--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The 1950s is a key decade in the 20th…" description: "\"“The 1950s is a key decade in the 20th Century. Each year has a distinctive flavour.”\" — Sara Sheridan" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a4/sara-sheridan-1032_1950s_the-1950s-is-a-key-decade-in-the-20th-ce_3168992.png" --- # The 1950s is a key decade in the 20th Century. Each year… ![“The 1950s is a key decade in the 20th Century. Each year has a distinctive flavour.” quote by Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a4/sara-sheridan-1032_1950s_the-1950s-is-a-key-decade-in-the-20th-ce_3168992.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a4/sara-sheridan-1032_1950s_the-1950s-is-a-key-decade-in-the-20th-ce_3168992.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a4/sara-sheridan-1032_1950s_the-1950s-is-a-key-decade-in-the-20th-ce_3168992.png) > ““The 1950s is a key decade in the 20th Century. Each year has a distinctive flavour.”” [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The 1950s each had a unique cultural and historical character that distinguishes each year within the decade. **In simple terms:** Each year of the 1950s felt distinct. Key Takeaway Notice and appreciate yearly nuances. Themes history culture decades Mood reflective analytical Type historical educational When to use this quote - studying history - teaching - writing - media analysis Key Concepts sociology temporal identity Questions to Reflect On - How does recognizing yearly differences change your view of the 1950s? - What factors created distinct yearly flavors? A Different Perspective A single decade may mask deeper sub‑period variations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [1950s](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/zz-1950s-413/) [1950S Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/1950s-key-5760402/) [20th century](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/20th-century/) [50s](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/zz-50s-964/) [Decade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decade/) [Decade 20Th](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decade-20th-5760404/) [Era](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/era/) [Fifties](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fifties/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Key Decade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/key-decade-5760403/) ## Related quotes > [“The fifties is a decade when every year is markedly different from the one before and after. That doesn't happen every decade. 1983 isn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/the-fifties-is-a-decade-when-every-year-is-markedly-different-from/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“I'm drawn to the 1950s for lots of reasons - everything from the fashion to the increasing sense of freedom and modernity that builds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/i-m-drawn-to-the-1950s-for-lots-of-reasons-everything-from-the/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [Writing about the 1950s has given me tremendous respect for my mother's generation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/writing-about-the-1950s-has-given-me-tremendous-respect-for-my-mother/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“He’s more a shape in a drape than a hep cat”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/he-s-more-a-shape-in-a-drape-than-a-hep-cat/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“Nothing Stays Secret Forever”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-r-hubbard/nothing-stays-secret-forever/) [Jennifer R. Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-r-hubbard/) > [“In the doorway of Fortnum & Mason a young couple were kissing, oblivious to the world. The neon signs mounted on the buildings cast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/in-the-doorway-of-fortnum-mason-a-young-couple-were-kissing-oblivious/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [One of the great things about the Fifties is there are so many secrets - people who've come back from the war and done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/one-of-the-great-things-about-the-fifties-is-there-are-so-many/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [The world loves the 1950s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/the-world-loves-the-1950s/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [The cosmetic industry really took off in the 1950s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/the-cosmetic-industry-really-took-off-in-the-1950s/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“In the 1950s at least less was expected of women. Now we're supposed to build a career, build a home, be the supermum that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/in-the-1950s-at-least-less-was-expected-of-women-now-we-re-supposed/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [I think I'll be flavor of the month when I'm in my fifties.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosamund-pike/i-think-i-ll-be-flavor-of-the-month-when-i-m-in-my-fifties/) [Rosamund Pike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosamund-pike/) > [The art of these Fifties movies was in sustaining forever the moment before sex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/the-art-of-these-fifties-movies-was-in-sustaining-forever-the-moment/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [It's funny: I don't feel like I have any particular privileged feeling for the Fifties.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-haynes/it-s-funny-i-don-t-feel-like-i-have-any-particular-privileged-feeling/) [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) > [When I was at Cambridge in the early fifties, there was a school nearby for training Army officers in Russian, and some imaginative genius…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-gottlieb/when-i-was-at-cambridge-in-the-early-fifties-there-was-a-school/) [Robert Gottlieb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-gottlieb/) > [Lana Turner taught me how to kiss on the set of the movie 'Diane' in the early Fifties.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-moore/lana-turner-taught-me-how-to-kiss-on-the-set-of-the-movie-diane-in/) [Roger Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-moore/) ## More by Sara Sheridan > [Everyone assumes writers spend their time lounging around, writing and occasionally striking a pose whilst having a think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/everyone-assumes-writers-spend-their-time-lounging-around-writing-and/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“Kissing her is like drinking salted water, he thinks. His thirst only increases.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/kissing-her-is-like-drinking-salted-water-he-thinks-his-thirst-only/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [Those who have not been stung will hardly fear a bee the same as those who have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/those-who-have-not-been-stung-will-hardly-fear-a-bee-the-same-as/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“We are in the middle of the biggest revolution in reading and writing since the advent of the Gutenberg press.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/we-are-in-the-middle-of-the-biggest-revolution-in-reading-and-writing/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [The sky was a sparkling succession of black diamonds on black velvet made crystal clear by the blackout.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/the-sky-was-a-sparkling-succession-of-black-diamonds-on-black-velvet/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“The bonds between a family are strange indeed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/the-bonds-between-a-family-are-strange-indeed/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [History is full of blank spaces, but good stories, invariably, are not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/history-is-full-of-blank-spaces-but-good-stories-invariably-are-not/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“The mass communications that could enable our politics for good have instead turned it into a bland conglomeration of stinted opinion cloaked in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/the-mass-communications-that-could-enable-our-politics-for-good-have/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [I've found myself moved by letters and diaries in archives as well as trashy, summer blockbusters. It's possible to make a connection with any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/i-ve-found-myself-moved-by-letters-and-diaries-in-archives-as-well-as/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [Grabbing readers by the imagination is a writer's job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/grabbing-readers-by-the-imagination-is-a-writer-s-job/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [As an historical novelist - there are few jobs more retrospective. I dumped science at an early age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/as-an-historical-novelist-there-are-few-jobs-more-retrospective-i/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“Crime writers, I've noticed, can be jumpy. They live in a world where there are murderers on the loose and they haven't been caught…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/crime-writers-i-ve-noticed-can-be-jumpy-they-live-in-a-world-where/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“The writing talent of Edinburgh is textured - we have poets, novelists, non-fiction writers, dramatists and more.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/the-writing-talent-of-edinburgh-is-textured-we-have-poets-novelists/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“Communism,” I observed, “is a pile of wank.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/communism-i-observed-is-a-pile-of-wank/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [A word out of place or an interesting choice of vocabulary can spawn a whole character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/a-word-out-of-place-or-an-interesting-choice-of-vocabulary-can-spawn/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) [Explore all 305 Sara Sheridan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) ## More 1950s quotes > [Unless you're of a certain age, you may not know my name, but you can Google it - I was a pretty big movie…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tab-hunter/unless-you-re-of-a-certain-age-you-may-not-know-my-name-but-you-can/) [Tab Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tab-hunter/) > [“The 1950s witnessed especially rapid expansion of electronic and electrical firms, of tobacco, soft drink, and food-processing companies, and of the chemical, plastics, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-t-patterson/the-1950s-witnessed-especially-rapid-expansion-of-electronic-and/) [James T. Patterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-t-patterson/) > [In the late 1950s a major topic under discussion was whether Canada should acquire nuclear weapons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-charles-polanyi/in-the-late-1950s-a-major-topic-under-discussion-was-whether-canada/) [John Charles Polanyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-charles-polanyi/) > [In the early 1950s, during the near avalanche of discoveries, rediscoveries, and redefinitions of subcellular components made possible by electron microscopy, those prospecting in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-emil-palade/in-the-early-1950s-during-the-near-avalanche-of-discoveries/) [George Emil Palade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-emil-palade/) > [What we're most aware of in 'Eight-Legged Freaks' is how similar it is to other movies, a recombinant mutated species itself, the product of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elvis-mitchell/what-we-re-most-aware-of-in-eight-legged-freaks-is-how-similar-it-is/) [Elvis Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elvis-mitchell/) > [I am a product of the 1950s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debra-jo-rupp/i-am-a-product-of-the-1950s/) [Debra Jo Rupp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debra-jo-rupp/) > [We had a very upwardly mobile economy, and that peaked around the 1950s when the typical middle-class American family consisted of a father with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-schiff/we-had-a-very-upwardly-mobile-economy-and-that-peaked-around-the/) [Peter Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-schiff/) > [“Nixon had sought the treatment of a psychiatrist throughout the 1950s.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-colapietro-roger-stone/nixon-had-sought-the-treatment-of-a-psychiatrist-throughout-the-1950s/) [Mike Colapietro Roger Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-colapietro-roger-stone/) > [“Disneyland was one perfect answer. It provided, an almost sacred space where it is permissible and safe to let one's guard down, take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-le-mon/disneyland-was-one-perfect-answer-it-provided-an-almost-sacred-space/) [Leslie Le Mon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-le-mon/) > [“When they reached their ship, Ed gazed out at the bay. It was black. The sky was black, but the bay was even blacker.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clark-zlotchew/when-they-reached-their-ship-ed-gazed-out-at-the-bay-it-was-black-the/) [Clark Zlotchew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clark-zlotchew/) > [“In the 1950s at least less was expected of women. Now we're supposed to build a career, build a home, be the supermum that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/in-the-1950s-at-least-less-was-expected-of-women-now-we-re-supposed/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [The whole 1950s notion was find the right girl, get married, move to the suburbs and then hang out with the guys while she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-hefner/the-whole-1950s-notion-was-find-the-right-girl-get-married-move-to/) [Hugh Hefner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-hefner/) > [I started with very tonal 19th-century music because I wanted to be a violinist as a child. So this was my first music, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krzysztof-penderecki/i-started-with-very-tonal-19th-century-music-because-i-wanted-to-be-a/) [Krzysztof Penderecki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krzysztof-penderecki/) > [“The country is like a great sponge—it finally absorbs you. Eventually you will get malaria or you will get dysentery and whatever you do,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/the-country-is-like-a-great-sponge-it-finally-absorbs-you-eventually/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) > [“Don't make a career out of underestimating me." — Claire de Haven”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-ellroy/don-t-make-a-career-out-of-underestimating-me-claire-de-haven/) [James Ellroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-ellroy/) [Browse all 123 1950s quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/zz-1950s-413/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The 1950s is a key decade in the 20th Century. 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