From the earliest days of America, social change has been thoroughly linked with public voice and identity. Social movements provided those who had viewed themselves as isolated to join with others to declare their identity. These movements, however, tended to have an integral moralistic value, rather than political rhetoric. During the 1960s, American society experienced one of the most influential social changes in the nation’s history. The social change of the 1960s was a movement away from the conservative fifties and towards revolutionary ways of thinking, defined by a discovery of identity and intense agitation for public voice. Changes that occurred in the sixties are still evolving today and influencing modern living.
The musical counterculture of the 1960s challenged the traditional cultural values and American and group identities that came from the Jazz era. The new age of Rock was seen as psychedelic as it broke free from previous restraints and “social norms.” The youth were the majority of this movement and they desired to break away from the suburbia lifestyle their parents had set up for them. The musical counterculture shattered the American value of music being separate amongst different races. Thus, the musical revolution of the 1960s challenged traditional American values, which created significant opposition.
The Nineteen Sixties were a time of grand turmoil in the United States. The nation almost came apart at the seams many times throughout the decade. The government was involved in a plethora of things at the time that the general population did not agree with. The most important was the Vietnam War. The Vietnam War was the most publicly protested war in the history of the country. There were many new forms of protesting used at this time. The most mainstream and effective way of protest was through song. The lyrics of the songs of the sixties were laced with anti-government and anti-war messages that were sometimes hidden and sometimes direct. The generation responsible for the new music was the Baby Boomers. These were the children of conservative war veterans that grew up in suburbia listening to their parents’ crooner music. This generation was destined to rebel. Baby boomers started many new technologies, philosophies, and styles that are still in use today. The main group of boomers that led the rebellion were the hippies. The hippies were a group of mostly low to middle class Americans who destroyed all of the previous values of their parents and lived in peace and love while practicing other things that would have appalled their parents such as open sexuality, recreational drug use, and political activism. The hippies had a very distinct music style which evolved from jazz, soul, blues, and country that is now known as Rock. In the sixties many large events were the birth place of protest like the sit ins and teach ins all over the country. The most influential spawning grounds for protest were the numerous rock festivals held during the decade. All of the music festivals were the place to go to see the hipp...
The 1970s was a tumultuous time in the United States. In some ways, the decade was a continuation of the 1960s. Women, African Americans, Native Americans, gays and lesbians and other marginalized people continued to fight for their freedom, while many other Americans joined in the demonstration against the ongoing war in Vietnam. Due to these movements, the 1970s saw changes in its national identity, including modifications in social values. These social changes showed up in the fashion industry as well, delivering new outlooks in the arenas of both men’s and women’s clothing.
Counterculture
For the first time in American history, a large population of people of all ages, classes, and races came together to challenge the traditional institutions, traditional values in society, and "the establishment" in general. Youth, women, ethnic minorities, environmentalists, migrant workers and others caused the emergence of the counter culture. This cultural movement from 1960 to 1973 was caused by many factors. This era was one that was filled with many important events that shaped the way that Americans viewed life. Those who were unhappy with what was going on around them and took part in this social phenomenon reflected and demonstrated their attitudes, values, and ideals in many ways.
“Old hippies don't die, they just lie low until the laughter stops and their time comes round again.”(Stolley 238) Counterculture by definition is a culture, especially of young people, with values or lifestyles in opposition to those of the established culture. Counterculture way of life in the 1960s featured the ideas of, peace, love, music, drug use, freedom of sexuality, and much more, these ideas were mostly associated with the hippies. Hippies were mostly rebellious young people who wanted a change in there life style. Hippies experimented with many new ideas for the sixties. The Hippie-movement started in San Francisco in the 1960’s. It was an alternative way of life. The Hippie-movement was an uprising, display against war, and it was spreading the message of love and peace. Many Americans disagreed with the Hippy way of life mostly because of there beliefs of free sex, drugs, their music and their clothes. The hippy-revolution stunned many people
Throughout the 1960’s, the counterculture era emerged from American society. Drug culture, hippies, sexual revolution, literature, and music all greatly contributed to influencing the attitudes and ideals of the late twentieth century. Each aspect of the counterculture influenced people’s ideologies and lifestyles. They developed a new sense of creativity which was never found in previous years in the United States. People experimented beyond their comfort levels and developed a ideals which contradicted the restricting ones prior to the movement. Counterculture left an everlasting impact. The emphasis on hippies and drugs and the other aspects of the society during the 60's has diminished, but towards the end of that century, long hair and colorful clothes became a trend, and the overuse of drugs led to overdose and addictions, including many Vietnam War veterans.
During the sixties Americans saw the rise of the counterculture. The counterculture, which was a group of movements focused on achieving personal and cultural liberation, was embraced by the decade’s young Americans. Because many Americans were members of the different movements in the counterculture, the counterculture influenced American society. As a result of the achievements the counterculture movements made, the United States in the 1960s became a more open, more tolerant, and freer country.
Music’s Correlation with Culture in the 1960s
Music throughout time has not only reflected the feeling of the musician but rather the feelings of a group of people at any one time It is important when learning about a period of time to look at the music of the period because it most likely shows the mood of the people and current events of the country. One time period specifically music greatly reflected the political and social culture of the time is the United States of America in the 1960s. One artist during this time was Bob Dylan. His most widely known song was called, “The Times They Are A-Changin”.
“Come senators, congressmen
Rebellion and angst are almost a right of passage for teenagers. Countless movies, games, TV shows have had the rebellious teenage trope. However, this is only a very recent invention in pop-culture. This trend began to pop up during the 1950-60s, where teenage culture had started to have a real impact on society. Younger and younger generations were becoming more influential into society, entertainment, and politics. The counterculture movements have been traced back to the entertainment business in the 1950s. Books and movies spread the idea of anticonformity, which led to the rebellion of the era. One of the best, and earliest, examples of rebellion is from the book The Catcher In The Rye by J.D. Salinger. The main character of the book