To some people the 1960s were the best of times, to others it was a period when many things went wrong in society. Why do people have such different opinions of the 1960s?

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To some people the 1960s were the best of times, to others it was a period when many things went wrong in society. Why do people have such different opinions of the 1960s?

        To some people the 1960s were the best of times where as others disagreed. Many of the younger people enjoyed life in the 60s because of all the new fashions and music styles. Mary Quant was to thank for many of the new fashions and trends that the 60s held. The music aspect was mainly from bands like the Beatles, the Who and the Rolling Stones. Youngsters adored the youthful pop bands like the Beatles and many copied their styles such as haircuts or clothing items. To the older generation the 60s were “the decade of destruction”. In their opinion everything went wrong in society during the 60s. Sex became more acceptable to talk about in public and television began to show mild references to sex. The traditional ways of life were quickly becoming more modern and radical.

        The 60s were a good time to be young and youthful. The new pop groups and fashions made the 60s the perfect time to be a teenager. Youngsters had more money and by 1959 many teenagers were spending around £8 per week on records and clothes, it was particularly easy for teens to get jobs. Source A is part of a description of the 1960, “The nation held its breath because that evening the four Beatles, all the fab four, were appearing live on Juke Box Jury; John, Paul, George and Ringo being cool, smart, lippy, charming and funny. It was very heaven to be alive”. A whole new market was developing just for the teenager. Things in general became more affordable. Television sets were in many houses along with radios and washing machines. Source E is a description of a radio in the 60s, “We were stuck without parents singing along to ‘sing something simple’, the BBC light orchestra and the Billy Cotton Bandshow. So who can forget the thrill of tuning into radio Luxembourg in those rock – famished days and hearing all the pop songs we’d ever desired”. HP (higher purchase) was particularly useful as people could buy larger or more expensive things like cars without paying the full amount at once, just paying a certain amount every week or month.

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The 60s were a turning point in traditional ways of life. This aspect of the sixties lowered morale amongst many of the older and religious people. Children of the sixties began to stop following their parent’s fashions and many youths became more rebellious. Sex was rapidly becoming much more normal and acceptable to talk about. Drugs were rapidly becoming more and more used throughout the 60s, especially pop stars. Due to pop stars abusing drugs, youngsters copied them and began to get addicted to drugs. Source G is part of a biography entry for the singer Janis Joplin, “She formed ...

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