Part
2
Postwar
Babies
As we discussed in Part 1, the flappers, the Beat
Generation, and the mods came out of the postwar economy. The postwar economic boom
led to a consumptive and materialistic society, while efforts to ensure
political security relied on the nation’s conformity. However, disillusionment
as an effect of the World Wars turned the flappers and the Beats to question traditional
values. Similarly, the mods of the ‘60s grew tired of the older generation’s
worship of hard work and conformity which did not lead to a significantly
better life. Dissatisfaction with traditional morality made these generations sought
for new ways of living and self-expression.
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| The Beatniks of the '50s (Pinterest) |
Flapper women’s sexual autonomy and economic independence
gained in the roaring ‘20s was cut short by the Depression. By the ‘40s and
‘50s, as an effect of the devastation caused by the war, traditional gender
norms which domesticated women were back intact. Women’s sexual freedom did not
have a prominent place in the Beats ‘50s movement. Its quest for unconventional
relationships instead tended to support women’s sexual availability rather than
freedom. The ‘60s mods became dictated by the fashion industry and turned mainstream
before submerging into other cultures. However, despite its flaws, the Beat’s
influence (even after being defamed by the beatniks) continued to have a positive
lasting impact and contributed to forthcoming forms of antiestablishment movements.
The
1960s–70s Counterculture Movements
The influence of the Beat’s short-lived (late 1950s to
1960) literary movement was widespread, crossing over art and music and making
its mark on at least two subsequent generations. How the Beats supported
antiestablishment, bohemian lifestyle, Eastern spirituality, unconventional
sexual relationships, and use of drugs went on to influence the utopian
communities of the ‘60s hippie generation, and their literary legacy fostered
the underground music scene of the early ‘70s.
Hippie
Generation
The Beat was a cultural movement which influenced the
hippie (from the phrase hipsters) counterculture in the US. Harmony with nature
and communal living were the ethos of the hippie culture. However, the hippie movement
became more political (and this later extended to existing Beats of that time)
as they reacted to issues concerning the Vietnam War and military draft.
 |
| Hippies in 1969 (Pinterest) |
With the civil rights movement and the emergence of the Women’s
Liberation movement, women played an active role in shaping cultural and
political changes. What was once accepted as women’s “natural” role was being
rejected and the 1950’s image of women as domestic beings was highly challenged.
The Beats’ boy’s club approach was being abandoned and women in the hippie movement
were critical of it (“Why are we cooking
food for the community while the men are out there starting the revolution?”
was more or less the woman question of this era). The Beats may have less of a direct
influence on feminism, but they had opened doors to discussions about sexuality
and new ways of self-expression—major issues in second wave feminism.
During this time of social and political unrest, ongoing
experimental drug use and the advent of the psychedelic rock genre made hippie
communities even more appealing to young men and women. The firsts of female
rock icons Janis Joplin and Grace Slick ruled the charts, nevertheless it was
more an age of rock groupies than female artists. In terms of literature and
zines, this era was an exciting time for underground press which supported
bohemian publications. However, it was the Beat writing style which greatly
influenced generations of rock music and culture.
The Beat and hippie counterculture movement influenced
the underground scene of the UK which centered in Ladbroke Grove and Notting
Hill where bohemians and immigrants settled. In the ‘60s, people were
forgetting about the Second World War, which allowed more freedom for the new generation to
actively shape values and culture. For the UK, the “Swinging Sixties” was also
a period of political advancement for women with the appointment of the first
female Secretary of State.
The influence of the Beats did not die out with the hippies’
generation in the late 1960s when hippie communities were disbanded or when the
hippie culture and bell-bottom jeans turned mainstream in the ‘70s. In
fact, it went on to influence the new music of the next generation—punk rock.
Punk
Poet, singer, and song writer Patti Smith—coined the
godmother of punk—publicly acknowledged that her work is influenced by the Beat
style of writing. The punk era which began with Smith (among others) in the
mid-70s became well known for its ideological stance against the establishment.
It is interesting that punk first emerged to counter the overtly elitist heavy
metal music scene which came out of the hippie era—which, ironically, was also influenced
by the Beats.
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| Godmother of punk, Patti Smith (Pinterest) |
Punk originated from “one chord” garage bands that did not
have the musical skills but picked up an instrument and played anyway. In part,
it was a protest to how rock had turned into a circle of elitist musicians and established
a wide gap between rock stars and the audience. Punk’s DIY ethics, such as self-publishing
and setting up independent labels, became punk rock’s trademark.
Before it was called punk, and before The Velvet Underground, The
Ramones, and Patti Smith became associated with punk,
it was underground rock. Punk historians say that in the US, what gave birth to
the underground rock movement was the discontent of middle-class youths with
middle-class values, while in the UK it was the reaction of working-class
youths toward the status quo. Amidst Thatcherism and rising unemployment in
Britain, the punk scene became proletarian and political. However, this might
be an overstatement considering that manager, Malcolm McLaren, was very
influential in the formation of UK’s punk icon, The Sex Pistols, whose
first gig was at a university—they didn’t start out literally from the streets.
Aside from how working-class punk was, how inclusive punk
was in terms of gender is another issue frequently debated. Although the hippie
era was marked by a number of female rock icons, punk opened more doors to female
singer-song writers and frontpersons, such as (aside from Smith), Debby Harry of
Blondie, Souixie Souix of Souixie and the Bandshees, and Poly Styrene of X-Ray
Spex, just to name a few. More women played instruments, such as Chrissy Hynde
and Joan Jett, (not to mention the all-girl band, the Runaways which Jett led).
Those involved in the early punk movement affirmed that punk’s antimainstream
mindset was rid of any sexual discrimination and did not block the way for female
performers. But as rock historically—like any other industry—was dominated by
men, it was harder for women to be taken seriously in the boy’s club
environment. Despite this, punk heroines, like Smith and Hynde, made their
marks in punk history.
The Pistol’s split after reaching second with God Save the Queen on the 1977 UK charts
for many marked the death of punk. But by that time punk had already evolved
into new subgenres, such as hardcore punk, anarcho-punk, and pop-punk. Alongside
punk bands eventually signing with big record labels, punk rock and punk safety
pin fashion became more and more mainstream. In the ‘80s, many punk performers
became commercially successful and became “rock stars”.
The variety in punk music and ideology, in addition to gender
roles becoming more relaxed, paved the way for many women to be part
of punk bands or to set up their own bands. But the sexist language and misogyny
in punk culture may not be inspiring to many women. Hence, the riot grrrl underground
feminist movement which emerged in the ‘90s was established not just to give
the stage to girl punk bands, but it was a form of activism to eliminate
violence against women and gender discrimination.
Countercultures
The social and political unrest of the ‘60s saw the
emergence of a new youth culture that came out of the influence of the Beat
Generation. Continuing the Beat’s legacy, hippies took on the bohemian and drug-experimenting
lifestyle and went further by establishing utopian communities. With their
struggle for freedom of expression and war protests, the hippies became a major
part of the political movement for civil rights and women’s liberation.
Beat style of expression influenced the underground music
of the ‘70’s. In the mid-‘70s punk rock ruled the counterculture scene, rebelling
against the political and economic establishment. Punk still stands for antiestablishment,
no matter how mainstream punk may appear to be today.
 |
| The Ramones Museum in Berlin (Shade) |
As the Suffragist movement contributed to the rise of new
perceptions on gender and the flapper culture, the second wave Women’s
Liberation movement also paved the way for women to be involved in political
life. Many women were part of the hippie counterculture movement. Rigid gender
roles were only beginning to be challenged at this point, thus women were still
in a marginalized position.
Rapid changes in the ‘60s and the birth of underground
music in the ‘70s gave rise to more female singer-song writers and musicians as
well as frontwomen than previous generations. Some achieved commercial success
and became icons of the punk generation. However, as male dominance still has a
strong hold on culture, institutions, and industries, how women are viewed in
punk music is still debated today.
Our discussion about countercultures shows that after a
counterculture’s peak impact, it tends to submerge into other cultures or evolve
into new ones or simply become mainstream. This happens because values have
changed due to the influence of various socioeconomic and political factors;
however, changes in gender conventions take on a slower pace. On the other
hand, how people in the business see the potential profit they can make out of countercultures
had shown to have an important influence on public perception and change. Nevertheless,
as long as there is an establishment, countercultures will always emerge. Life
will never be dull.
Sources
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[6 May 2017].
Cliffsnotes.com (2016) The
Counterculture of the 1960s [online] <https://www.cliffsnotes.com/study-guides/history/us-history-ii/the-new-frontier-and-the-great-society/the-counterculture-of-the-1960s>
[26 May 2017].
Cooper, Ryan (2017) ‘A History of Punk Rock
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[6 May 2017].
Hanner, Nathan (2013) ‘Unpopular Culture: The
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[27 May 2017].
Rogers, Kenny (2014) ‘Counterculture.’ The Vietnam War [online] <http://thevietnamwar.info/counterculture/>
[26 May 2017].
Watson, Kimberley (2016) ‘The 1960s The Decade that Shook Britain.’ Historic UK [online] <http://www.historic-uk.com/CultureUK/The-1960s-The-Decade-that-Shook-Britain/>
[17 July 2017].
White, Josh (2012) ‘Why a History of Punk
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[6 May 2017].
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