How the Sexual revolution altered Family values

The sexual revolution changed the face of the family unit. It began with changing the definition of modesty which helped begin the feminist movement. The feminist revolution drastically changed the structure and functionality of the family unit. As in most debatable topics there is no clear answer to whether the effects of the sexual revolution were negative or positive.

It is believed that the sexual revolution began in the 1960s, but it actually began in the mid 1950s. The 1950s is usually viewed as the last decade of innocence, but if one was to look deeper into the happenings of the decade you would see the vast changes that were already beginning to take place in the country. By the mid1960s there was the widely known 'hippie' movement, which embraced the concepts of peace and free love. With the widespread "free love" it became common place for actions such as pre-marital sex and drug use to be considered not as bad or sinful as originally thought. In the 1960s and 1970s there was the feminist movement, which is often portrayed as groups of women who didn't shave and burned their bras.

One of the biggest and most noted events that changed society's view on modesty was the establishment of Playboy magazine in 1955. (Kennedy) Playboy is still in the lime light today, with shows like "The Girls Next Door" idealizing Hugh Hefner's lifestyle of being married to one woman, yet still having the "bunnies" live in his home and sleep in his bed. Women being portrayed in the magazines, even though these photos are "tastefully done", still had far more skin uncovered than considered appropriate in other publications of the time. Over time it became more socially acceptable to show more skin than once considered modest. This is true even for Playboy magazine, if you were to compare the photos from an issue in 1955 to issues released currently you would see a vast difference in the amount of material and what parts of the female body is covered.

The 1960s and the "hippie" movement brought with it free love and drug use. The young adults of the 1960s were in the first generation of children born to the baby boomers. (Kennedy) Children, who had been raised in the innocence of the 1950s, spent some of their adult lives rebelling against the constraints and morals that they were raised in. This would be the first generation of people who had widespread unprotected premarital sex, which led to their children being born out of wedlock, and being raised in single parent homes or in communes. With such wide spread premarital sex society began to become jaded to it and it was no longer seen as bad as it was in the 1950s, unwed mothers were less likely to be sent away to convents or homes for unwed mothers. The children born during this time period, to these mothers could be the largest group of children to be born in an unconventional family unit.

The Feminist Movement or Women's movement was supposed to be about breaking through the 'glass ceiling' and equality for women. It can be seen as extremely detrimental to the family unit. Before the movement women could work out of the home but the jobs they could do were very limited, after the movement the choices were greater. Around this time the economy made it impossible for a household to be supported by one person's income which forced women into the workplace. Once women entered the work place their children became more self reliant. Gone were the days of the woman being at home, taking care of the family and being a house keeper. It is unclear if this is truly the fault of the movement or just an economic shift.

The sexual revolution did bring forth some needed change. Women were to be treated equally in the work force, equal pay for equal work. This is probably the most positive change, and one that is taken for granted today.

The sexual revolution also had some very negative effects. The moral fiber of America began to tear. America went from a society that prided itself in being moral and prudish to society of people who didn't care what other people thought. Sex became less of a taboo and more in your face. The family suffered as well, with women not at home there were children left unsupervised for long periods of time. Not to say that children became neglected but they did not have the supervision that they once had. Parents became less involved with their children's lives leading to rebellion to try to regain their parent's attention.

The sexual revolution had its good and bad points, and we must continue to live with the results. The difference between the attitude of society of now and society of pre- sexual revolution is extremely apparent. In short sexual revolution caused society to lose its innocence.

 

Works Cited

Kennedy, D. (2005). The American Pageant Volume Ii: Since 1865. In D. Kennedy, The American Pageant Volume Ii: Since 1865 (pp. 884-937). Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company.