No single fact demonstrates the revolutionary effect of the '60s upon academe as that Howard Zinn's People's History of the United States has sold half a million copies, largely for use on campus. Totally inconceivable prior to that decade. William Mandel radman wrote: > U. Massachusetts prof publishes '60s rock 'n' roll book > > <http://news.excite.com:80/news/uw/001208/university-education-102> > > December 8, 2000 > By Karen Madsen > Massachusetts Daily Collegian > U. Massachusetts-Amherst > > (U-WIRE) AMHERST, Mass.Nick Bromell, a University of Massachusetts English > professor, defines his new book, Tomorrow Never Knows, as an attempt to > explain the importance of rock and roll, and an exploration of a 60s that > many people know about, but very few have written about. > The work discusses the experience of rock and roll and psychedelics, and > what it meant to the youth of the 60s. > "There really is no such thing as the 60s," said Bromell. "My book is about > a 60s: what it was like to be young, white, middle class, in college and > confused, and excited about the world you were coming of age in." > He began writing the book in 1993 as a counter to some of the images he saw > in the scholarly histories and popular cultural accounts of the decade. "I > think our culture is very undecided about the about the 60s. Some people > completely hate it. Some will defend it to the dying end," explained > Bromell. "As they fight it out, their messages get simpler. In reality, > there's truth to both sides. It was an extraordinarily complex moment." > Bromell believes that these different images come out of the tumultuous > social and political climates of the decade. > "I think the 60's were an earthquake," he said, "and they force us to > rethink what history is, what truth is, what youth is and what music can do." > With regard to academics in America, Bromell thinks that the envisioned > revolution of the 60s experienced some degree of success. > "The pressure of political events on academic curriculum at most schools > forced students and professors to think again about what was important to > learn and think about," he said. "The revaluation that most colleges and > universities were deeply tied into the military-industrial complex forced > students and professors to ask hard questions about academic freedom." > The influence of this era is still very much felt today, according to > Bromell, as indicated by the Nader movement. He sees the potential for two > generations of progressives to join together. > "This is symbolized by the new Santana album. It's got the 60s love > message, but it also has young voices singing their message," Bromell > explained. > A significant difference that Bromell sees between his generation's > attitude toward music and the attitude held by students today is in the > diversity of tastes. > "When I was young, the question was 'Do you like Folk or Rock?' and if you > liked rock the question was 'Do you like the Stones or the Beatles?'" said > Bromell. "One of the consequences is that it will be harder for this > generation to unite around a shared musical sensibility, for better or worse." > Bromell hopes that students will share his appreciations for the historical > importance of the 60s. > "I'm teaching a course in contemporary poetry," said Bromell. "As we read > poets who are writing today, I'm suddenly more aware than ever of the > profound ways the 60's changed the way we think about life."
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