Which factor is NOT listed among the social factors contributing to the rise of rock as a cultural movement?

Which factor is NOT listed among the social factors contributing to the rise of rock as a cultural movement?

• A. The Great Depression
• B. The post WWII economic boom and the growth of the middle class
• C. The dawn of television and the technological ages
• D. The Civil Rights movement

Answer: (A)

The factor that isn’t typically cited as helping rock become a cultural movement is the Great Depression. Rock didn’t rise as a cultural force during or because of the Depression; that era (late 1920s into the 1930s) shaped earlier forms of American music and resilience in tough times, but rock’s explosion happens in the 1950s and beyond. By contrast, the post–World War II economic boom and the growth of the middle class created a large, affluent youth audience with money to spend on records, concerts, and culture in general. The dawn of television opened up mass exposure, letting a wider audience see and hear new sounds, fashions, and performances that helped spread rock. And the Civil Rights movement played a crucial role by promoting cross-cultural exchange and breaking down racial barriers in music, which allowed rock to travel across communities and gain widespread appeal. So the Great Depression doesn’t fit with the social forces that propelled rock as a cultural movement, while the other factors do.

The factor that isn’t typically cited as helping rock become a cultural movement is the Great Depression. Rock didn’t rise as a cultural force during or because of the Depression; that era (late 1920s into the 1930s) shaped earlier forms of American music and resilience in tough times, but rock’s explosion happens in the 1950s and beyond. By contrast, the post–World War II economic boom and the growth of the middle class created a large, affluent youth audience with money to spend on records, concerts, and culture in general. The dawn of television opened up mass exposure, letting a wider audience see and hear new sounds, fashions, and performances that helped spread rock. And the Civil Rights movement played a crucial role by promoting cross-cultural exchange and breaking down racial barriers in music, which allowed rock to travel across communities and gain widespread appeal. So the Great Depression doesn’t fit with the social forces that propelled rock as a cultural movement, while the other factors do.