominate the British
diet. We could buy sliced bread with fish fingers
announcing the arrival of frozen prepared dishes with
fast food appearing on the high streets. From the
changing attitudes to food in America ‘doner kebabs’,
‘McDonalds’ and ‘KFC’ slowly appeared in Britain and
during and after the 1950s.

8. Transport in the 1950s and its
impact on language change.
• On the roads, small and nippy was best, the ‘bubble
car’, ‘Vespa’ and ‘Mini’ were all new makes of cars and
new words that entered our vocabulary.
• In the air the ‘helicopter’ came of age as a means of
travel and went into battle in the Korean War. The word
‘helicopter’ soon broadened and included
colloquialisms and abbreviations including ‘chopper’
and ‘whirlybird’ and shortly after this along came the
‘hovercraft’.

9. Greatest songs of the 50s!
• Bill Haley and His Comets – Rock Around the Clock
(1955)
• Dion and the Belmonts – A Teenager in Love (1959)
• Elvis Presley – Jailhouse Rock (1956)
• Jerry Lee Lewis – Great Balls of Fire (1957)
• Elvis Presley – Hound Dog (1956)
• The Five Satins – In the Still of The Night (1956)
• Elvis Presley – All Shook Up (1957)
• Elvis Presley – Don’t Be Cool (1956)

10. Greatest TV Programmes
of the 50s!
• I Love Lucy 1951-1960
• Gunsmoke 1955-1975
• Leave It To Beaver 1957-1963
• Bonanza 1959-1973
• The Twilight Zone 1959-1964
• The Jack Benny Programme 1950-1965
• The Ed Sullivan Show 1948-1971
• Have Gun – Will Travel 1957-1963

11. Greatest Films of the 50s!
• On the Waterfront 1954
• A Streetcar Named Desire 1951
• The Bridge on the River Kwai 1957
• All About Eve 1950
• Ben-Hur 1959
• The Day the Earth Stood Still 1951
• Sunset Boulevard 1950
• Some Like It Hot 1959

12. The End
• Thank you for watching!