The Woodstock Music and Art Festival

2411 Words5 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Quizlet history of rock and roll

Woodstock represented the youth counterculture of the late 1960’s that emerged in response to inequality of minority groups, the Vietnam War, and political divisions. The people of Woodstock Nation embraced antiauthoritarianism “in pursuit of utopian visions”, using rock and roll as the ultimate symbol to rally around. The music festival, starring some of music’s biggest names, shocked the country and left a legacy of peace, love, and nonviolence. Despite bad planning, Woodstock represented the collective values of a new generation in America.
The children of the 1960s adopted a set of values that clashed with traditional ones, rebelling against society through dress, behavior, and beliefs. They rejected American culture as too restrictive, unjust, and boring after seeing their parents working jobs with monotonous tasks. This “counterculture” became extremely evident in metropolitan areas such as the Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco and New York’s East Village.
From the youth counterculture emerged “the “New Left” - a term used by 1960’s radicals to distinguish themselves from their radical forerunners”. Children of the 1960s denounced the “liberalism that informed the policies of John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson”. Believing that success was measured in the wrong way, evident in the materialistic tendencies of society, counterculture embracers felt that personal relationships had lost their sincerity. The youth saw the public image of leaders like John F. Kennedy as a façade, feeling that leaders like him were lacking a genuine desire for social change. To the youth, racial discrimination, for example, was evidence of this as segregation and racism continued to oppress millions of people in America.
The New...

... middle of paper ...

....
• "music and the Vietnam War." The Greenhaven Encyclopedia of The Vietnam War. Jeff T. Hay. Ed. Charles Zappia. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2004. 196-198. U.S. History in Context. Web. 16 Mar. 2014.
• Frisch, Michael. “Woodstock Festival.” Encyclopedia of New York State. Syracuse University Press, 2005. 1716+. General OneFile. Web. 4 Mar. 2014
• Dudley, William. The 1960’s. San Diego: Greenhaven Press Inc., 2000. Print.
• “Nightmare in the Catskills”. New York Times. 18 Aug 1969. Web.
– http://woodstockpreservation.org/Gallery/NYT-PDF/17_NightmareInTheCatskills.pdf
• “Morning After at Bethel”. New York Times. 19 Aug 1969. Web.
– http://woodstockpreservation.org/Gallery/NYT-PDF/19_MorningAfterAtBethel.pdf
• Levering, Ralph B. “A Beautiful Festival.” The New York Times. 18 Aug 1969. Web.
– http://woodstockpreservation.org/Gallery/NYT-PDF/22_BeautifulFestival.pdf

Show More
Related

  • Woodstock: An American Icon

    907 Words  | 2 Pages

    Many times, people have very different ideas about what makes an icon. Our icons may be singers, dancers, athletes, actors or politicians. We may not even know what the criteria would be for an icon, but we know one when we see it. One of the greatest American icons in history is the 1969 Woodstock Music Festival. To say that Woodstock isn’t an icon would be like saying that the music wasn’t a dynamic character in the movie “Star Wars” or “The Phantom of the Opera”. An Icon must encompass a distinct ideology, and nothing ushered in our generation’s journey to the end of the innocence like Woodstock.

    Read More

  • Creedence Clearwater and the Vietnam War

    2825 Words  | 6 Pages

    To the persistent individual, though, there is a body of music in existence that merits regard. It is powerful music written by the youth of America, youngsters who did have a stake in the Vietnam War. There can be little question about the origins of the power which American protest music conveyed: those who wrote such music lived each day with the real knowledge that they were losing friends in, and could possibly be forced themselves to go to, Vietnam. One such group, Creedence Clearwater Revival, made its contribution to this genre near the end of the Vietnam War.

    Read More

  • The Impact of the Hippie on American Society

    2364 Words  | 5 Pages

    American society and culture experienced an awakening during the 1960s as a result of the diverse civil rights, economic, and political issues it was faced with. At the center of this revolution was the American hippie, the most peculiar and highly influential figure of the time period. Hippies were vital to the American counterculture, fueling a movement to expand awareness and stretch accepted values. The hippies’ solutions to the problems of institutionalized American society were to either participate in mass protests with their alternative lifestyles and radical beliefs or drop out of society completely.

    Read More

  • The 40 Year Anniversary of Woodstock

    1459 Words  | 3 Pages

    Woodstock became a symbol for a whole generation by the coming together of the political environment, the pop culture, and the current events of the time. The ‘baby boomers’ were searching for ways to separate themselves from their parents’ generation and see themselves as a more loving, compassionate, tolerant group of people. Woodstock came at a time of the youths desperation for authority and gave them beliefs they could live with. They wanted to revolt against the political chaos that they had been enduring during this memorable decade, and Woodstock was a symbol of this for the youth.

    Read More

  • How Did Music Influence The 1960s

    1903 Words  | 4 Pages

    The 1960’s were a time of change and a time for liberalism. The 60’s have been described by many historians by having the most amount of significant change in American history. It was an era where America shifted from optimism to disillusionment. From blind acceptance to distrust. In ten short years, America’s view of authority has drastically changed. It was a time for violent confrontation. The Vietnam War took place all throughout the 60’s, and changed American history forever. Also, there was a war that was going on within the United States border. The Civil Rights movement was in full force in the South. Both of these conformations put America’s civil loyalty to the test. Politics ruled the land in the 60’s, from the assassination of

    Read More

  • The Sixties, by Terry H. Anderson

    1617 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Sixties, by Terry H. Anderson, takes the reader on a journey through one of the most turbulent decades in American life. Beginning with the crew-cut conformity of 1950s Cold War culture and ending with the transition into the uneasy '70s, Anderson notes the rise of an idealistic generation of baby boomers, widespread social activism, and revolutionary counterculture. Anderson explores the rapidly shifting mood of the country with the optimism during the Kennedy years, the liberal advances of Johnson's "Great Society," and the growing conflict over Vietnam that nearly tore America apart. The book also navigates through different themes regarding the decade's different currents of social change; including the anti-war movement, the civil rights struggle, and the liberation movements. From the lunch counter sit-in of Greensboro, N.C. in 1960 and the rise of Martin Luther King, Jr. to the Black Power movement at the decade's end, Anderson illustrates the brutality involved in the reaction against civil rights, the radicalization of some of the movement's youth, and the eventual triumphs that would change America forever. He also discusses women's liberation and the feminist movement, as well as the students' rights, gay rights, and environmental movements.

    Read More

  • History Of Woodstock 1969

    854 Words  | 2 Pages

    In 1969 at Bethel, New York, the Woodstock Music and Art Fair was 3 day event that was all about peace, love, music, and partying. It was a historic event that changed what was known back then as the “hippie movement”. At Woodstock there were many influential artists that performed at this huge event. It was a popular festival that led the later generations to embrace the sentiment and mood of what Woodstock came to represent. People didn’t realize (until later) how historic Woodstock really was. Woodstock was actually supposed to be a simple small event that would have around a only expected to have 5,000 people attend. It surpassed all expectations by having nearly 500,000 people attend. In the end it actually become a

    Read More

  • Woodstock 1969

    1400 Words  | 3 Pages

    When the word "Woodstock" is mentioned, what do you think of? Perhaps you think of the little yellow bird from the Peanuts cartoons, or maybe you think of a small town in New York. However, you also might know that Woodstock was the largest and most famous of all rock festivals.

    Read More

  • Woodstock

    2239 Words  | 5 Pages

    C. "In the cultural-political atmosphere of 1969, Kornfeld and Land knew it was important to pitch Woodstock in a way that would appeal to their peer's sense of independence.

    Read More

  • The Counterculture

    696 Words  | 2 Pages

    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. One of the most powerful counterculture movements in the sixties was the civil rights movement.

    Read More

  • Woodstock: The Rise of the Counter Culture

    1437 Words  | 3 Pages

    Along with the peak of several movements music began to reach a point of climax. Rock specifically began to flourish in the 1960’s, while expressing the voice of the liberated generation. It is the power of such trends that overall lead to what is known as the greatest music festival of all time: Woodstock Music and Art Fair. The festival started on August 15, 1969 on Max Yasgur’s farm in Bethel, New York. Appealing to the time period, Woodstock was designed to be Three Days of Peace and Music. However, many argue that it was more than just a musical art fair of peace, but a historically significant event that shifted American culture. While some regard Woodstock as the beginning of a cultural advancement and the end of a naïve era, others view it as ridiculous hippy festival infested with illegal drug usage. Woodstock cost over $2.4 million and attracted over 450,000 people (Tiber, 1). Despite the debate of whether Woodstock produced a positive or negative effect, it is clear that a note worthy impact was made. When discussing the overall impact of Woodstock it is important to look at the influences and creative plan and the positive and negative effects produced from the festival.

    Read More

  • The Hippie Counterculture

    2095 Words  | 5 Pages

    The Hippie Movement changed the politics and the culture in America in the 1960s. When the nineteen fifties turned into the nineteen sixties, not much had changed, people were still extremely patriotic, the society of America seemed to work together, and the youth of America did not have much to worry about, except for how fast their car went or what kind of outfit they should wear to the Prom. After 1963, things started to slowly change in how America viewed its politics, culture, and social beliefs, and the group that was in charge of this change seemed to be the youth of America. The Civil Rights Movement, President Kennedy’s death, new music, the birth control pill, the growing illegal drug market, and the Vietnam War seemed to blend together to form a new counterculture in America, the hippie.

    Read More

  • Glastonbury Festival- Music Event

    1225 Words  | 3 Pages

    Rawlinson, J. (2013). Music Festival Tourism Worldwide - International - June 2013. Retrieved 02 28, 2014, from Mintel Report: http://academic.mintel.com/display/643783/

    Read More

  • The Hippie Subculture

    1428 Words  | 3 Pages

    The sixties was a decade of liberation and revolution, a time of great change and exciting exploration for the generations to come. It was a time of anti-war protests, free love, sit-ins, naked hippie chicks and mind-altering drugs. In big cities such as San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York and Paris, there was a passionate exchange of ideas, fiery protests against the Vietnam War, and a time for love, peace and equality. The coming together of like-minded people from around the world was spontaneous and unstoppable. This group of people, which included writers, musicians, thinkers and tokers, came to be known as the popular counterculture, better known as hippies. The dawning of the Age of Aquarius in the late sixties was more than just a musical orgy. It was a time of spiritual missions to fight for change and everything they believed in. Freedom, love, justice, equality and peace were at the very forefront of this movement (West, 2008). Some wore beads. Some had long hair. Some wore tie-dye and others wore turtle-neck sweaters. The Hippie generation was a wild bunch, to say the least, that opened the cookie jar of possibilities politically, sexually, spiritually and socially to forever be known as one of the most memorable social movements of all time (Hippie Generation, 2003).

    Read More

  • The Coachella Music and Arts Festival

    1893 Words  | 4 Pages

    Lee, Chris. "The Magic Of Coachella." Newsweek 159.16 (2012): 51. MAS Ultra - School Edition.

    Read More

More about The Woodstock Music and Art Festival

Open Document