Since the appearance of Rock and Roll in the 1950s, people have developed an aversion against it; not just what it represents, but also the way it sounds — fast, chaotic and “dangerous”. Rock and Roll in the 1950s represented an uncontrolled group of teenagers whose attitude became more private, secretive, and defensive and at times disrespectful. These changes in the teenager’s behavior were a part of an intense sociological shift that society suffered from after World War II. A time, in which many distinguished factors, one being Rock and Roll, collaborated to create a generation gap in American families that continues to prevail until today. A large psychological gap between parents and their children was created, and years later, this difference amidst the older and younger generations was termed as the “generation gap”. People, mostly parents, did not understand these intense changes, their children were going through. It seemed as if their teenagers were becoming more rebellious and defensive and listening to rock and roll was, according to them, the root cause of all this rebellion. It was not only the teen’s behavior and attitude that changed, but also factors like their fashion sense, movements and social circles started to get affected. Parents targeted the music as main cause and prohibited their children from watching certain videos and listening to some songs mostly because they believed these songs were too suggestive and would corrupt the teenage mind. Before the World War II, teenagers were forced to take life seriously. According to Medovi in his article “Bad boys: Masculinity, oppositional discourse, and American youth culture in the 1950’s” males were either expected to serve the army or find a job in order ... ... middle of paper ... ...ll has numerous groups of fans and continuous to grow non-stop, affecting millions of people. Even without rock and roll, these sociological shifts would have happened (Glenn 106). Youth began to seek out values and a culture of their own while simultaneously rejecting their parents’ values and ideologies. Every generation has had some form of music that stood out for their period, and during 1950s, Rock and Roll was in the spotlight. The music in that period was a symbol of the changes in the youth as it expanded the gap created between adults and teenagers. Teenagers, through rock and roll lyrics and artists, found the inspiration to act and behave in a rebellious and an immature way. They wanted to prove to their parents that they were independent and distinct themselves from their previous generations. Above all, however, they wanted to shake, rattle, and roll.
Rock n’ roll gave people the voice they did not have in the early years. As the genre of music became more wide spread, people actually began to speak out. Altschuler touches on the exploration of how the rock n' roll culture roughly integrated with replaced and conflicted with preceding cultural values. Many of these values were very touch topics. Besides black civil rights, sexuality were one of the most sensitive t...
Music in the 1950’s was a lot different than it is now. The things I will be showing you are the Political events, what was popular, and the influence 1950’s music had on this decade
Disrespectful behavior and skeptical concepts weren’t even plausible before the 1950s, but as previously stated, a lot was about to change. Adolescent growth wasn’t the only cause of juvenile delinquency; many factors played a factor in this development. One possible explanation is the fact that these youth were “greatly influenced from being raised by a war generation”(Historiography: Teenage Attitudes of the 1950s 11). Dealing with explosives, guns, and other things related to combat would most likely have an impact on the individual. Violence in general could possibly lead someone astray.
The reason was that they were going against what their parents would say and parents could not control their kids. Music was meant to bring people together, not make them believe that it was causing all these young adults to act up and disobey the people around them. Humans themselves choose whether they want to do something or not, it was not all based off of the music they were listening too.
Our entire lives have been shaped by the events happening around us. Along with us many factors in our day to day lives have evolved too, including musical genre. One such genre is rock. Rock is a genre for the youth, by the youth, it has evolved to stay with the times and stand up for what’s right. In this essay I will prove why rock is a good example to show how genre has been defined, maintained, constructed and negotiated through the past 60-70 years since the very first Proto Rock song came out.
Although the style of ‘Rock music’ is easily adaptable to many different sounds, it is still thoroughly identified by its definingly amplified rhythm. The sudden worldwide popularity of rock and roll resulted in an unparalleled social impact. Rock ‘n’ Roll influenced lifestyles, fashion, attitudes, and language in a way few other social developments have equaled. The social impact is so large that rock stars are worshipped worldwide. In its early years, many adults condemned the style of music, placing a stigma on its name, and forbid their children from listening and following its ways.
As World War Two came to a close, a new American culture was developing all across the United States. Families were moving away from crowded cities into spacious suburban towns to help create a better life for them during and after the baby boom of the post-war era. Teenagers were starting to become independent by listing to their own music and not wearing the same style of clothing as their parents. Aside from the progress of society that was made during this time period, many people still did not discuss controversial issues such as divorce and sexual relations between young people. While many historians regard the 1950s as a time of true conservatism at its finest, it could really be considered a time of true progression in the American way of life.
After many of World War II’s harmful effects, the 1950s served as a period of time of musical change that reflected the dynamic of society as well as the traditional norms and values. Many factors contributed to this transformation. For example, the civil rights movement heightened many racial tensions, and the music produced consequently manifested this tension in itself. Rock-n-roll and R&B music universalized music typically associated with African-Americans, and many African-American musicians gained fame; however, as with any relatively-widespread success, there were many musicians as well who missed their opportunities due to the same racial segregation. While “radical” genres such as R&B and rock-n-roll laid the foundation for music future forms of music, the standard pop, jazz, and country music adhered to traditional values, and thus continued to maintain popularity amidst phenomena such as the Elvis craze.
Post World War II there was a new generation known as the “baby boom” generation. The arrival of this new generation called for new entertainment (Rock and Roll). Music of the 1960s was the new entertainment for the baby boom generation and impacted America by: starting new trends in genres of music, opening diversity of artists, counterculture movements, and music festivals.
Rock ‘n’ roll and 20th Century Culture According to Philip Ennis, rock ‘n’ roll emerged from the convergence of social transformations which resulted from World War II (Ryan 927). Despite its pop culture origins, rock music is arguably one of the strongest cultural factors to develop in this century. Artists such as Lennon, McCartney and Dylan defined the emotions of a generation and, in the last decade, it as even been acknowledged by members of the establishment which it hoped to change as a major influence in the country. In order to understand how rock went from a sign of rebellion to a cultural icon, it is necessary to understand where it came from.
The ‘60s were the age of youth, as millions of children’s from post World War II became teenagers and rebelled against the conservative fifties. Denying civil rights to African-Americans and liberation to teenagers in previous decades and Vietnam War, created a vortexes which lead to massive rebellion against the status qua. Music of the 1960s was characteristic of the revolution that was going on during the decade. It was a time of rebellion and counter-culture in which the teenagers and college students were critical of government, business, religious institution and other various aspects of life. Era marked by civil rights movement, Vietnam War, environment of drug abuse and sexual freedom formed new music like: folk rock, soul and psychedelic rock. These genres starkly contrast the teen idol music of ‘50s pop mainstream. Writes John Covach; “World was exploding, and rock musicians were listening more closely than ever.”(Covach, 152) Such stark contrast in pop music directly relay to changing social culture in America, which further echo’s the relationship between music and culture.
In closing, the undoubtable influence of music, more specifically of Rock ‘n’ Roll on American society is responsible for a number of changes to the status quo. These range from sexual liberation and racial desegregation all culminating with other influences to create an intergenerational identity. Despite the desperate attempts of older generations to smother these influences, these changes ultimately shaped the years that followed, molding the country into what it is today. Along the way these changes as well as individual involvement in them has also eased the lives of many through empowerment and a feeling of community and purpose. Despite a lull and renewal Rock ‘n’ Roll continues to serve as an agent of influence and change in today’s youth culture and continues to burn in the heart of past generations of loyal fans.
Teenagers have for long been a constant bother to many parents, for many years. It is during this stage that a large number of individuals engage in rebellious acts and are anxious to try out almost everything they lay their hands on. It is clear from the illustrations that music does have a great effect on teenagers. Parents should therefore combine effort in instilling a sense of responsibility and good morals to their young ones since they are the future leaders of the world.
Before the big evolution of rock and roll, the United States was heavily involved in World War II. In this era, teens were expected to grow up at a very early age. Going to school was not one of the main priorities for these young adults during this time, and because of that "teens were expected to take life seriously. [Meaning,] the young men were expected to join the military or go get a job to support their family or their future families, while the young women were taught to take care of the household and prepare themselves to be a dutiful wives and to take care of their [future] children," (Cox). Even though they were expected to grow up early, “teens had very little economic power, freedom, independence, and input into [many of their own] decisions" (Cox).
In conclusion this report has helped us understand the significance of Music in America. Also, the impact it has on music we listen too. Music is very much like a big chain reaction. Rock ‘N’ Roll, much like music today, stood out and was in a way rebellious. Parents now hate Rap and we love it. People in the 70’s loved Rock ‘N’ Roll and parents hated it. This shows that maybe no matter how much older people deny it, the time gap and generation gap is not too far apart. Without Rock ‘N’ Roll the World would without a doubt be changed. Any guess to that of which way would be a good one.