How useful is the term ‘cultural revolution’ when applied to the sixties?

The mid-mid-mid-sixties are definitely remembered by its genesis as a duration of significant motley. Many associate the point fondly with memories of groups such as The Beatles and The Kinks, at the same time computer storage the galore(postnominal) protests and movements that hoped to change the ideas and values of society. In answer to whether the term heathenish revolution is effective when applied to the sixties, study of these disciplines is most sure necessary.Despite the stop consonant of study being merely a matter of decades from present day, we allay face the same problems any historian would face given the same question applied to a time centuries ago. The validity of the consultations is of utmost size qualifiedness fortunately in regards to the harmony of the sixties we have records from the time, and charts to show the popularity of groups and artists. In regards to the field of science, there is a great variety of primary source material due to the na ture of the profession.One could safely assume that the put d possess inquiry and findings were and so accurate and reliable information from educated professionals. cognizance in the sixties is very much associated with protests, surprisingly not exactly by ungovernable base of operationss but respected public figures and people at the top of their fields and professional careers. With figures such as Eisenhower raising concerns regarding the command and excess of forces weapons the public had to stand up and listen. Peoples faith in the judicature was undermined by the disillusionment of events that carry oned in the Vietnam War.The sixties almost certainly contributed to the changing in attitudes towards authority, leading the way for if not a heathenish revolution, then a work shift in peoples thinking, and an intolerance for civilians to be go forth in the dark. People were willing to stand up for what they believed in, which resulted in a number of forces convergi ng to cause traditional values to be propel aside. However, at the same time we must acknow guidege that these concerns that were being indulgent in the early sixties were primarily a result of the troops development in technical warfare in the forties and fifties such as the atomic bomb.The question was, why had these concerns taken so long to be voiced? A major part in the many protests and movements had to be the media both television and radio were in the slope to sensationalize an protrude and selectively control the information they presented. Therefore, people began to be driven much by drama than by tradition and reflection. Images of devastation from nigh the world were transmitted into peoples living rooms and for the first time they were able to see for themselves the devastation of war and military arms.If we understand the term ethnic revolution as a break in the attitudes towards authority and a change in the everyday lives of people then television had to b e at the forefront of this revolution. It was a immense influence behind the protests at MIT argue Americas involvement in the Vietnam War. These images outraged people and this rage ignited movements to even up the war and resist the conscription. Attitudes to authority changed, there was an outrage against a government who were sending the sixties youth to their deaths for a war that didnt involve America.As a result of scientific research in aid of war, the sixties saw the introduction of chemical warfare biological weapons such as DDT were developed and used to kill vegetation and crops that the Vietcong were using as groundcover and as food sources. This was a huge revolution and patterned advance in scientific development but further fuelled the concerns of movements of two kinds, those that were anti-science, and those that were not against science but the practices of scientists in the deep sixties.The revolution overly abnormal the way in which scientists carried out their work, they had lost their intellectual freedom the military governed what research they conducted and prohibited them from publishing their findings in journals and publications. These were definitely the results of a technological revolution. The irony is, that whilst the government and military funded expensive scientific research, putting not sole(prenominal) finances but also great amounts of control and self-confidence into the scientists, it was these scientists who had the most power over the country.Opposition to military involvement wasnt the only counter-movement regarding scientific research in the sixties there was also huge objection in the roles of women in scientific study. The grievance was more than than the issue that there were few women working in the science field, but also that the majority who had been successful in pursuing a career in science werent able to sustain their posts. A study by Rossi in 1965 showed that compared to males, more females ac ross a range of occupations voluntarily left their posts, more so in the field of science.The study also showed that women counted for only 10% of individuals who worked in science. It was findings like this that began movements for the cause of womens liberation and were a sign of changing propagation and a revolution in the role of women who sought for the same rights to upbringing and employment opportunities as men. It was also two women in science who contend a major role in revolutionizing ideas about the human embryo. Lenz and Kelseys research went against all that previously been believed about pregnant women and their unborn children.Theyre research tackled and capable the ignorance of traditional practices primarily challenging the idea at the time, that what didnt harm the pregnant mother, couldnt harm her child. Through their insistence that babies react differently to drugs, nicotine, alcohol etc, they radically transformed neonatal studies. When applied to the str uggle for women to be acknowledged in the field of science, the term pagan revolution is extremely useful, because movements in the sixties coat the way for more women into education.For example, the demand for advanced education to be more accessible to women saw the number of women graduate in primatology go from goose egg in the 1960s to eight out of ten students in the 1990s. This was clearly an heavy(p) achievement that shows the impact of the sixties. Music was another field that underwent a radical transformation during the sixties. It wasnt simply a case of new trends being introduced however. The sixties medicament scene was about existing trends, the resurgence of early unison and the introduction of original sounds.In terms of music, the sixties could be seen as a cultural revolution. The variety of styles contributed to challenging existing ideas about music, and showed the immensity for them to co-exist to establish a rich and lively music scene. The sixties mu sic scene is renowned for being associated with the Beatles and contumacious figures such as Jimi Hendrix and The Kinks, however, at the same time existing trends were still hugely popular as was the early music revival. It was the co-existence of the three that made the sixties revolutionary.Bands and artists embraced the rich and change music styles, and the sixties saw much experiment with lyrics and instruments. Not least, among these were The Beatles, their shift from usual music styles is evident in Sergeant Peppers Lonely police van Club Band. Heavily influenced from eastern styles, this was nothing innovative however, it was a comparatively unheard style among the British fans. It appealed to the sixties generation who sought resource lifestyles and the blending of cultures set to challenge pre-conceived ideas of Brit-pop.Jimi Hendrix was also at the forefront of the sixties music revolution, with erotic and suggestive mannerisms he appealed to the generation who consume d sexual liberation. His rebellious and aggressive music was something that protesters and anarchists at the time could identify with, finding their own voice in this expressive form. The early music revival, although established in the late fifties, was at its most prevalent in the sixties. This interest in a period of music that had previously been forgotten demonstrated a transformation in the tastes of the sixties generation.Although classic composers such as Handel and Bach had been popular in earlier periods, there was one main difference in the appreciation of early music during the sixties. The emphasis of the early music revival was the desire for authenticity the sixties saw a change to how these compositions were performed which led to experimentation in tempo, instruments and styles of singing. It is argued that the sixties were not an isolated period for cultural change and that the sixties merely followed on from what had began in the late fifties.The changes that were seen to happen in the sixties could just as well be attributed to the government issue of the end of the war. Families had experienced a great disruption in their lives many had been killed in the war and had left families shattered. The womens liberation could be a reaction to women resenting their return to domestic duties and pre WWII lifestyle, after having filled the roles of men in the piece of work when manpower was limited. The seventies also played their part in this cultural change despite the rise of feminism and gay rights initiating in the late sixties, they didnt fully come into fruition until the seventies.However, in spite of the roles the fifties and seventies played in what is seen as a cultural revolution, the sixties is doubtlessly synonymous with all that was radical and new at that time. In conclusion, having only looked at two disciplines, it leaves us limited to answer whether the sixties were indeed a cultural revolution. However, in regards to the exampl es weve seen in both the fields of music and science, there is certainly proof that the sixties were a significant time for change.Its impossible to know for certain whether these changes would have taken place if not for situations and circumstances that arose during the sixties, and whether they were in fact just a consequence of a nation recovering from war. Despite this, the term cultural revolution is certainly useful when applied to the sixties in a number of examples attitudes to authority were challenged, women gained greater access into education and music appeared to unite and give voice to rebellious protesters who sought a change in ideas and values.