Controversy On The 80's

In 1980, the United States was emerging from a troubled decade. The 1970s had been marked by an ugly end to the Vietnam War, the demoralizing Watergate spectacle, rampant inflation, unemployment and an energy crisis. The Soviets had just invaded Afghanistan, rejuvenating

During the 1980’s, many Americans were incredibly materialistic; they were only concerned with the “things” in life, not with life as it was. In the musical world, Madonna was becoming popular. One of her greatest hits, Material Girl,

During the time of the 1980’s, there was a lot going on in our history. Cold War was on its last years in the 1980s. In the United States its military ended involvement in Vietnam. Also, the civil rights movement and women’s movements reached many of their goals (“1970s and ‘80”). Ronald Reagan became president and benefited the economy. When he was president, they called it the Reagan years. During his first terms, the recession ended, inflation

    The 1980’s was a time of prosperity throughout America. From the Calendar that went from January 1st to December 31st to the increase of jobs. This decade was full of good changes socially, economically, and politically.

The spirit of the 1980’s was born of previous decades. America’s victory in World War II hurled the nation into a society which became faster with each decade. The 1950’s, thriving on a time of high job opportunity, rolled into the 1960’s time of activism of human rights for all peoples. Women’s rights, African-American rights, and antiwar dominated the minds of many Americans in the 1960’s and 1970’s. Meanwhile, to the pleasure of the children, cable television’s quality improved and shows transitioned from grayscale to color. As the 1980’s hit with the Cold War stretching for its fortieth

Living in the 70s was in the midst of a unique culture. Theatres in the 1970s were very popular as various people rushed to theaters to watch plays and movies. This was also the era in which many owned bizarre items such as pet rocks, mood rings, bean bag chairs, and more. “Have a nice day!” became a slogan that earmarked the 70’s,and was almost always accompanied with the notorious smiley face icon. Sickening sweet happy faces were plastered everywhere; they were spray painted on the side of buildings and even worn on bandanas and t-shirts. Another distinct culture featured in the 70’s was the fashion. Fashion fads in the 70’s took off like rockets. Clothing styles such as shirts with colorful geometric shapes and bell-bottoms emerged. The rise of disco also played a big role during this time. In contrast to males in today’s society, some men in the 1970’s wore shoes with giant heels. Culture proved to play a big role in the 70’s and profoundly affected the civilization’s view upon The American Dream.

This essay will explore the effects social and political changes had on fashion in the 1980’s. This period was chosen because the new romantic fashions were so different to the punk fashions that had been before, this essay will therefore identify the changes that had taken place to influence this change. Primary evidence used to support findings will include interviews and photographs which will show a firsthand account of the period.

Taking a look back in time, so much has changed, especially in the time period between the 1920’s and 1960’s. The 1920’s and 1960’s are two decades that have really defined the United States’ culture. From flappers to hippies, jazz music to rock, and Civil Rights movements, these two decades have helped shape the beliefs and rights we have today. The 1920s were an age of social and political change that would change the face of history in the United States. The 1960s are considered the most consequential and controversial decade of the twentieth century due to the rise of feminism, the Vietnam War and political and social atmospheres becoming divided. Despite the forty year gap between the two decades, they share a great deal of similarities, many of which have changed history.

The 80 's was an eye opener to a lot of new things, new music, new styles, new points of view on life and new technology. Music was a big hit for the 80 's and so was the technology. A home, family, job and fun was basically what everyone needed to live ahappy life. In the 80 's, people saw the American dream, as a simple task of success andthose years defined them. They were the generation in between differences and facing disagreement andnot turning our backs. The 80 's may have made them idealistic, but it 's idealism that will push themand be passed on to their children, the first children of the twenty-first century.

The transition from the multicultural era of the eighties to the postnetwork era of the nineties triggered abrupt changes in American media and culture. [6] From fashions to family life, relationships, and attitudes, many new cultural elements subsequently changed television portrayals of ordinary American culture within this time period. More specifically, the culture of the eighties is often characterized by the rise of MTV and megastars, techno music and club drugs, and popular fashions such as leather, leggings, and Ray Bans. Eighties culture can be described as the ‘bombdigity’ and nineties culture can be described as more toned down, moral, and ‘sweet’.

Popular music is often one of the best lenses we have through which to view our own cultural orientation. Many of the artistic and experimental shifts in popular music have mirrored changes in our own society. For instance, the emergence of Elvis Presley as a public figure would signal the start of a sexual revolution and the growth in visibility of a rebellious youth culture. Similarly, the folk and psychedelic music of the 1960s was closely entangled with the Civil Rights, anti-war and social protest movements. In this regard, we can view popular music as an artifact through which to better understand the time and place in which it is produced. In light of this, the state of popular music today may suggest troubling things about our society.

The seventies is often seen as a lost decade, merged between the optimistic sixties and the opportunistic eighties. Bruce J. Schulman argues, in his book titled, “The Seventies: The Great Shift in American Culture”, that this period ignores changes brought by the 1970s. This period brought changes in the economy, shifts in culture, politics, race, family and religious values. The United States faced many transformations that helped shape our country to this day. Schulman begins to explain his thesis, “The Seventies transformed American economic and cultural life as much as, if not more than, the revolutions in manners and morals of the 1920s and the 1960s.” The information that I will present will summarize the changes that affected the United

The era of the 1990’s was an explosive time in American history both figuratively and literally. In the 90’s there was an extreme variety of different failures and also advances in technology. We as a nation had new advancements in space travel, our military and the way of life preparing for the turn of the century. As a country we didn’t know what the new millennium had to bring for us, but we were ready. Most significantly changing America though was from our creativeness that took place, the fear we had, and our militaristic ways.

The 1970s can be best understood as a transitional period in America. Starting in the 1950s, the power of the youth was on the rise, through civil rights activism and anti-war protests. This decade’s ideal citizen seemed to be the person helping others. Then the 1980s are more financially centered and individualistic. This decade’s ideal citizen is the one who measured success by how much money they made. The 1970s proved to be a time of bitterness, cynicism, and increased interest in one’s self for most of the people in America. Some of the events that contributed to this were the Kent State Massacre, Roe v. Wade, and the economic stagflation that happened in the latter part of the decade.

Just as it was a crucial time for America in terms of politics and social issues, it was just as big for the music industry. People expressed their social opinions and political beliefs in a way that was the most true to them. Music was, and still is, a worldwide phenomenon for it has been able to take the shape of justice and to mold the minds of it’s listeners. Artists at the time had extreme social and political influence and used their defined stances on cultural issues to influence their music as well as their