I. Counterculture (crazy young people)

A. Economics were good, so youth were able to go bad

B. 50s à “Silent Generation”, 60s à “Beat Generation”

C. Jack Kerouac’s On the Road talks about hitch-hiking and bumming across US, it was cool and exciting and hip, man. You dig it?

D. Sex, drugs, rock ‘n roll. You dig?

E. Essentially, the “purpose” was simply to rebel against the establishment.

F. Examples…

1. US à Vietnam War

2. Paris à Univ. of Paris students raise heck over curriculum, control, capitalism, started a huge strike. Charles de Gaulle stepped in sure-handed and people voted for order. But, de Gaulle resigned in one year.

II. Détente?

A. détente = lessening of Cold War tensions

B. West German chancellor Willy Brandt

1. asked Poland to forgive Germany for Holocaust

2. talked to E. European nations (USSR, Poland, Czechoslovakia)

C. Helsinki Conference – it was a peace meeting

1. 35 nations agreed to borders could not be changed by force

2. agreed to human rights guarantees

D. USSR’s disregard for détente

1. ignored human rights

2. invaded Afghanistan for its oil

3. US President Ronald Reagan called USSR the “evil empire”

4. England’s Margaret Thatcher & West Germany’s Helmut Kohl were Reagan buddies; between US—England—West Germany we had a tag team against USSR and détente dwindled

III. Women’s Rights Movement

A. Simone de Beauvoir wrote The Second Sex

1. said women shouldn’t submit to being homemakers

2. said women should escape & be free, creative, liberate themselves!

B. Betty Friedan wrote The Feminine Mystique

1. the mystique was that women must live only for their husbands and children

2. led NOW (National Organization of Women) to change laws, end discrimination, advocate women working, pay, maternal leave, divorce, abortion, rape/violence protection

IV. Economic Woes

A. OPEC – Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Middle East) cut production 1973

B. Results…

1. oil prices triple/quadruple

2. general inflation

3. unemployment rose

4. productivity dropped

5. standard of living dropped

6. “Misery Index” = inflation + unemployment (see chart)

C. Rebound

1. England & US

1. would rather spend more than tax more (they did, deficits went up)

2. “Supply Side Economics” emphasis – helped businesses with hopes of “trickle-down” success; this was Pres. Reagan’s baby (they called it Reaganomics)

2. France – Socialist party grew stronger under Francois Mitterand; he tried to spend his way out of economic trouble, it failed.