Fs3: The Swinging Sixties Context

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Fs3 The Swinging Sixties Context

• The sixties are thought of by many as
  one of the most
  exciting decades of the last century. It was
  marked by a sense of hope and optimism, the
  feeling that the world was changing for the
  better and the restrictive lifestyles of the
  period immediately after the war and the fifties
  was no longer necessary. Young people everywhere
  were contributing to a cultural, sexual and
  social revolution that would eventually transform
  ways of thinking.

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Baby Boomers.

• The key image of the sixties was one one of
  youth. Conventions and traditions were being
  swept away by a new generation who no longer felt
  the need to conform to stereotypical class and
  gender roles. They sought to rebel against their
  parents system, and were eventually able to do
  so en masse. This is in part due to the fact that
  there were more young people around!
• At the end of the second world war, the elation
  and happiness felt by many at the prospect of
  peace, and the return of many males form the
  front, reflected itself in a Baby Boom. Most of
  these babies reached teenagehood around the late
  fifties in America and the UK. This led to the
  creation of youth subcultures like Rock n Roll,
  Beatlemania and MerseyBeat.

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Economic Prosperity.

• The lives of many of the older generation had
  been marked economic deprivation and rationing.
  There hadnt been high employment so wages were
  scarce. People hadnt been able to afford what
  they would have called luxuries fridges, vacuum
  cleaners, cars, music,clothes etc The Baby Boom
  led to higher employment and a larger youth
  market to whom products could be sold. As a
  result, America and the UK saw a huge burst in
  Consumerism. Many young people now had disposable
  incomes, money that didnt have to go to rent or
  taxes, money that they could afford to spend. And
  spend they did, leading to the creation of a huge
  consumer goods market.

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Social Revolution

• The new generation were now able to live lives
  beyond the confines of their local backgrounds.
  They were able to buy into lifestyles their
  parents could only have dreamed of, and were
  unwilling to live in rural areas. They wanted to
  be in the cities, living the glamorous life in
  London or Liverpool.
• At that time, societys expectations of them were
  to work and bring up a family ASAP, but they were
  reluctant to do so. Through music, the cinema,
  billboards and later tv, they were presented with
  images of a youth that had broken free from these
  barriers and were having fun, hip lives. Young,
  working-class men and women suddenly began to try
  and find ways of getting out of their factory and
  mining towns, dreaming of a different, better
  life. Many were not able to do so.
• As a result of these changes, traditional class
  roles began to blur, especially in the working
  classes. The new working-class generation wanted
  more from life, and no longer subscribed
  hard-bitten identities of their parents. Getting
  Out became a key theme and was expressed through
  films like Room at the Top, Billy Liar, Taste of
  Honey and to a certain extent, Alfie.

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Sexual revolution

• The advent of the contraceptive pill in 1963
  meant that women could have sex without fear of
  pregnancy and this paved the way for a more
  liberal attitude to sex. Sex could now become
  something to be enjoyed without the potential for
  an unwanted pregnancy and consequent marriage.
  The topic had been a taboo, something not talked
  about socially, and sexual promiscuity was
  condemned. In some quarters, sex remained
  acceptable only during marriage. The use of the
  pill challenged these attitudes. Couples began
  to live in sin, thus challenging a repressive
  religious ideology. New fashions such as the
  Miniskirt allowed women to express their
  sexualities more overtly and many of the images
  in magazines and billboards represented strong,
  confident and independent women.
• Partly as a result of these changes, feminism
  began to gather ground. Women began to question
  their roles as wives and mothers, wanting the
  freedoms and experiences afforded to men. Towards
  the end of the 60s women had begun to work for
  themselves, leading independent lives. They were
  challenging their prescribed gender roles and
  enjoying themselves without be looked after by
  men.

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Cultural Revolution

• More than anything else, the sixties will be
  remembered for its cultural revolution. Up until
  the early 60s, the UK borrowed cultural
  influences like rock and roll and biker fashions
  from America, but in 1963, the Beatles cut their
  first record and Britain had a youthquake of
  its own. It became known as Merseybeat and
  eventually led to Beatlemania, a phenomenon
  that spread throughout the world. Meanwhile,
  bands like The Who, The Kinks and The Rolling
  Stones were gaining popularity, creating a home
  grown British music industry that was the envy of
  the world.
• The fashion of the time was closely linked to the
  music. Different youth subcultures began to wear
  clearly coded styles of clothes to signify their
  affiliations. Examples include the Mods and the
  Rockers, Hippies and Beatle surrogates (drones).

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.

• A female fashion designer named Mary Quant,
  designed the first miniskirt that became the rage
  all over the world, and David Baileys
  fashion/celebrity photography came to define the
  era, using models like Twiggy and Jean Shrimpton
  who were superstars in their own right, the first
  supermodels. Britain and especially London became
  the center of sixties cool.
• In art world, Andy Warhol started to gain
  prominence with pop art, Francis Bacon was
  redefining painting, and psychedelic art was
  coming about along with the explosion of drug
  use. Op art and other forms of illusory work were
  also around.
• The most significant phenomenon with regards to
  British film was James Bond, who symbolised the
  sexual permiseveness of the age through his suave
  and debonair charms. He was a modern,
  contemporary role-model.
• The Stones were openly smoking dope, the Who were
  taking L.S.D and drugs were now commonplace, a
  reflection of the apparent spiritual freedom of
  the time.

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Sports

• The sixties was also a great time for sports,
  especially in Britain, where the glamorous George
  Best was running rings round opponents and
  England won the World Cup in 1966. In America,
  Muhamed Ali was tearing through his oopnents.

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• Towards the end of the sixties, the Vietnam War
  broke out, and huge masses of youths were
  protesting all over the States in the name of
  peace. The Woodstock concerts took place, and the
  civil rights movement managed to finally put end
  to 200 years of Black slavery in America. Jfk was
  president and became, until his assisanation, the
  symbol of a progressive politics.

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Overview

• Overall, the sixties was a time of massive
  cultural and social change. Many boundaries were
  broken and inhibitions shed. It was, for many,
  the dawn of a new era, marked by a sense of
  optimism and hope. This is most clearly reflected
  in the film A Hard Days Night. Music, drugs,
  art, sex, sport, revolution and protest were all
  factors in the decade that many consider the most
  dynamic of the last century.