The term counter culture refers to a type of subculture for those whose values, beliefs and behaviors protest against the mainstream culture. Many major life changes have been the result of the counter culture's movement. To understand that concept we must take a look at its evolution throughout history. Afterwards, we need to define and explain it in depth. Finally, we must take a look at some examples to make sure we all comprehend this abstract notion correctly.

 

Counter culture’s first known apparition in modern culture was the Romantic Movement.  Romanticism was a literary, cultural and artistic movement that occurred from the end of the 18th century through the 19th century.( New World Encyclopedia, 2015) It was a way to oppose to the industrial revolution by emphasizing the beauty of nature and the negative outcomes of individualism. Many other forms of counter culture came after Romanticism; however we will skip ahead to what is now known as ‘’the counterculture of the 1960s’’. The post World War 2 ‘’Baby boom’’ produced an incredible number of human beings who became active participants for the major changes that occurred after. The improvement of African-American civil rights, women' rights and the withdrawal of troops during the Vietnam War are some examples of the influence that it had on the world. Nowadays, counter culture is omnipresent because of the emergence of all the different forms of media.

 

As I mentioned at the beginning, counter culture is a protest against mainstream culture. In a nutshell, mainstream culture is the type of culture that the majority of people relate to. This type of opposition can take several forms. Counter culture can be used via literature and media. It questions different aspects of our lives such as: politics, music, beliefs, behaviors, values, interests, etc. Since the industrialisation, social order has been completely changed. Counter culture is an efficient way to promote innovative ideas. However, using this instrument to express controversial points of view put you sometimes at risk. We can think about the incident in Tiananmen Square where counterculture got literally run over or the ‘’Charlie Hebdo’’ unpleasant incident. We could also add African-American militants such as Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela that dedicated their lives for the improvement of their people’s rights. These are some drastic examples of counter culture, others protested in a safer way. The group N.W.A, for instance, complained about the discrimination of the black people in the USA via rap music. This being said, one important thing to remember is that counter culture is most of the time the vehicle for major changes.

 

In conclusion, counterculture is a way to protest against mainstream and mass culture. It has been used a lot since the industrial revolution and has been the source of gigantic changes all around the world. Several examples were given above to illustrate this concept. Remember that it is not always safe to go against the big guys, but what would the world be if nobody had ever rebelled?