Changes in American Sexual Values Since 1950s

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The twentieth century has seen more changes than any other century in the history of mankind. And these changes have reflected in our values which too have changed drastically in the last fifty years. While our values regarding most of the social conventions have undergone some serious changes, nowhere is this change more apparent than in our attitudes regarding sex. The sexual permissiveness that we see around today was frowned upon even fifty years ago. Premarital sex, extramarital sex, alternate sexuality and other forms of sexual experimentation were on the fringes of society and definitely not acceptable in a decent, civilized world.

In the 2008, people in California voted against same-sex marriages. The very fact that such a matter was put up for vote by the general public shows the huge shift in public attitude towards homosexuals, especially when we consider that as late as in 1984, an article published in the American Journal of Psychiatry purported to help cure homosexuals and help them “change there homosexual preference” (Schwartz & Masters 173).

Another measure of this change in value is the teenager’s attitude towards sex. A study by Caron & Moskey found that while in 1950 about 73% of the teenagers believed that sex was acceptable only after marriage, in 2000, as many as 76% teenagers believed that it was alright to have sex once the relationship became serious (519). The survey also highlighted several other attitudinal shifts of the teenagers, like by 1975, teenagers could count on peer support on having sex, which was almost non existent in 1950s (518-519).

Most of this change in attitude towards sex can be attributed to the so-called sexual revolution of the 1960s. However, the seeds of the change were laid in the 1950s when the “social mores and court decisions grew more liberal” (Calogero et al). Perhaps one of the first events which marked the beginning of this change was the publishing of the Kinsey Reports in 1948 and 1953. The Reports which consisted of two books, “Sexual behavior in human male” and “sexual behavior in human female”, covered such controversial topics as sexual orientation, extra-marital sex and sadomasochism (Kinsey Reports, Wikepedia). The books “brought sexual topics into widespread public discussion” (Francoeur, Koch & Weis 15) and paved the way for the further opening of the society in the coming years.

There were other important developments in the 1950s, which must be mentioned in order to understand the changing values of the society. In 1953, the first issue of Playboy magazine was published. And in 1957, in the Roth v. United States, the Supreme Court set anew criteria for defining obsenity (Francoeur et al 16; Calogero et al).

The 1960s are often remembered for the hippie culture and the “Sexual Revolution”. Perhaps the one event which was most responsible for this revolution was the invention of the hormonal contraceptive pill. The Pill took away the fear of pregnancy and being “found out”, allowing women to be more experimental. As the counter culture of the 1960s and 70s challenged the conventional social norms of 1950s, “free love” became a prominent phrase. Men and women intermingled freely, with little regard for the social norms of the earlier decade. A 1967 article for Guardian by Margaret Drabble lamented that “men now don’t expect to marry virgins”, and worried about the consequences of this sexual revolution. In 1961, Illinois became the first state to adopt the “’consenting adults’ law decriminalizing sexual behavior between consenting adults” (Francoeur et al 16) and thus legalizing homosexualty. In 1968, Masters and Johnson published “Human Sexual Response”, a book which for the first time discussed the physiology of human sexuality.

This permissiveness regarding sex continued into the 1970s as it became acceptable for colleges to allow “co-educational housing” (sexual revolution, Wikipedia). Throughout the 1970s, “television talk shows popularized discussions of alternative lifestyles” Francoeur et al 16). During this time, the social attitudes regaring pronography were also changing. In 1973, Deep Throat became “he highest grossing porn ever” (Calogero et al). The movie attracted so many viewers that “The New York Times wrote several articles discussing the nature of the rising fashionable trend to watch pornos” (Calogero et al).

If 1960s brought about sexual freedom for the heterosexuals, the 70s saw the homosexuals becoming increasingly vocal. In 1969, following an early morning police raid at the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village, riots broke out and resulted in the formation of gay-rights and gay-pride movements (Francoeur et al 16). In 1972, an openly gay male was ordained as the minister of a major Chrisian church. And by 1980s openly gay people could be found in federal and state governments and in professional sports. In 1979, Masters and Johnson published “Homosexuality in Perspective”, a book which made “thought-provoking inquiry into the sexual life of homosexuals” (Time, 1979).

This does not mean that all this sexual freedom went mostly unopposed by the society. However, the force of change was much greater than the the voice of concern, as the society became much more freer and left behind its prudish past. As is clear from the Caron and Moskey study cited earlier, the social attitiudes regarding sex have undergine huge changes in the last fifty years. However, caron and Moskey have also noted that this movement towards openness regarding sex is also accompanied by a responsibility as the younger generation is much more likely to use birth control and have meaningful discussions regarding sex with their parents, friends and boyfriend/girlfriend.

Despite these positives, the increased sexual openness has also had some negative influences of the American society. The changing values mean that the teenagers of today have their first sexual expereince much earlier than they did 50 years ago. Despite having access to birth control, sexual experimentation can and does lead to pregnancies. As the Caron and Moskey study showed, a much higher percentage of today’s teen have experienced abortion, miscarriage, given up a baby for adoption or had a baby and cared for it (522). Teen pregnancies is a real and challenging problem of today and it can be attributed to our changing values regarding sex. Young girls, who have still not reached maturity, are not properly equipped to raise chidren. Besides, these girls often end up being single mothers which means that their children do not get the protective environment of a family. And as Drabble has noted, a family is a must for the education of the young. The openness regarding sex has led to a lack of respect for the institution of marriage and this can have far reaching consequences on the future generations.

Works Cited

Calogero, Katie. “Porno: Culture, Technology and Censorship Through the Decades.” 2009. Web.

Caron, Sandra L., and Eilean G. Moskey. “Changes over Time in Teenage Sexual Relationships: Comparing the High School Class of 1950, 1975, and 2000.” Adolescence 37.147 (2002): 515-526.

Drabble, Margaret. “The Sexual Revolution.” Guardian 1967. Web.

Francoeur, Robert, Patricia Barthalow Koch & David L. Weis. Sexuality in America. Continuum International Publishing Group, 1999.

“Kinsey Reports.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 2009. Web.

“Masters and Johnson on Homosexuality.” Time. 1979. Web.

Schwartz, Mark & William Masters. “The Masters and Johnson Treatment Program for Dissatisfied Homosexual Men.” American Journal of Psychiatry 141.2 (1984): 173-181.

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Changes in American Sexual Values Since 1950s

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