The first thing we will cover during the presentation

A brief history of the time period we were assigned. There were some major global events that occurred prior to the 1950's which really affected the world in an assortment of ways.

--> World War II had just ended leaving wide spread destruction and chaos through out the world. Recovering from such a devastating war and going back to the life prior to the war was difficult and a lot of people, scarred by their memories, could not do this.

Nuclear Warfare erupted during WWII murdering hundreds of thousands of people in the process

--> Many American soldiers, after first hand witnessing the horrors of warfare, came back home with scarred memories of what had happened. Despite winning the war, a lot of American soldiers returning home would not physically recover from the war and even more so from mental disorders

Raising the flag at Iwo Jima

--> Soldiers suffered from mental diseases that were not heard of during that time period and because of this they had a hard time getting help. Two of the mental disorders that a lot of soldiers suffered from were shell shock and post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In A Perfect Day For Bananafish, Seymour Glass can be seen to be suffering from mental disorders such as post traumatic stress disorder.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

--> The American industry expanded as a result of World War II and more emphasis was placed on technology than ever before in history

The American Industry during WWII

--> The American populations were feeling a case of national anxiety as a result of the war. 1950's literature reflected conflict of self satisfaction and cultural self doubt about the true worth of American values as well as confusion and a fear of the unknown.

Communism 

--> Images of the lasting effects of radiation poisoning circulating the United States of America increased the fears of communism and nuclear annihilation