Final answer:
Comparing past and present, notable differences in societal aspects like race relations, societal pressures, family views, technology’s influence, and generational behaviors reflect both progress and ongoing challenges. Historical events reveal deep societal divides that echo into today’s less overt, but still prevalent, issues. Technological advancements, especially reliance on smartphones, represent drastic changes in daily life and interpersonal relationships.
Step-by-step explanation:
Understanding how people acted in different times and how they differ from our current generation requires a look at various societal aspects like race relations, family views, technology influence, and generational behaviors. In the early twentieth century, race relations were marked by segregation and systemic racism. While progress has been made, today's society still contends with issues of racial inequality and discrimination, albeit often in less overt forms.
Societal pressures that exist today, like the pursuit of education, career success, and social media presence, share similarities with past pressures such as securing a job or maintaining social propriety, but they manifest in new ways due to technological advancements and changing social norms. For example, the societal view on nontraditional family structures has become more accepting, yet there is still a range of opinions throughout the United States, hinting at potential shifts in perspective over the next twenty years.
The rise of the Second Ku Klux Klan and trials like Scopes and Sacco and Vanzetti in the 1920s revealed deep societal divides, which, while not as extreme, can still be seen today in varying attitudes towards immigration and science. The 'Me Generation' of Baby Boomers showed characteristics such as individualism that have shaped the sociocultural environment to date. Moreover, the transformation in technology, especially the dependence on smartphones, has significantly influenced daily routines and interpersonal relationships in recent years.
In essence, each generation exhibits unique traits and faces distinct societal pressures, but threads of continuity link past and present habits, attitudes, and societal issues. This interconnectedness provides insight into how historical contexts shape contemporary lives and how future generations might view our current era.