radical america - vol 4 no 7 - 1970 - september october

8/8/2019 Radical America - Vol 4 No 7 - 1970 - September October

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On the Role of Youth Culture

into var ious for ms of lethar gy. Th as s rt ion of the pr ogre ss iv li r atin gchara ct er of youth culture mu st b bas d on some ing e se . In the Nov mb ris sue of Radica Am er i ca , that som thing ls is h d t a new wor king cla ss ! youth as a cla ss ana ysis of Amer ican soci ty . On y i t e basis ofsocie ty as a hol is fundamenta lly changing can youth cu tur hope b compr ogr e ss i ve Th is cont en tio n is m ost ex lic itl y sta t d in D lfi nP s ad ar tic le .He clai ms t hat c h ng e s in th e ba se of tech nolog y te nd t iminat tht r aditi ona or king cla ss and

to incr a s e impor tan c of te chnica ork rs dividing socie ty into " tec hnic a ork er s and manage rs on the one si d andpass iv consum rs on th oth r (Pa g 10) o her e how ver do s D lf ini argu e th is cas e On the contr ar y, h pr es nts a ca ri cat ur e of a g arg um nt for it (alo g ith his cari catu r of an opposing pos it ion hich he ident ifi s

ith his b ata nt dis torti on of the po sitio n of th Prog r ssi ve La r Pa r ty)He t hen b ases a po sitive anal ysis of u th cu lture on th e s at men t tha t yout hcu ture r ep r s nts a re sp on s t t his shif t in obje cti ve co nd it ion s an d th discover y on the par t of youth of their own common condit ons as a nasc ntc as s ( ag 11). Sinc (pac e th Ro ntre s) ut h by d finitio n can ot bea c ass th e cas mu st arg u d on th bas is of hat th ey il b come.ne must ar that you i som ho (a though it i s n er s ai d ho gr ow up and becom cap able of tu ing society ar ound t as se r th pr ogr s siv e

alues h ich no appea r in youth cultu re This is th ult imat ba sis for t heas sert ions cont ain d in most of the oth r art c s that uth cu tur e is progr ssive

There s m to m t o things wrong ith this argum nt First that it isfactually incorrect S cond, n supposing that a n or ng classana ysis is roughly accurat it ould not follo that uth cul ur isa positive forc . On th contrary, if capi alist society is to b increasinglydivided between manag rs/t chnical orkers and passi e consumers th n thatcapitalist soci ty mus create a larg num r of marginal and ss ntiallyuse ss positions on its peripheries. must find a ay to g t p opl to accepttheir s tus as passive consumers , as parasit s. Th obj ctiv ro e ofyouth cul ur is one answ r to this need Und r th mask of g nuin motionand s nsuality and astro ogy, th re exist a relati e y arg and growingnumber of peopl who work only marginally, who frequ ntly get mon y fromtheir midd e-c ass parents who hav nothing usefu do but ho do consume

arg amounts of e ensi e clothing records, sound systems camerast cetera t is irre evant hether time spent in m ditation- -or stil b rentrance in a product so d by the capita ist- is go for the soul : it is very

good for the capitalist for it enab es him to deal ith the problem ofun mployment creat d by is ne techno ogical bas . It is not by accidentthat youth cultur is primari y a middle class ph nomenon one which is theprivi ege of people ho have mon y and eisure

inally the quest on of " liberat on for hom ? must be asked In and ofthems lves, manifestations of youth cu ture r pres nt an at empt to scapefrom an oppressive social order. To th tent that th social order oppresses

any d fferent gro ps they are a psycho ogica n cessity for the p icipantsor differ nt socia stra vacations sports listening to music on e ensi e


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8 Radical Amer ca

o n e ipment, going in o go rmet cooking, going to the rive-in movo-it r e f ng, or pen ing ot of money tomizing a car f fi

nee Ba ica y, there i i t e ifference in the e capi t f nction fhe ei re yo h of he pe y bo rgeoi ie (or the new working c a

prefers) by Dy an an a tape eck, an by he money an time that a woras guy pen c omizing hi ar an king abo t it at grea

wi h hi frien In h ca e , the in ivi a ha a en e of e cap

every ay real y an entifica ion with a t re hero ( inger or rriver), an a en e of a omp i hmentThe rea anger of yo th c re i that per ona iberation an b

he primary overwhe ming fo of one energies. By evo ing arge amof time yo th re or whatever), per ona ibera ion i achieveexen Q a rea po iti a orien ation It preempt he ta k of creating gro p o i ari y between a the gro p -from he in tria pro etaria

wing egmen of ower- eve echnocracy--who e in ere ti imi ar yoppo e o hat of the r ing c a rimary evotion to ife ty e--one' own hing- prec e any re cha enge to he y tem An

ha enge, one m n er n a cha enge whi h ha a oncrete c e , whi h i ma orien e , an whi h inc e the tra i iona

c a , ince it ti po e e m re po en ia ocia power, an tanmore, than any o her ing e gro p.

B t it is ina eq ate o i y i mi he pre en manife ta ion of c re a co nter -revo ionary, a pe e ating the capi a i t y tem. may be hat, b they are a o a re pon e o ome hing. Wha i ep ace -an , more impo ant, wha chara teri ic wo hey nee in obecome a force for rea o ia iberation ?

or many peop e, it i e that yo th c t re ha repre en e e he beginning of per ona iberation. That i a o he r x of he prTo be tru y iberating, it wo have o invo ve e ota r ct re ofe erien e- no imp y one or even a eries of a pe t . The p b iccommer ia manife ta ion of yo th re o their e t in re remain in t e rea m of per ona ibera ion; t a it oe not invo v

o ective hinking or g o p a tion. Even enormo ga ering Woo ock o not promot a gro p on cio ne , b rather the meof a erie

In fa t, m i in he i othe e an he y tem of he ight hresemb e a trance than any hing e e. Ani no in ignifi ant at r gch a peyo e an mesca ine were origina y e o in ce re igioor that Zen i the in tr men of repre ion an wa hi orica ymaintain a tri ca te a e onomic c a y em in In ia What beb i y ibera ion an he reje ion of a rationa i y that ha become repret rn in o mere t por, or e i t a he e en e of the repre ion of othWhat i ppo e o to a experien e i in fact t tify ng. Anycomm ni a ion become impo ib e, an he s he i of art n po i iMar ha nnenberg ca for in her ar ic e be ome in fact the abo ition

inte ectua effor at a i no ac i ent at yo h c re i heaan i inte ec a The very vo ab ary of the Weatherman paper (o

,


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On th Rol of Youth Cultu 79

analogues) or of people heavily into outh c lt e, exhibits a eg ession toinfantili sm : the complete b eakdown of gramma into stereot ed andinfinitel repetitive hrases (such as dig, heav ap, g oove, right on, toomuch et cetera).

Rather than conside ing the total t of expe ience, outh culture isolates itselemen s f om each other and f om the societ a o d it and bases an anal sison the isolated elements of whate e wo k one consider s What good do" revolutiona l ics do f the mus c itself, o the surroundings in whichi exists induce eithe a t ance o the efusal to think about the l ic s ?

t seems plausible, fo example, that the musica ll e etitive st uctu e of ockand the blues mitigates against an effect the l rics might othe wise have

C lt re, if it is to be p og essive must itself be seen as a coherent totalitMan of the objections to the establ ished c ltu e are on the grounds that itconsists of, o is taught as , a series of isolated, mean ngless fragments Andthe objections are co rect But the e s q ali ativel er l ttle differencebetween the plo of established c lture in educ ng Shakespea e to a se ies ofiso ated uotations, or in talk ng about exist ntialism and the tendenc to

glo in some single as ect of expe ence, o in a song, on the part of peopleinto o th cu ture Grooving on D lan and a p ofesso ' s enth s iasm foHomeric epithets are not fundamental l different Within cultu al phenomena,the d chotom between the various elements is bar ie to revolut onar useo c l e , and constit tes the ma n wa in which c lt e b comes sef l tocapital sm The songs of B echt s Three Penn Ope a a e safe wheni solat f om the context of the pla as a whole, just as it is safe t lo inthe omantic evolutiona ethos of " Street F ghting Man , o Che o Hobeca se it is isolated from an meaningf l total context Thus the poste st leof the Ma evolts in Pa is, again produced in the famous first poste du ingthe Harva d st ike in has been taken over b a wide va iet ofcommerc al p oductions. The fist is g eat , but also usef l to capital ism,beca se it is l ked at as El9 i itselL Because of this isolation, the eco dcompanies, clothing indust ies, et cete a can fashion the phenomenon of outhc ltu e to their own ends.

In addition to opposing the split perce tion which ende s music and otheelements of outh cultu e usef l to the econom , cultu al innovato s mustconsistentl attempt to e-appropriate the means of p oduction of the wo k ofa awa f om the ruling class and towa d the masses, as Walter Benjaminpointed o t in his es sa The A tho as Producer Benjamin argues at thea tist exists in elation to his means of pr uction, ust as does the wo ke ,and that those means belong to capitali sm he a tist must at eve pointattempt t change that elation Conc etel , the e cannot an excessive

eliance on the implements of advanced capital sm on expensive sounde uipment, movie came as et cetera Social and cultu al elements must bemaste ed b people for thei own use

i st , this implies educing technical e uipment to a minim m. It al someans maste ing the udiments of the machiner we use f om amplifiers toelect ic t pew ite s to ca s An ed ction in technical dependence on he

to ls of capitalism is a cul al gain In more di ectl c ltu al areas, it means


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80 Radical America

s r nu usly pp sing fads f s ars and h r s, par icularly r ck s arr v lu i nary h r s P l sh uld ins ad v lv h ir wn usics yl s Th r r p i i n f r c iv d cul ur , as pp s d a p s cr a a n w ali y u f i , can nly s rv h fu h r us f hby uling class This pr c ss can n v r s p w can n v r b sa

a r B a in d fin s a hack as s n wh r ly rans i s r cl n s and p in s u ha a r v lu i nary hack is s ill a hack"

wh ach s a wri r n hing, ach s n dy any ing Th r usimpl r pr duct i n f cul ur as a c di y is inh r n ly r ac i naIn addi i n h in al c n radic i ns and us s f cul ural l

h r is ss n ial qu s i n f h r la i n f cul ur h w rlBy i s lf cul ur cann acc lish anything And a cul ural r v lu i nr fus s c nsid r h way in which i is g ing ak p li ical pd d dis n gra i n Cul ur us als h a ically - ha is, ww rks h ms lv s -b s in a ass c n A ruly lib ra ing cul uav id rh ric f r m p rs nal lib ra i n and h r individuBu us as cul ural lib ra i n al n is s ril , h c nqu s f p li icis n aran f anything wi h u a c nc n ra d ff r a p rs ncultural li ra i n f h ruling class can succ ssfully is la culturp rs nal lib ra i n fr qu s i ns f ass p li ical v m n s i has

ss n ial vic ry Ind d, in is la i n fr v ry hing ls cultur r ac i nary, sinc i s rv s k p p pl as a s ri s f is la d indra h r ha a c h siv gr up

This is h crucial p in which is v rl k d y h s wh say ha f y u h cul ur is pr cis ly c ns i u a t al cul ural nvir n

f r f a lif s yl r a br ad r s ns f c uni y Gran d h

qu s i n again is n h in nd d g al, u h ac ual r sul s Thc un s, c ra which ar f r d ha nd ar h rac s f c n radic i ns as l n s f y u h cul ur w ha alr ady c nsid rr sul is n a ali y u a s ri s f is la d ph n na whichinward l king and s p rific Th incr asing failur s f c un s wi n ss n nly h ul ima s rili y f gr ups which sys ma ica

l k u sid h s lv s bu als disas r us p li ical r sul s :incr asings cial an ag nisms b w n gr ups which sh uld b alli d2

T b ff c iv y u h cultur us l k u sid i s lf, ward hf lar r gr ups cann si ply dismiss h p rv rsi ns f y u h y h as s m dia as r piph n na f r h pu lic anif s a

y u h cul ur i s ff c s n gr ups u sid i s lf By gr up lib raan ass s f p pl in h Uni d a s t day, n l as

radi i nal w rking class gr up s lidari y which is uil up n h asisa pri arily middl -class v n which is h cas a his p in usb

u ward l king if i is succ d us g ar d uilding a larA s all is la d gr up is n uch r han a s ri s f is la d indivand can b w rs sinc i incr as s an ag nis s w n gr ups fwh shar a c n in r s Any pr gr ssi cul ur us h r f r

in a p li ical c n f uilding a ass basT call f r h ab li i n f h dich y b w n ar and p li ics


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81 On the Role of Youth Cultu e

th q sti n f h it is t b d n hat c nsci s strat gy bas d n massacti n can v nt ally h p t tak p r r n th stat and chang s ci tyThat is th cr cial pr bl m ith hich y th c lt r n h r d als n thabs nc f any r fl cti n n that q sti n th act al manif stati ns f y thc lt r n t t m nti n idl sp c lati ns n it ill b r acti nar in g n ralAnd in th abs nc f th s q sti ns p rs na li rati n r mains primarilyindivi al and nly s c ndarily lib rating t th r by pr v nts any r ald v l pm nt f s lidarity am ng th s gr ps in h s int r st it isally

th ach th r t c nsci sl pr m t a r v l ti n

(1 Whil it is tr that cat g ri s f rk rs hich can b call d nrking c ass" ar gr ing th ind strial pr l tariat is hardly ith ring

a ay B t n 929 and 965 th p rc ntag f th lab r f rc in thtraditi nal pr l tariat r main d virt all c nstant 9 7%in 929 39 6%in

96 .Th incr as in th imp rtanc f th s rvic s ct r f th c n my inr lati n t th traditi nal rking class cam al st ntir y fr m a dr p inth p rc ntag f th rk f rc m l d in agric lt r (Lab r D partm ntstati tics inW rk r' t m ricanE_ n ! , Da t ab r Fp blish d by th N ngland Fr Pr ss F th r, it is n t ri s that r al

ag s hav b n d clining sinc96 Th c rr nt av rag tak -h m pay frk rs ith a family is nd r$80a k$ 000a y ar Y t th G v m ntstimat s that it c sts a famil f f r p ard f8 000a y ar aft r tax s

liv m d rat l in an f th ma r p p lati n c nt rs v r, this isn t an arg m nt ant t nt r in d tail right n .

2) Sinc d n t hav spac t ff r an ntir p sitiv pr gram, a bri fxampl ill hav t s ffic . Ab t t y ars ag a small c mm n asstablis d in Cambridg t as n t partic larly xc ssiv and in fact fairly

c ns vativ as c mm n s g , y t it s n stablish d th r p tati n fa b nch f hippi s living t g th r and f th s SDS t s" This b cam a

significant barri r rganizing rk in th n ighb rh d and in Cam ridgin g n ral. Only aft r a c nc rt d ff t as mad t stablish p rs nalc n cts ith th n ighb rs and ith c mm nity p pl -- r gh dinn rs,visits rk ith n ighb rh d kids- did th h stility b gin t abat Ths rc f h stility as n t s m ch th ac al practic r lif styl f thp pl inv lv d as th f ars and fantasi s ar s d in th c mm nity t is n tn c ssary t giv p n 's b li fs r lif styls t c lt r in a mass bas ;it is s ffici nt t pati ntly xplain th m and t tak s ri sly th p pl n

tri s t rk ith rath r than fla nting n 's lif styl as a r d flag Thi ri ass m ti n that th p pl ith h m ill havally ar partf th pr bl m is a s r l s r


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N Y C

d C m gThe following comments should n t be taken as an attack upon or a defense of

John Heckma ' critique as such; n r hould they be considered an affir ationor denial of the co cept et forth in the R d c l A me cYouth Culture Num er

November 1969 . Rather we seek to utilize the excha ge of views in RA toclarify our general perspective on the subject Fir t it should be remem eredthat Youth Culture is an extremely heterogeneous de elopment within American

ociety, a d that its role varie widely a ong, for instance, a la ge collegeca pus, a all rural co munity a d a metro litan area. Second it must erecognized that the term Y uth C ture i so ag e - and has been so of enmisus - that only general definitions and descriptio are po i le. Yet weshall attempt to con ey, i a limited pace, our ense that Youth Culture as awhole is one significant his rical respo se - among a wide variety ofrespo es from early e ery population sector to the acceleratingdi tegratio of social cult ral institution in this society a d the growi g

arbarity of relations at e ery levelThe es e ce of John Heckman argument is that Youth Culture i not elfcontradictory Certain aspects of it (communality de ire for elf e res ion,et cetera) are for hi hea thful reactio to the reification of Culture ut onceharden into Youth Cult re proper these reactio o ly aid i the creation ofnew form of mystification. The personalization/inte ali ation of ocialdilem a thu eco e a direct e a ion of the ost pre ing ocial pro lem ,a d there y offers many for of ratio ali ation to the lei ured sons anddau ter of the lea t oppres ed populatio group

Heck an' iew of Youth Culture closely follow the iews of the FrankfortSchool of ocial theori ts with wh Walter Ben a i was closely as sociated)on mode a culture. The late Theodor Ado o held adolescent mu ic to bethe a lition of the Utopia which clas ical mu ic with all its cla limitatio s)had alway implied for manki d as a whole Rock dancing thr ugh its pro tioof h er acti e but e e tially eriali ed and non socializi g otion , was forAdor o a irulently a ti intellectual e of accepting the world I rathertha truggli g rationally a d collecti ely against totalitaria trend .( )Heck a i ilarly ee Youth Culture a regre sive precisely because ito iate at ocial collectivity ece sary for the transformatio of ociety

Our di agree e t with Heck an notion i oth historical and sociological.Heck an repeatedly refer to the danger of viewing Culture " isolation frome eryt i g el e". Yet i our co ceptio hi a alysi falls icti that verydanger. Becau e he a tai s from a co crete analy i of the social hi toricalco te t fro which Youth Culture e erge he lithely u es selecti e perceptio

and a co co ita t a tract categori atio ) i iewing it pre entcharacte i tic . Such ethodology i , we elie e unfortu ate inherit ncefro a Political Left which almo t fro the ti e of Mar has per i tently

( 1) P ere ial F ashio - J az , in P ri s m s (Lo do 1967), Page 132.


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I

Not ons o Yout Cu tu 83

seen the evolving real ty in developed societies in a fragmented manner,i olat ng social and cultural phenomena from each other and from the past

The di tant predeces ors of Youth Culture are those lit le groups ofintellectual and artist who as earl as the 1830 n Amer ca at empted tocome to gr ps with the dehumanizat on of life n capital t - d rected

ndu trialization The r soc al orig n la n the le sure time that modernociet had begun to afford to ome sector but unl ke earlier thinkers and

wr ters they refused both to de fy trad tional rel gious and cultural value and

to offer opt mi tic prediction about ndustriali ng merica Most impo tantthey re a vital connection to a radical Femin t movement then making itspresence felt. These earl Femin ts held a social vi s on in wh ch women'ssuffrage wa only one a pect of fuller liberation; and as the secular zat on ofFem nism into Suffrag sm n later decades was to mark the decline of thewomen movement so the per odic r e of Fem n st n t atives has denotedrecurring trend for a k nd of "total liberat on with n Amer can radical sm.In the immediate sen e the reformer and Utop an of that earl periodrepre ented li tle more than a fut le effo t to pre erve the best of Americanva ues at a t me when the mater al basi for tho e values was be ng l qu datedBut from a h stor cal vantage point they are ignif cant for hav ng nd cated anuneasines of relativel le ured group which was to grow n var ing degreesas t e i e of tho e groups grew in later decade Fu ther the den ed o theevolving indu trial Capitalism the acquie scence of the oc ety's best minds thatCapital sm has ince increas ngly come to demand. (2

By the period of Debs an Soc ali m the breakdown of pre- ndustr al societyin America was far advanced r anization and cont nued industr ali ation haddone much to undercut the patriarchical home and the extended family. Theavailabilit of leisure to a till larger group of Amer can and the relative

lei ure for a growing group of wh te collar worker of var ou kinds allowedapart c pation n ocial and pol t cal affa rs previousl l m ted to a few For thefir t t me in this country there e sted a stratum of so -called ParlorSocial sts non wage earners who e social vi on was e tended by thel terature of the Sociali t movement and l m ted by the r fear andm sunder tand ngs of the un k lled proletariat. And signif cantl there wa are urfac ng of the emin t movement after decadesof pparent qu cenceThousands of cial st women ver often from comfortably wealth home re ponded to the r ver real oppres io and at empted at the r best momentto serve the need of the mas s of super oppres sed working-cla s women,thereb to create a vital alliance aga n t Cap tali t and Sexual e loitat on (3

(2) Malcolm Cowle y xi 's R e l r ( ew Yor k, 963 ed ion) pa r ti cularl Pages 62-650 Also David Her re shoff ra n cendent al olit cs n the 196 s" ,Pa .S oj hLc hig an f< ! f en ce , ! t a 9 Lette rs .52, 1967 ( 966 Meet ng) who comments : The Ne eft w l continue to look more like a 19 0s movement unle s ther e i a r e ival of labor r adica l m n the tT . S "

(3) See M. J. Buhle Women n the c al st ar y 9 914R dic l

m cVolume

4,Number 1 (February 197 )


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8 Radical America

A pa a ph nom non of vita importanc was th g owth of GVi ag a a w t rs and arti ts' community of ignificant ta nt and s

f th cu nts f owing through th Vi ag around th tim of Wor d Wapp a d as a socia st agitationa magazin with som of th

painting and ourna istic ta nts of th p r od.A pow rfu symbo of thm rging ynth si of pro tarian and avant-ga d va u s was th fri

of two socia giants : Ma gar t Sang , th bi h cont o advocat whbri ant y for wom n' r ghts and tr ss d in h privat if fuof s nsua ity; and Ha w , th tough o tarian rn ad r ofth I W. Wwho had d th min rs and oth work r again t th condit ons osca c ty and pr ss on at th wo ac . Anoth r pow rfu symbowork of Lou C Fraina acknow dg d a th first L n ni t ntAm rica:in 1915-16 h dit d v ra numb r of Isadora Duncan's mMod n Danc , and h had invo v d h ms f with gr at s r ou nd v opm nt painting and po try. Of cou such xam s do not stth xistenc of a m aningfu cu tura -po itica tr nd But quit cw r m nt in th Socia t L ft which had b gun to o nt to th r

proc ss as mor than Po t c , a a fundam nta r conc ation ofd in a cia t soci tyJust a th first wav s of working-c a activ ty acr s th wor d fstab sh any a ting work rs' contro any h r , o th Boh mian"

f abo a in Am r ca into confu on and nti- o itica s f iTh conn ction b tw n thi fai ur and th ris of m r can outh Cabso ut y vita to our und r tanding wh th oc a v s oBoh m ans a d, th i habits and mann r m b cam ST EScon umpt on and r b on amond th youth of r at v y sur d th country. Th ado c nt among country-c ub s t in D nv r and ap th Boh mian to an attack upon th th n-dying rot tant vahard work and fruga ity Sim ar y, th S xua R vo ution" of twhich s t th ac for s xua habits n our oc ty sinc , was a conobj ctiv r su t of th oo ning mo s in a tim wh n, s gnific

o tica ft was too sma to b u d ff ctiv y a a car " tath ocia s xua innovators. Thus a triumphant and undaunt AmCa ita ism acc t d th r ad of mor ib rat d cu tura formwid r popu ation cto . 4) .

(4 Not th r markab y pr nti t ton in Cow y d cu onr tt n in 93

To k p th factory wh turn ng, a n dom t c mark t had tcr a ed ndustry nd thrift w r no ong r ad quat Th r mua n w th that ncourag d o to buy acon ! pt on thic

t ha n d that many of th Gr nwich Vi ag d a rov d in th a t r d itua ion Thu , f x r s on and pag

ncourag d a d mand for a ort of roduct mod fu itur ,b ach ajama , co m t , o or d bathroom ith toi t a


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No o of You h Cul u e 85

By the 1920s in Europe and America, the shape of today's You h Culture wasde eloping. Interest in Eastern re igions, in dr gs, in arious forms ofmysticism had appeared sporadical y The reaction to Black music pro ides adirect paralle : the pre 920 Bohemian praise of (and dancing to B ack azwas succeeded by the broad acceptance of sterile, consumption orientedmusicians like aul Whiteman, ust as in the 950s white youth interest inblack urban Rhythm d Blues and Beat interest in a was succeeded by

at B ne's popu ar parodies of Rock tunes and the ikes of Herb Alpert sazz. Or again, the generat on of writers who got to the Vil age after Wor d

War I were, as Ma co m Cowley pointed out, careerist professiona s whoexp oited their cu tura e ert se to write ad ertising copy, publish insophistic cynical magazine and buy homes e suburbs forty years laterthe successors to the rea Beat writers would make many fortunes desi inghip slogans for The Uncola and writing hip no els for the po paperbackmarket

And the internaliz repression of t e new, liberated" styles was al soapparent by the 920s. A arger stratum of acti e artists did it e to relate to

a y hing America beyond Greenwich Village rather, an incest ous andess tia ly parasitic artists communi y continued to grow in Manhattan.The higher le el of actual pre marita sex among Yout i genera did notsignificant y a er the oppression of women or e se ua esthetic of thepeop e in ol ed they stil went on to marry he o beco more frequentlythan before a ow leve executi e in a non pr ucti e, co sumption or entedindustry, and she to become a hopeles sly red and a ienated housewife

ndi dua rebellions of sensiti e people were to continue and even grow butwith few exceptions the results were on y newer forms of confusion andmys fication

Throughout the 920s 940s the o itica eft intently and successfullystif ed the personal liberatory attitudes of those in and around its circ es ofpower. hile the orth ox eaders of the Debsian cia ist arty merelysuspected but tolerated indi idua att tudes toward culture and sexualityCommun st leaders pub c y forbade e en the sexua iberat o which Commun strank and fi ers practiced pri ately. Every effort o introduce a culturalcomponent of any autonomy into re olut onary po itica acti ity was resisted bythe ft as a whole in the name of a proletar at whom the leaders ew onlyabstract .

Along with middle c ass America, the 930s eft entirely m ssed the

match. Li ing for the moment meant bu ng an automobi e, radio orhouse, using it now, and paying for i tomorrow ema e equality wascapable of doub i g the consumption of products ciga e es forexample that had former y been used by men a one.

It is a so important to note that, as Cowley points out, the scandalizing aboutVi age morals in theS turd y ven ng Post by Village writers emsel es

was an i ortant source of i formation on new habits and sty es o the rest of

the Ame ican people Cowley, age 62


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86 adica America

s gnif cance of working-c ass yo th revo t a d viewed it as crimuveni e de nquency Understanding on y formu as a t the

pro etar at the Le t cou d not grasp thean - ro content of working c assc r me Wh e m dd e c ass aw break ng has tended to be main y

stea ing money organized crime em zz ng) working c ass offebeen fundamenta y e ressive vanda ism vagrancy o tering dret cetera) B t the sym c content was a most never exp ored save bTannenb um who had wri en for the o d Masses and who tr ed to descf ne ne between p ay s mi ar to the spontaneity present in Ar and de

In the conf ct between e yo ng de nq ent d the comm n ty tdeve op two oppos ng definit ons of e sit ation In the beginning definition by the ng de in ent may in the form of p ayadvent re excitement interest mischief f n Breaking windoannoying peop e r nn ng aro nd porches c mbing over r fs stefrom pushcarts p ayi g tr ant a are items of p ay adventurexc ement To the comm nity however these activit es may and o

do take on the form of a nuisance ev de inq ency wi the defor contro admonition chas isement p n sh ent po ce co rschoo (5)

Thepo nt here s not to propose work ng c ass crime as vei ed revoconscio sness b t to ind cate an awareness of and host ty by sectc as s aga nst the kind of ife m osed pon it Working-c ass yo tyouth of more prospero s groupsres ond e fet er ng cond t ons n twor d around t; that response m st be ana yzed cr t ca y rather tha

gnor d or mere y ass med and categor zedThe rise of re ative eis re among working c ass yo th especia y 1 4 s has been nex ricab y connected w th the a tomob e and w

mus c ng before Youth C t re was reco zed by the soc ety as a wroad contacts between poor whites and e b ack popu ation had en m

j z and a sharing of anti-socia habits s ch as mar u na) wano ous among music ans o o tsiders whether radica schod sa rov ng parents hot r ding and rock dancing have a ways appear

o ates n hi stic reactions the wor d crises which compe MeW to soc a and po i ica action B t to the youth tse f cars

prov ded an o et for creativity w th the too s at handThe genera form of the s at hand is pr uced by the semi -controre at onship between the techno ogica eve of Cap ta st societneeds/capabi ities of the Cap ta ist marke ace But the point must bethat the particu ar varieties of ente tainment and socia re ease ncreasnecessary a society which has entered a peri of socia disacc m a

of cons iracy on art the rul ng c ass (6 Rather

5) rime and Comm ni y Bos n 19 8) Page 17

(6 e artin k ar On e Pro etarian Revo ut on and the End of Po


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o ion o o h C l e 87

hey are media ed ween wha is me chandisab e and wha is mos eadi yaccep ab e o a mass of cons me s On a deepe eve ey may ep ese asea ch by he mos a iena d membe s of he socie y fo heau en c, he eae pe ience denied o a by Capi a ism h s a ime in i s o i ina fo ms

ained op a i y no beca se was chosen by e ing c ass fo e sk ofopia in b beca se i e essed a f ndamen a a y d s en h of heb ack comm ni y and i s m sic a bea y and s en h ha whi es so

e rop ia e fo hemse ves. A a n he e is no indica ion ha he r in c assso h o fo ce ho roddin pon ado escen s n he 940s and 50s. a ede s d ease s ( he socia e was ames an i he Wi d Ones

we e idea ized and imi a despi e he disdain of ad socie y Fina y i isdemons ab e ha on y owe eve en ep e e s s ch as A an F eed we eins men o he b oad and apid accep ance of ock n o amon whi e

eena e s hei pa en s were appa ed by he ope e essions of sens a i yas hei andpa en s had b n appa ed by he s b se a p omisc i y of

he 920sIn a cases whe e a evo iona y si a ion is no an immedia e pos sibi i y

and whe e he Lef has no made a de e mined in e ven ion a fo ms sei edpon by ado escen s (o o e o ps) wi be conve ed emp ied of p o essive

con en a d made in o p ofi p ovide s o he ma im m ex e pos ib e by hee s of socie y B he r e s abi i y op ro r ate and p o hei o

ends s ch mecha isms sho d no b ind s o he essen ia y eac ive ( ha isnon fo ma ive) na e of Capi a ism in he C e Ma ke mechanism o o

he eve p esen a emp s of he ado escen s (as wi o he o ps) o find afo m inhe en hei s

D ri g th e 1950s Amer ica n soci ety en ter ed its fourt h de ca de of S CIal

D s i, a d ci e p r in i m rit y as a wel fa e -wa r e

Co po a e Sa e i h i s en acles in o he ve y i s itu ions (a v e all, etrad e-un ion move men t s) which had earl ier s eem ed to pos e the mos t hop efuls igns for socia l tra nsfor ma on e arlie r. T his is the peri od in which Adorno wro t e: " There are o m ore ideo logies in t he a uthent ic se se of fal seco sci ous e s, o nly ad verti semen t s for the world thro ugh it s dupl icatio n and he p ovoca ive li e which does o seek belief bu comma ds ilence. The

apho ism se emed s a kly rue du i g he Eis enhowe adm inis a io s and ye one S cia l Th re at c ou ld a scer tai ned by mos t Amer ic ans, a Thre at which appear ed in v a rious g uises d was a ll the m ore frig htening an Co m munism

beca se i was i di eno s y Ame ica and i he efo e fo c co ymen oface hemse ve a d hei ow pas he B acks.A cia O a s i his socie y whe e Comm nis s had been jai ed o cas

o o e ec ed o si enced be an o appea ike B acks he e eme ence ofno wo kin c as Bohemia in San F ancisco and o he p aces dependeddi ec y pon he e No man Mai e ca ed he Whi e Ne o e e is e iafi e who p ac iced a e socia habi s os o whi e Ame ica Simi a yEco omic cie y Rad cal A me ca"Vo me N mbe 2 May ne 969fo e semi a o ion of he disacc m a on of he p od c ive p ocess i se f

i hin capi a ism es in i a massive a fo ma ion of he ma ke p aceo a d Con me ism in a inc easi y as ef fashion.


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88 Radical America

hite m ddle cl ss teen ers be n to listen to uthe Rhythm'n Bst tions, str inin their e rs for uthentic music s White Rock s e t thrits initi l eriods of innocence (mostly s hite orkin cl ss henomes eci lly Gene Vincent like fi ures nd into its first decline. C m umus c reviv ls e ye rs l ter ould ocus e rly Ne e t olitic l c

nd ould lso le n he vily u on the Bl ck tr ditions. But most im ortsoci l t es of Q


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89 N ti ns f Y th C lt re

semi-indigenous inst tutions among blacks, juv ni d linqu nt working-c as kinds d o hers which to y neglects their rea socia si ificanc : th"don' ra e hic of del nquents, the communi y among jazz musicians (most ylower class) the collectivist d equa itarian nature of fundamen al st andrev va rel g on a l represen for us meanin u express ons ofso idari . ButHeckman l ke the r d tional Commun st ooking at the Black Church from theou side has no understand ng; as Adorno surveying Cap a t ma s cu tur

with a comparison only o Nineteenth Century C assic cu ure can come on yo a one-sided pess mis ic conc usion. Thus Heckm n grants n eff c , hat hdomain of the non ra iona and irrat ona are th prop rty of the Right tomanipu a e d perhaps u timately perver the egitimate but un c arified de s r sof the masses Such a posi on for us is a dang rous and even r sponsiabstention fr an mportant battle fron of he c ass war.

Heckman, unl ke the hardened h ck M rx s s n th s country is wi inprovide he proto political s ctors wi h on exceptional oppo unity: they maypar ic p e in progress ive cultural act on IF they dev se it themselves and arable o repa r by hand. One m gh ask How long ar th y being a lowed tprac ice? When do we adjudge he r effor s a f i ure Qui seriously th s"excep ion s only one more form of Ado oesque damnat on for i acc ptspeop e nd he r cu tur traditions no as they are (w th hope to transforming

hem) bu as hey should be. Like he ulgar n nists Heckm n' s culturat achers wi be harsh as ers for he r pup ls who mus perform he r asksin a ce ta n prescr bed w y or be fa led.

On th other sid of e coin Heckm n rejects he non-ration des re in populat on. He attacks Zen, Eas ern myst c sm genera y and drugs because

hey offer nothing more than a trance. But in a cert in context, a si ificant

aspect of Buddhism h s b en h us ge of forms toward a grea er se s ofs eJ (the powers and limi ations of he b y and its connec ons with hunconsc ous and semi conscious mind) as has be n tha of users of c rta ndrugs. cia sm if i has mean ng at al w l reconc l man s physicalcapab li es to his socia self As M rx himse f phrased t:

Communism is hePQ ivaboli on of r v PQ , of h alf-alien ion, and thus he re l ' jat @ of man nature

through and for m n. is, herefore he retu f man himself as as !, e ,rea ly human being a comp e e and conscious re uwhich ass m a es al he wea h of prev ous developmen Commu ism

a ful y dev op d na ura sm is human m and as fu y deve opedhumanism is natural sm I s hde ! ver so ut on of heant gonism b tween man and n ture and ween m n and m nisthe t e solution of the confli between exis enc and essence be eenobjec ifica ion and self aff rma on between freedom and necess ybetween ind vidual and specie s. I is he solu on of the r ddle ofh s ory and knows tself o be th s solu on.7)

) A enat d abor narly Wr ngs

edited by Bottomore ew York96 )Page 55 h s s n original.


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90 Radical Am rica

W th ha v s on as a so al poss b l y an ne ess y, we la ly eje t o he 1930s Le no on a l e was a besa me ul spensa on o

su e ng tha sex al y s o he p o ea on o h l en an hae ho a on to he wo ke s o p o u e Mo e.

he e we e on e easons why he al n s va an o he P otes anPe o man e P n ple was un e stan able ( neve ully a ep able) we e easons why the hos l y o a als to a van e A , o mFem n sm, to un omp om s ng sensual y, was nev able. Bu ha pepas An we as pa o a so al pol al movemen musgo e Q e eahose en en es wh h seek to push women ba k n o he home wh h pe p

he g y o a s tly e ne P ole a A t wh h seek o ehe gh to Laugh. We o no eny he se ousness o evolu on no

expe t o make evolut on Fo he Hell o I a he we bel eve ha o l be a on wh h sensual y eal se ual equal y an open laugh e ep

s pa o e evolut ona yp o ess sel o la m less o pos evolutso ety s o be ome an U op an n he wo s way eny he on l

he s uggle o ee om wh h was Ma s l e s wo k an wh h mushe l e s wo k o eve y evolu ona y o ay


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Youth Culture and Political Activity - Rep y to Heckm n

byAlexander De fini

Jo H c a s spo s o No b ss oRad al A m r aoo l s o call co c p s a o o w

o as ap s cal Ma x s T d s g s g c a ac sssa s g al co s s c o s dog a c a o

p o o . I s ad o a p g o d s a d p oq s o , s s or fut w abs ac ca go s Fo xa pl

s d s a ga d d asddl - lass d c b g a do sf nan al burd , o c l sr a t ary d c b g a do s ' app al o ass s (p s abl d s al wo g cl

, w o? , a d a cco a d D l s o c l asol o a (so g do o sa d c b gr ly, a

s o ac o d a w obsol c ca godo a g H c a 's d s o d p c p o o al wo ld .

To b a o o o o a p ac c s c a o w l p ac c s al o da o o d a o a d Ma x s s a o d p alls o los g s c

d ac o a g ac o o w s p s r g s s ppop sp o a d ag s a c a g g al . Bo p alls pco s q c s Ma x s d g a s o a d olog s r g, sp

o s o p p a g o d a a a s ool o a p ac c . T oss b l o o s o xcl d

pa c la a al s s b s p ss bl a la o o os d d w o Ma x s c as g o b a o o a od o c s ad Ma x s ga s s l a d d olog ca o l s rq o W do o p opos a H c a s w o g b ca s d sag s

s o a asp c o a a al s s Ra , w p opos w ol H c a 's a oac s doo d o s p o a d b ca s p s s s p s r a o o c a o o s aboclass s a a lo g s c b ad l a b c a g d co dw co d s o c l o b dd class, s c

b sh p s os s ag abl a c al b d .H c a s a al s s a ls o co p a bas c Ma x s co c p

la o s p b w co sc o s ss a d x s c a cod d b soc al b g a d a s soc a b g s o s ac a g co sc o s ss xp ss g s l o a ow appa

o s g d d s o p ol a a good a s b oo s least o ff er an explanation for th basis of this sh i t in consciousness (andactivity) amon social groups. But Heckman , not haVingtime to deal with these 2 iv id u a li s t ic ' xp ss o s o p rson al as op po s d o social lib ration (a

an D fini chn g C ass S uc ua h Ra ica i a i fY u h Radical A merica, n


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92 Radi al Ameri a

se i us M xis w u eve u e su h p ssib e i h mem he wh e m veme g u s h pi is s m k

s e e s h he i e i y y u h u u eso e wi h k musi isi se se i us is i Am g he m e sig i i pheHe km whe e seems h ve e g ize ( e w e s whe e he

he s e ye s) is hei pp si i ism mi i ism migh i ee w e wh h s se se he use i e i

pp esse m e i he s seve ye s he s u e s h s

pe s ibe i is s he i e i y mi e Amewh se m s e e e s g i s he w e y weme i

He km s i u u e s i se suspe O he ee g ize i s ge u e he ex e h eme ges m wi

sses hemse ves gives exp essi hei ee s spii yi g hei p igh whi e he he h he spe ks u

i s ume he e i s u s s ki g y me h is ii is y e e e eme y usi s

be wee v gu b se He km s hi ki g he sphe pp esse m y i se h ve be me i e by m e vemmi g m b u ge is uppe ss b kg u s Su h w

y ev u i y p y hus hisory u ospe k using u u eis k he gu ge diati n bu he anipu ati n. N e h s bee

m su ess ui in cu tureh he b u ge sie his hep u e u u e sy hes e u u e h u g i hegem

hey mi e h s hegem y sis s g e eg ee he

o ial libera io is o so e hi g se ara e fro perso al libera ioa y i e he wo are o raposed wha res l s is a ys ifi a io whereperso al libera io is logi ally ded ed fro i s so ial ou erpar a d e fby poli e power. If he you h rebellio has augh s a y hi g i is (a

ever ire o rei era e i his ri i is of Hegel Proudho Feuerbaha here is o su h hi g as libera io i ge eral bu o ly perso al' l

for real so ial hu a bei gs. he ove fro perso al o so ial libera ioa e as ar re has for ef lly s ressed hro gh he re og i io ha y

libera io is fu da e ally a fu io of he o hers libera io si e y exis e essarily so ial i hara er e k a is o i orre o a a

ul re as a world view bu his aspe of you h ul ure is hardly hpi ure he i divid alis i hedo is i ele e s are i deed presear i la ed b y er ai groups selli g libera io as free food' free dope' afu ki g ' bu i a hardly be said ha D elfi i a d Pi o e are u aware

ee he whole hr s of Pi o e's ar i le is o expose his b ys i fi a i o

his of ourse is o he pla e o dis uss he possibili y of proleopposed o bourgeois ul ure is releva o ake refere e howeverdeba e aki g pla e i R ssia i he early 9 0 s o er i g heo e k a d

o h Le i 's a d ro sky s de ial of he possi ili y of ad s cprole ariaul re he ai poi was ha a ordi g o Marxis af er he rehere a o ly be lassless ul re a d o he ex e ha he di a o


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94 Ra cal Amer caconditions of life unbearable and in need of transformation. It is this concreteelement that is the touchstone of Marxist revo utionary theory and practiceWithout it theory becomes the expression of mere particu ar wi ls, subjectivewh msy, and distinguishes itse f f om lunacy only on the formal basis of itsinterna consistency

Hec man has unfo tunately ai ed to comprehend the signi cance of theNovember issue of R A The genera standpoint articulated there was in no waambiguous, as he says: it only expressed the view that the spontaneous basis of

the youth cu ture phenomenon indicates a revo t against the integrative structureof contemporary capitalism, and that t e e evation of this cultural response to atheory of 'the revolution is in effect reactionary This was the reason forPiccone s lengthly discussion of Rosak s work on the 'counter-cu ture . My owartic e bare y mentioned youth cu ture but rather focused on the shi ts in thetechnical base of production and its effect on the nature of the wor force4 and I wou d emphasize here, agains Hec man s rather static way of dealing withese matters, that I conceived of this shi in not as an accomplishedfact, something that only o tains in the thic skul s of Marxist positivists. The

purpose of this article was to attempt an exp anation for the massiverad calization of col ege students, witnessed in the last ten years, raditionallconceived by bourgeois socio ogists asmidd because of their fin n istatus. While do not claim in any way to have sett ed this matter,thin itrather ironic that all ec man can do against me is quote a statistic indicatingthat the absolute size of the b ue col ar wor force has not declined ut only irelative size this due to the brea up of sma l farms, etc His own evidence itself evidence against him the point being that the industrial wor ing class, asblue co lar wor ers, has stopped expanding relative to the growth of other

sectors. Thus, it is incu bent upon us to deal with these other sectors and try todetermine the signi cance of these s i s. That Hec man s paper offers absolutely no insig t into the present situation specif cally, he politicaactivity of t e college youth in the 60 s and 70 s, but can only condemn theyouth culture as re ti n ry because record sales lead to net gain and collegestudents do not have nancial burdens, is the best argument that he can presentagainst himself. Marxism refuses to attain the ingdom of heaven at the expenseof osing the whole world. Hec man s theological purity would lead us to losboth the world and the ingdom of heaven because it is theology and at thesame time painfu ly mundane

4For another account of this view, see the more complete discussion in HerbertGin 's "The New Working C ass an Revo ionary You h inSoc sRe o ut onvo I no 3


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FUNNYWORLD, an amazing magazine conce ning thevaluab e and enduring aspects of comic art in Ame ica. # 12inc udes an extensive interview with Bob Clampett the

creato of "Beany and Cecil a study by editor Mike Ba rierof Underground Comics a continuing se ies on Car Ba ks'comic book work; and essay-reviews on cu rent developmentsin the comics wor d

$ for the current issue, $3 .50 for a four-issue sub

Radical Amer ca

Vo l. I , N o 6composed by

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radical america - vol 4 no 7 - 1970 - september october

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