FREE ESSAY ON COUNTERCULTURES OF THE 60'S

COUNTERCULTURES OF THE 60'S

In the turmoil of the 60's, America was at war with Vietnam. But
more evident was the movement among the young people taking part
in the protests and displays. Many people were against this was,
especially the youth, an unfair was the was seeing many of our youth
being killed and drafted in America. The mass exhibitions world wide
against the Vietnam war saw millions of young people become united.
Counterculture: Groups or movements existing within an
modern society and in any country which find themselves in
opposition to governing and accepted mainstream ideas, values and
the approved and sanctioned forms of self expression. They were
against mainstream political thinking, emotions, and styles.
In the 60's, the first of the baby boomers became teenagers.
Since they grew up during the cold war, many of these young people
felt as if they were living on the edge of destruction. With the threat of
nuclear war , everything was blamed on the elders of this generation
for creating the world which they must live in. This was called the
generation gap. The difference in attitudes between people of
different age groups.
The "hippies", a name given to them by Micheal Fallon, sought
after a new lifestyle, even more, a lifestyle that was against the war.
They believed in communities rather than normal traditional family
environments. A common practice was sharing living quarters,
without regard to sex or martial status with the availability of the birth
control pill. Many coffeehouses had a "pad"- a room with a few
mattresses on the floor and sleeping bags where anyone who wished
could crash for a night or two. Small groups began retreating to the
country, where they formed communes, communities that shared
property in common.
"How does it feel,
To be without a home,
Like a complete unknown,
Like a rolling stone?"
Bob Dylan, "Like a Rolling Stone," 1965
Music was perhaps one of the main items of communication
and connection within the young generation. Woodstock was a rock
festival that took place near Woodstock, New York, on August
15-17,1969. It became a symbol of the 60's counterculture and a
marker in the history of rock music. Rock and roll was an international
phenomenon that combined African American music with the
elements of popular white music. Many attended this event. 120,00
were expected to attend, but instead, 400,000 arrived. Most were
between the ages of 16 to 30 years old. As the youth banded together
many hippie heroes appeared such as Bob Dylan, The Beatles and
many more. The Summer of Love in San Fransisco saw over 50,00
flower children. But yet, the war still raged on.
On of the most controversial symbols upon this ear was the
hair. Long hair on a young man was the ultimate symbol of being a
rebel. Many school officials debated the length. Could it curl over the
collar or not? Slogans began to show up saying such things as "Make
America beautiful---give a hippie a haircut--- After time, long hair for
men and woman became generally accepted.
The symbols of the counterculture-the long hair, peace signs,
the uncustomary clothing-the security and status of being a part of a
group was what kept the youth satisfied. All in all, many members
were concerned about their own inner adventured rather than social
reform.
As quoted by Charles Shaar Murray, Crosstow Traffic: Jimi
Hendrix & Post-War Pop
"If the sixties were truly 'about' anything.
It was the notion of a decisive shift
Of power away from its traditional centers
And towards people who had been historically excluded
From any significant degree of control
Over their own circumstance and history
From rich to the poor, from old to the young,
From right to the left, from the whites to the blacks"