Valley of the Dolls

The events Susann writes about in Valley of the Dolls occur in a brief, unique, transitional period. The narrative begins in 1945 at the conclusion of World War II. Many servicemen and women returned to the US mainland and were dramatically impacted by the war. As Lyon explains in the novel, the former Lyon died in Europe, and he no longer finds it fulfilling to pursue a driven, legal career.

Things changed in America as well. With a major portion of able-bodied men serving in the military, women had been summoned into the workforce to undergird wartime industry and business. Women undertook responsibilities and learned trades that previously had been exclusively the domain of men. As men returned to workplaces after the war, women lost the income, independence, and opportunities they briefly possessed. This is the cultural milieu at the beginning of the narrative, when three eager young women find themselves in New York, each with an ideal notion of happiness she is determined to pursue.

Almost 20 years after the end of the war, about the time the narrative concludes, another nascent movement emerged: the drive for women’s equality. The start of second-wave feminism is frequently pinpointed to 1963, when American author Betty Friedan published her seminal reflections on the limitations American society places upon women, The Feminine Mystique.