The Big Change

Frederick Lewis Allen's The Big Change is a chronicle of American life in the 20th century, written during a time of exceptional optimism and wealth. This volume is based on the author's view that the United States was in a period of profound, irreversible change. Allen's central topic is the achievement, in large part, of democracy's promise. He examines how modern science and industry had brought about new sources of prosperity for average Americans by mid-century; how this unprecedented level of comfort had altered family life, social patterns, and leisure activities; how everyday product choices were becoming more complex; and how advances in communication allowed people to transcend geographic distance as never before through mass media.