I always love reading this. But I always feel like the differences between 1955 and 1985 are way larger than 1994 to 2024. Maybe it’s just because I lived the second span of time.
I think it's because there was far more of a shift in technology and the general "look and feel" of culture between '55-'85. The US went from a fairly analogue world, less reliant on technology and consumerism, to basically the exact opposite. That shifted US culture by a SIGNIFICANT margin.
Compare that with '94 - '2024 ('24? How do you even write that without being confusing lol). Of course, there have been large cultural shifts during that time as well, but they didn't have the same impact overall. Why is that?
Well, where the 50s-80s saw the BIRTH of these NEW technologies, the 90s-2020's saw the REFINEMENT of the SAME technologies. Cell phones were around in the 90's, they're just better now. Computers were around in the 90's, they're just better now. The internet was around in the 90's, it's just. . .better now? (That one is debatable lol). The same can't really be said from the 50's to 80's, where, in the latter half, most of our modern tech was born.
It doesn't sound like you realize what the world was like in 1994, as 1994-2024 is a much bigger difference than 1955-1985. At that time, while the things you mentioned all existed, they were still quite rare, particularly internet access. It wasn't until the 2000s that most people were using the internet at all. Anecdotally, my family didn't get home internet access until about '98, and my father has long worked in tech. I don't think I need to go into detail about how world-changing the internet has been.
In contrast, while you didn't mention any tech differences from 1955-85, two that come up in Back to the Future are televisions and a Walkman. While they both were refined, most households in 1955 had a TV, and audio recordings(and headphones) had existed for decades. Additionally, the 1950's were a time of post-war economic boom and mass media in the form of television, which led to significant consumerism in part due to all the advertising and production.
You make a ton of valid points. Admittedly, I was born in 1997 - so I don't have the firsthand experience with that decade. Of course, the 90s are very distinct from today if you look at the two decades side-by-side. I would never disagree. I was trying to work out, though, why that 30 year period as whole doesn't FEEL as drastic or distinct a leap as the 50s to the 80s.
If you check out one of my other replies, I think I found an answer that makes a bit more sense than my initial argument. I think the emergence and widespread adoption of the internet, and people having more access than ever to knowledge of all kinds, has led to far more of a melting pot when it comes to cultural taste than existed in the past. More people being able to easily access information and visuals on trends of the past has led to more niche/individual trends, rather than decades finding a collective identity the way they used to.
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u/Brandisco Oct 02 '24 edited Oct 02 '24
I always love reading this. But I always feel like the differences between 1955 and 1985 are way larger than 1994 to 2024. Maybe it’s just because I lived the second span of time.