ISG 1025 The Rise and Fall of the Hippie Movement

[janet12tw]

Hi Everyone,

Thanks for Sherry for proving us the article for this week. I chose the article for Oct 29 from EZ Talk which Sherry has emailed to us on Oct. 16. Please check your mail box for it. We will take a look at the evolution of the Hippie culture. Please write a summary or essay by using at least 5 words from this article.

Here is a link about the preview for the latest movie "Taking Woodstock" directed by Ang Lee for your reference:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obD3hoUtJJk

Questions for Discussion:
1. Do you consider yourself a hippie? Why or why not?
2. Do you know any hippie around you? What do they look like?

[janet12tw]

Sorry, I made a mistake. Please write a summary or an essay by using at least five new words or phrases you learned from this article. Thanks!

[Sherry Liao]

I think this topic is very interesting. The 60s was famous for hippies, while yuppies presented a different phenomenon in the 80s. Maybe yuppie culture can be another topic for us to talk about in the near future.

[Just JJ]

Hello, my awesome teammates, I stuck in my study, I wish I can catch up with you guys ASAP.
(Sorry about this is just a message, and nothing to do with English learning)

[IVY]

Summary

Hippie culture originated from USA in the mid-1960s.
With an economic boom, the atmosphere f American society was conservative and suffocating, thinking highly of career-oriented and competing with others. Compared with mainstream value, Hippie combined the campaigns of racial segregation and anti-Vietnam War to form another subculture for highlighting their complaint against the hypocritical society.
It’s easy to recognize Hippie: in appearance, they wore colorful costume and long hair. Speaking of music styles, they liked to listen to rock & roll and jazz. When it comes to their behavior, using soft drug and advocating free love were common.
When Hippie culture matured, they dropped out of school and work and had their won communes. Boosting nature was their spirit, getting rid of etiquette restrictions such as makeup, shoes and bathing.
Although the movement lost steam in 1970, it did have profound influence on many issues around the world, including environmental protection, homosexuality, sharing conception of internet, anti-globalization and so on.



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Dear all

I would like to know your process of orginazing your thinking for writing an essay like this kind of article.


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Dear JJ

we all know that you are busy and hard working
looking forward to seeing you again & sharing your life experience with us

[Kooper]

From the mid-1960s to the early 1970s, the hippie subculture was prospering among American youths. Evolving out of the spirit of the Beat Generation, hippie movement was in essential a counterculture revolution – they swam against the tide and attempted to overthrow various mainstream ideas.

Unlike older generations before them, hippies refused to compete up the corporate or social ladder, choosing not to continue their education or jobs. They used soft drug like marijuana for pleasure or inspiration. That gave birth to a new form of music - psychedelic rock - whose themes lingered on sentimental experiences of taking soft drugs. Hippies loved nature and lived in the suburb, without permanent dwelling. They didn't subscribe to the view of traditional marriage and initialized sexual revolution. Rather than being all-American, which was dismissed by hippies as narrow-minded, hippies embraced Asian culture and had a high opinion of minority cultures. In short, the hippie culture pursued personal freedom and encouraged people to get all the dominant social restrictions out of their mind.

The hippie movement further picked up steam after it merged with other social movements, the ones against the Vietnam War and racial segregation. It, however, lost its impetus in the early 1970s, after America withdrew its troops from Vietnam and after several rock stars died or broke up.

The hippie revolution might fail on the surface, but it planted seeds of change and its influence lasts generations after generations. Many of today’s well-accepted beliefs, such as environmental protection and acceptance of homosexual, could be traced back to the 1960s revolution. It also contributed to the popularity of Buddhism, meditation and yoga.

[Sherry Liao]

The hippie movement was a significant phenomenon in the 1960s. It originated in a social background of economically prosperous but suppressing atmosphere. The younger generation at that time were more worldly and receptive to new ideas, and were eager to react against the mainstream culture. It was also a time of revolutionary change, when some ideas out of consonance with the world's current of thought took place. The luminaries such as the beats (the famous writers who featured unrestrained behavior and recreational drug use), the rock stars like Beatles, the activists like Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Freedom Riders were regarded as idols among the young, and it created a climate that gave birth to the so-called hippie culture.

Hippies were well-known for their Bohemian dressing, freewheeling lifestyle and recreational drug use. They embraced nature, identified with minority culture, advocated peace and were notable for their lifestyle in the form of "commune", which conveyed the idea of sharing and rebelled against the customs of society. However, The culture declined in the early 70s. The withdrawal of Vietnam War, the death of some rock stars or disbandment of bands, and the failure of the ideology of commune were all held as factors that helped put an end to the movement.

Although the hippie movement ceased decades ago, there is no doubt that it has enduring effect on the world. It is believed that the popularity of Buddhism and environmental movement, the acceptance of homosexuality and alternative therapy, the thought of sharing and co-creation, and the rising movement of anti-globalization, anti-exploitation and anti-war are probably all affected by the early hippie ideas. It also has great influence over industries and numerous artists in the field of music and movies.

[Kooper]

The hippies were a fairly noticeable American subculture among youth, prospering between the mid-1960s and the early 1970s. Originated from the spirit of the Beat Generation, hippie movement was in essential a counterculture revolution – they swam against the tide and attempted to overthrow various mainstream ideas.

Unlike the older generations, hippies refused to compete up the corporate and social ladder and chose not to continue their education or jobs. They used soft drug like marijuana for pleasure or inspiration. It gave birth to a new form of music - psychedelic rock - whose themes lingered on sentimental experiences of taking soft drugs. Hippies loved nature and lived in the suburb, without permanent dwelling. They didn't subscribe to the view of traditional marriage and advocated sexual revolution. In short, while getting all the dominant social restrictions out of their mind, the hippie culture upheld personal freedom. Rather than being all-American, which was dismissed by hippies as narrow-minded, hippies embraced Asian culture and had a high opinion of minority cultures

The hippie movement further picked up steam after it merged with other social movements like the ones against the Vietnam War and racial segregation. It, however, lost its impetus in the early 1970s, after America withdrew from Vietnam and after several rock stars died or broke up.

The hippie revolution might fail on the surface, but it planted seeds of change and has been influencing generations after generations. Many of today’s well-accepted beliefs, such as environmental protection and acceptance of homosexual, could be traced back to the 1960s revolution. It also contributed to the popularity of Buddhism, meditation and yoga.

Sherry,
You're right. There is no such kind of expression of "America withdrew from Vietnam." I should say either "America withdrew its troops from Vietnam" or "US troops withdrew from Vietnam."

[janet12tw]

The hippie culture was developed by a group of young people from the mid-1960 in the United states. They express their feeling through psychedelic rock, clothings from different cultures and love for peace. Then the hippie culture become more and more popular due to the resistance to the Vietnam War and enthusiasm to the rock music. Unlike the mainstream culture in which people are old-fashionedly dressed, hard-working, and focus on keeping on with the Joneses, the hippies are eager to drop out of the rat race. But because of the end of Vietnam War and American draw off from Vietnam, the hippie movement lost steamed in the early 1970 and then collapsed.The Monterey Pop Festival is one of the major event that is attended by these peace-loving hippies. Around 450,000 people attended the most famous rock concert called Woodstock which features superstar act and hippie-style concert in 1969. If you want to learn more about hippie culture, turn back the time and relive the concert by seeing Ang Lee's latest movie "Taking Woodstock" in the theater now.

[Sherry Liao]

The hippies were a fairly noticeable American subculture among youth, prospering between the mid-1960s and the early 1970s. Originated from the spirit of the Beat Generation, hippie movement was in essential a counterculture revolution – they swam against the tide and attempted to overthrow various mainstream ideas.

Unlike the older generations, hippies refused to compete up the corporate and social ladder and chose not to continue their education or jobs. They used soft drug like marijuana for pleasure or inspiration. It gave birth to a new form of music - psychedelic rock - whose themes lingered on sentimental experiences of taking soft drugs. Hippies loved nature and lived in the suburb, without permanent dwelling. They didn't subscribe to the view of traditional marriage and advocated sexual revolution. In short, while getting all the dominant social restrictions out of their mind, the hippie culture upheld personal freedom. Rather than being all-American, which was dismissed by hippies as narrow-minded, hippies embraced Asian culture and had a high opinion of minority cultures

The hippie movement further picked up steam after it merged with other social movements like the ones against the Vietnam War and racial segregation. It, however, lost its impetus in the early 1970s, after America withdrew from Vietnam and after several rock stars died or broke up.

The hippie revolution might fail on the surface, but it planted seeds of change and has been influencing generations after generations. Many of today’s well-accepted beliefs, such as environmental protection and acceptance of homosexual, could be traced back to the 1960s revolution. It also contributed to the popularity of Buddhism, meditation and yoga.

Sherry,
You're right. There is no such kind of expression of "America withdrew from Vietnam." I should say either "America withdrew its troops from Vietnam" or "US troops withdrew from Vietnam."

Thanks for looking it up. In fact, I think your summary is excellent. I also learned some idioms from it, like these:

swam against the tide: to do something that is in opposition to the general movement of things
pick up steam: to start to be much more effective or successful

[Sherry Liao]

Hello, my awesome teammates, I stuck in my study, I wish I can catch up with you guys ASAP.
(Sorry about this is just a message, and nothing to do with English learning)

Hi, JJ,

It's great to see you on the forum. How are you doing?
Are you still struggling with your Ph.D. program?
Anyway, I hope everything goes favorably with you.