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1. Decades

The Fifties. British and American people usually think of the 1950s as time when people obeyed the law and respected authority. The British economy had been severely damaged by World War II, and during the 1950s it improved only gradually. Many of the countries that made up the British Empire became independent during the 1950s. British people realize that their country was no longer a world power. In the 1950s teenagers began to have a separate culture from their parents. They listened to a new type of music, rock' n' roll, played by people such as Bill Haley and Elvis Presley, which quickly became popular with young people around the world. The US became much more wealthy.

The Sixties. The UK economy improved, and Britain became a very fashionable place, especially Liverpool, the home of the Beatles, and London, .where the most fashionable clothes were designed. When people in the US and UK think of the 1960s, they think of a time of great social change, when young people in many western countries began developing a new set of values and opinions. They began to take part in political protests against the Vietnam war, and nuclear weapons. In 1963 people of the US were deeply shocked when President Kennedy was shot dead. In 1969 the American astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on the Moon.

The Seventies. People in the US and UK generally think of the seventies as a time of bad style. People wore a platform shoes (shoes with ^very thick soles) and clothes made of man-made (not natural) materials. The popular music was disco music. In the mid-seventies older people were shocked by a new type of youth culture and music, punk.

The Eighties. During the 1980s the US and UK were ruled by the right wing governments of Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher, which encouraged people to be successful in business, and reduced the amount of help that the state gave to poor people. The 1980s was also the time when President M. Gorbachev brought great political change to the Soviet Union and greatly improved its relationship with the countries of the West. The Berlin Wall came down in 1989.

The nineties. Bill Clinton became US President in 1993, and Tony Blair became prime minister of the UK in 1997. Diana, Princess of Wales, who died in 1997, was extremely popular because she was thought to represent nineties values. Popular music included grunde in the early 1990s, and Britpop in the late 1990s. Dance music was popular through the whole of the nineties.

Colours and their associations in the us and uk

In all cultures, different colours have different associations. Here are the associations that different colours have for British and American people.

Red has different meanings. Sometimes it means danger. People imag­ine that the devil is red. But red heart shapes and red roses are used to represent romantic love. In politics, red is used to represent communism and socialism. In the UK the Labour Party is represented by a red rose. It is traditional to welcome a king, queen, or president to a place by hav­ing a red carpet for them to walk on. «Paint the town red» means to go out at night to bars, clubs and have a very good time. «Red in the face» means to be very embarrassed.

British and American people think of green as the colour that repre­sents nature. Green is the national colour of Ireland, also known as the Emerald Isle because of its many green fields. Green also means «con­nected with the environment». Green issues are ideas about the environ­ment that are discussed in parliament, newspapers, etc. Green is used to describe someone who is young and has no experience in a job. «Green with envy» means to be very jealous of someone who has something that you want.

In the US and UK it is very common for clothes to be blue. Navy blue (very dark blue) is a common colour for uniforms of sailors, and the police. The formal clothes for work are navy blue suits. In the UK, blue is the colour for the Conservative Party. In the US, the expression «blue collar» is used to talk about social class. A blue collar worker works in a factory, repairs machines, etc. «Blue with cold» means to be very cold. «Blue-blooded» is about people who belong to royal families.

Purple is associated with kings and queens. In the past these were the only people who were allowed to wear purple clothes. «Purple in the Йее» means to be extremely angry.

In the US and UK, grey is connected with dull and boring things. It is, however, also a common colour for both men and women's clothes.

“A grey day» means an unpleasant one because the sky is full of grey clouds.

In the US and UK, black is a very popular colour for clothes of all types, and especially formal clothes. Black clothes are often used for social occasions in the evening, when women sometimes, wear a little black dress (a simple, short, black dress with no sleeves) and men sometimes wear a black dinner jacket. Black is also associated with death and evil. Black magic is believed to be magic that uses the power of the devil for evil purposes. «The black sheep» of a family is a member of a family who chooses to live their life in a way that is different from the other members.

Traditionally, women in the US and UK wear long white dresses when they get married. White is associated with moral goodness. People imagine that the Christian god and his angels wear white clothes. «White as a sheet» means to be pale about a person who is ill or very frightened. In the US, the expression «white-collar» is used to talk about social class. A white-collar worker works in an office, bank, etc.