Deliberate Speed - The Origins of a Cultural Style in the American 1950s, with a New Preface

W. T. Lhamon 's "Deliberate Speed" is a cultural history of the 1950s in the United States that directly confronts the typical view of this decade as an arid wasteland. By surveying the artistic terrain of the period - examining works by figures as varied as Miles Davis, Ralph Ellison, Robert Frank, Allen Ginsberg, Little Richard, Charlie Parker, Jackson Pollock, Thomas Pynchon, and Ludwig Wittgenstein - Lhamon demonstates how many of the distinctive elements that so many attribute to the revolutionary period of the 1960s had their roots in the fertile soil of the 1950s. Taking his title from Chief Justice Earl Warren's desegregation decree of 1955, Lhamon shows how this phrase, "deliberate speed," resonates throughout the culture of the entire decade. The 1950s was a period of transition - a time when the United States began its shift from an industrial society to a postindustrial society, and the era when the first barriers between African-American culture and white culture began to come down. "Deliberate Speed" is the story of a nation and a culture making the rapid transition to the increasingly complex world that we inhabit today.

About the author

W. T. Lhamon, Jr., is Emeritus Professor of English at Florida State University and Lecturer in American Studies at Smith College.

Summary

Examining works by figures as varied as Miles Davis, Ralph Ellison, Robert Frank, Allen Ginsberg, Little Richard, Charlie Parker, Jackson Pollock, Thomas Pynchon, and Ludwig Wittgenstein—Lhamon demonstrates how many of the distinctive elements attributed to the revolutionary period of the 1960s had their roots in the fertile soil of the 1950s.

Product details

• Authors: W T Lhamon, W. T. Lhamon, Lhamon W. T.
• Publisher: University Presses
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 31.05.2002
• EAN: 9780674008731
• ISBN: 978-0-674-00873-1
• Dimensions: 152 mm x 229 mm x 20 mm
• Weight: 445 g
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > General, dictionaries; Non-fiction book > History > Miscellaneous; Social sciences, law, business > Sociology > General, dictionaries; USA, 20. Jahrhundert (1900 bis 1999 n. Chr.), Vereinigte Staaten von Amerika, USA, Amerikanische Geschichte, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Popular Culture, Postwar 20th century history, from c 1945 to c 2000, Cultural Studies, HISTORY / Social History, HISTORY / United States / 20th Century, History - U.S., SOCIAL SCIENCE / Anthropology / Cultural & Social, Later 20th century c 1950 to c 1999, United States of America, USA, c 1950 to c 1959, History of the Americas, C 1945 To C 1960