American Politics & Pop Culture

A common theme throughout the readings and the documentary this week was 'sexuality'. In the texts and film, sexuality is a useful tool in describing the phenomenon of the era. First is the way in which The Beatles used atypical images to further their sexual appeal. By being everything that American men (at the time) were not, The Beatles were able to step out of the rigid structures of male/female image stereotypes. The sexuality exuded by The Beatles' audience(s), primarily teenage girls, is described in detail by Barbara Ehrenreich et al. In their work, Ehrenreich et al desribe the sexual aggression displayed by teenage girls in this era to be a rebellion against the strict standards to which females were expected to adhere to. For teenage girls, screaming at a Beatles' concert was no more than a way to counter the double standards placed upon them. According to Ehrenreich et al, a girl must walk the fine line between being a classy, moral lady while being sexy enough to attract a male counterpart. At Beatles' concerts, however, a girl could scream at the top of her lungs and do her part to break down the unreasonable standards set upon her. In much the same way, Elvis Presley stuck to his upbringing to make a name for himself, just as The Beatles had done. For Elvis, it was the way in which he stuck to his southern ways that made him 'sexy' to America. By defying the upperclass, Elvis 'stuck it to the man' through the use of his lyrics, his dance moves and his rock n' roll attitude. Lindsay Waters detailed an appearance on national television in which Elvis truly spoke to conventional listeners. By singing to an actual hounddog and addressing the camera to speak to the viewers, Elvis became a leader in the rock n' roll cultural revolution.