Hi readers! Thank you for visiting our blog. We are five undergraduate students at the University of Maryland studying rhetoric. After examining many different aspects of the Sexual Revolution of the 1960s, we are excited to share our findings with you via this blog. While exploring topics and movements of the 1960s, we came across a mutual interest in the Sexual Revolution and what influenced its prevalence during the time period. We explored how medical advancements and music facilitated the movement. This examination gave us insight on why people became more open with their sexuality at the time and how this freedom paved the way for contemporary conversations about sex in the United States. The Sexual Revolution of the 1960s was influenced by songs such as “One Night Stand” by Janis Joplin as well as groundbreaking medical advancements which helped to change the way that sex was thought about and talked about in the United States.
The texts we have chosen, a poster ad about syphilis and the song “One Night Stand” by Janis Joplin, both have points about sexual freedom. Through exploring this blog, readers can gain more understanding about how the more liberal views on sexual freedom are presented in media today. Back in the 60s, it was harder to spread ideas and movements, whereas now the internet is a link to any information one would really need. Back in the 1960’s sexual freedom was promoted through outlets such as music and advertising. Now, through television and the internet, our generations are able to take new sexual problems that our society faces, and are able to take a stance on matters online or on our favorite shows. Sexual freedom has become more commonplace now, stemming from the movement of the 60s, but rather than having to deal with problems like syphilis and the acceptance of one night stands, we are now faced with problems like the proper sexual education in school and the acceptance of sexual preferences.
What is interesting about the sexual revolution is not only was it relevant in the 1960s, but it has stayed relevant in society since then. Today, the movement still exists but in a different way. It is important to explore how thoughts about sexual behavior and sexual behavior itself have changed over time. In the 60s, the problem was that people were not able to be open about their sexuality, but today this is becoming less of an issue. The issue today mostly surrounds reproductive rights and if contraception should be covered by health care. In the 1960s, the question was: Should I get the birth control pill? Now the questions are: Which contraception method is right for me? How am I going to pay for this? Does my insurance cover it? Although the topics and questions within the movement have changed, the sexual revolution remains relevant. While examining our blog, readers can grasp an understanding of how the movement was started and relate it to the problems surrounding sexual freedom today.
We chose to share kairos and stasis theory first because it gives readers the background of the texts we chose. Contextualizing early allows the reader to follow the understand the trajectory of the blog. The kairos gives readers information about the history behind the texts and the examination of the stasis gives an overview of the arguments each text as well as the goals of the authors. We then decided to examine other rhetorical appeals, ethos and pathos. The audience analyses are particularly important, because while both texts impacted the topic greatly, their audiences were vastly different. Logos was not a major feature of either text, which is why we decided not to group it with pathos and ethos. We had a little bit of fun with the miscellaneous posts. We definitely wanted to include something about birth control, because that was obviously a major driving force of the revolution. Also, we actually considered using the Playboy text as one of the main sources, but decided that a medical advancement would be more poignant. We are aware that some people today still have very conservative views, whether it stems from religion or tradition. Our goal is to inspire readers to include themselves in the conversation about issues surrounding sexual freedom and reproductive rights.
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