The Woodstock of 1969 was a revolution in itself and responsible for
redefining the point of view, respect, and attitude of the so-called "counter-cultured"
youth of the late sixties. The attendants of the festival were youths from around the
United States in ages ranging from 17 to 26. The overall mood of the festival was very
relaxed and happy. Although there was a minimal amount of violence at Woodstock,
there were financial problems, drugs, nudity, and traffic jams that seemed to go for
miles down the old country roads surrounding Max Yasgur's dairy farm. Woodstock
was a symbol of the rebellious society of the time. The youths that went were looking
to vent out frustrations that their parents had forced upon them. For most youths, the
"3 Days of Peace, Love, and Music" seemed to be just the place to balance their
thoughts, relax with friends, and meet new people that hated their parents as much as
they did. Two-hundred thousand people were expected to show for the Woodstock
festival, and instead an overwhelming "400,000 youngsters turned up to hear big-
name bands play in a field near the village of Bethel, New York state in what has
become the largest rock concert of the decade".
The attendents and the mood of the Woodstock festival in Bethel, New York
was that of the counter-cultered young society of the late sixties. Max Yasgur's farm
was transformed from a beautiful lush, green dairy farm field into a 400,000- person
mudpit. Throughout the days of the festival, the attendants were "undaunted by rain,
mud, wet clothes and chilly mountain breezes, thousands of youths sat on a rural
hillside here for a marathon 19-hour session of folk-rock music". Drugs had also
become increasingly more popular in the sixties, and Woodstock was no exception to
the latest trend. Drugs were readily available and generously passed around through
the crowds of youths all over the hillside. But the drugs weren't the reason that people
generally attended the Woodstock festival. Most would agree with a man interviewed
five miles away from his vehicle walking towards the festival in saying that " But it's
more than that. I'm here for the same reason that Indians used to have tribal
gatherings. Just being here with people like me makes it all worthwhile...
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...ting with a lot of room, grass, trees, lakes. It was going to be a youth cultural
exposition and that is where the culture of this generation expresses itself more
naturally".
Woodstock '69 has remained the icon of the sixties. After a "mind-blowing
rendition of the national anthem, the hillside was cleared for the first time in nearly
four days of the hordes of youths who came here for three days of music,
companionship, and, in many cases, drugs". "Mr. Yasgur is gone, as is the farm. The
meadow is green again, and very peaceful. Someone has built a small
monument...commemorating the event, listing performers and dates". Today there are
still people who believe in the philosophy of peace, love, and hapiness. They still have
the hope that one day the government will "take the backseat" to an overcrowded
music festival. A policeman after the music festival said what only can be imagined
now-a-days, that those kids "have proven something to the world... that half a million
kids can get together for fun and music and have nothing but fun and music."
It helps them make a statement, and show who they really are as individuals. Today teens express their true selves through clothing, music, etc.
...an see, there are many reasons why children and teenagers may misbehave. They could be tired, hungry, sick or just scared of the position they're in. There could be problems at home with family, fighting, and competition, and attention seeking within society. Children are easier to understand to why they misbehave but when it comes to teenagers it’s a little ridiculous. They will make lousy decisions that can cause a rough road ahead of them all because they want to be noticed. It’s unpleasant to see what this society has come too.
Finally, the day before the official opening, traffic jams up to 20 miles long blocked most roads leading to the area. On August 15th, the first day, the management was unable to monitor the estimated 400,000 or more people, and decided to abandon attempts at ticket taking because hundreds of thousands of people simply climbed over fences. For three days, the small town of Bethel, was the state’s third-largest city, with an estimated population range between 300,000 and 400,000 people.
in different age groups and backgrounds. It was also a large, voluntary audience, so most people
The muddiest four days in history were celebrated in a drug-induced haze in Sullivan County, New York (Tiber 1). Music soared through the air and into the ears of the more than 450,000 hippies that were crowded into Max Yasgur's pasture. "What we had here was a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence," said Bethel town historian Bert Feldmen. "Dickens said it first: 'it was the best of times, it was the worst of times'. It's an amalgam that will never be reproduced again" (Tiber 1). It also closed the New York State Thruway and created one of the nation's worst traffic jams (Tiber 1). Woodstock, with its rocky beginnings, epitomized the culture of that era through music, drug use, and the thousands of hippies who attended, leaving behind a legacy for future generations.
[1] Within the last few decades, we have generated a great number of “historical” films reaching the American public. With these “historical” films come the question of whether or not the film portrayed history in an accurate manner; if not, why were the facts manipulated the way that they were. Unfortunately, this question is usually answered in the negative, and the audience is left with a fictional account of a factual happening, thereby giving the viewing public mixed messages concerning the issues raised within the film. Film used in this manner can be a dangerous tool in the hands of powerful people with agendas and ulterior motives.
The group itself was entirely made up of middle age, Caucasians. There was an average of about thirty-five attendees each week. The average age of the gr...
As World War Two came to a close, a new American culture was developing all across the United States. Families were moving away from crowded cities into spacious suburban towns to help create a better life for them during and after the baby boom of the post-war era. Teenagers were starting to become independent by listing to their own music and not wearing the same style of clothing as their parents. Aside from the progress of society that was made during this time period, many people still did not discuss controversial issues such as divorce and sexual relations between young people. While many historians regard the 1950s as a time of true conservatism at its finest, it could really be considered a time of true progression in the American way of life.
Drugs are not only a problem for older generations, but often times those in younger generations become involved in the drug trade as well. According to Anderson (1990), “Children who become deeply engaged in t...
They were gangsters that caused problems for the community. These gangsters would go up to kids and try and jump them into their gang. For them, the more members they had, the more “territory they had.” One problem that major cities around the world have is gangs. Most of these gangs are made up of juvenile delinquents looking for trouble.
to establish a good line of communication between themselves and their teens. Teens need to know that
There are so many new things happening and all types of pressure, thankfully that I never gave into, but if I had, I would not of had any guidance or someone to tell me that maybe that is not such a good idea. I still resent my parents a little for putting me through that situation. Another effect of my parents divorce is a lot of family drama. There were nights where my mother would come to my fathers house, because she was no longer living with us at this point, and she would try to make me leave with her because she no longer wanted me living with my father and his then girlfriend. She caused me to start having panic attacks and it is crazy to think that this is all because my parents divorced almost four years ago.
Many scholars have employed a variety of research methodology to try and answer the questions of: Why do some adolescents resort to extreme measures to resolve their problems? What can be done to improve the current state of the situ...
Once hormones have revealed themselves, children turn into confused young adults that think they can do everything by themselves and that there will no longer be any need for nurturing from adults. The word “young” from “young adults” is what teenagers completely ignore, when actually they should do the opposite and ignore the “adults” part. Furthermore, this causes infliction between teenagers and adults, especially their parents. Once they have the courage to say “no” with consciousness to what they are ordered to do, they come across a feeling, a feeling of being big and powerful. Because of that, teenagers then only focus on their new discovery of rebelling against adults and are, metaphorically speaking, injected with ego.
Why do teenagers rebel against their parents? Teenagers rebel against their parents because they lack their parents’ love and they start to build up resentment. (Bucknell) As they are growing up, they are developing their minds and trying to adapt to their surroundings. Despite some negative thoughts about teens, many create their sense of rebellion due to the lack of ideal parents. They begin to think for themselves and go down the wrong path without the right guidance. For instance, without the right guidance the teenager feels that they are the adults in every situation and they know what is right and what is wrong. They begin to develop habits that will later lead to unsuccessful situations. During teenage years, many are going through