2 The Aeroplane, The Automobile, And The G.I. Generation
2 The Aeroplane, The Automobile, And The G.I. Generation
David Barnett
2.1 Introduction
Keywords
- G.I. Generation – The generation of Americans defined by service in WWII, born in the early 1900s-1920s.
- Airmindedness – The movement in America and Europe of the early 20th century, characterised by a fascination and excitement with the airplane and air travel.
- Fordism – The philosophy of modern manufacturing, characterized by standardized parts, unskilled workers, and the moving assembly line.
- Moving Assembly Line – A method of manufacturing wherein the work piece is transported from station to station, with workers at each station installing a standardized part or performing a single standardized task on each piece as it comes to them.
Learning Objectives
- By the end of this chapter, students should be able to:
- Describe the evolution, and mass adoption of the automobile in the early 20th century.
- Describe the invention, evolution, and mass adoption of air travel in the early 20th century.
- Articulate the social impacts of the personal freedom of movement provided by the automobile.
- Articulate the social impacts of early air travel and the “airmindedness” movement.
2.2 The Automobile and Airplane
Key Takeaway
The automobile and the airplane allow us to move freely, allow businesses to transport their goods and services, shape our infrastructure and culture, and bring our world closer together.
2.2.1 Automobile
We’re all familiar with the automobile today. Paved roads and highways crisscross our towns, states, and country. Service stations, mechanics, rest stops, and motels dot the landscape all along these arteries of transport and commerce. For many of us, our daily lives of work, school, and recreation depend on the automobile to get us around. But it wasn’t always this way: the car culture we live in was the result of a revolution in transportation that hit the United States during the early 20th century, just in time to transform the lives of the young G.I. Generation.
2.2.2 Airplane
Similarly, air travel is now woven ubiquitously into our modern world. Airports across the world are bustling ports of travel and commerce, sending goods and travelers around the world in only hours. For those with a few hundred dollars to spare, the furthest corners of the world are only a day away. But again, things weren’t always this way: while the G.I. Generation was coming of age in the 1910s to 1930s, commercial air travel and cargo delivery services were in their infancy. Trans-oceanic flights went from an impossible dream in the teens, to a daring feat of the 1920s, to regular service of mail delivery in the 1930s, to a cornerstone of military strategy in World War II. This evolution continued to their present role as indispensable tools of personal, commercial, and military transport across the world.
2.3 Evolution From the Wright Flyer and Horseless Carriage
Key Takeaway
While the automobile grew from a novelty in the late 19th century to