Rebellion vs. Conformity

Honor Code Notice: Men must now shave their eyebrows.

"ANNA, SHUT THAT RACKET OFF!!!"

The last of the sunlight trickled over the horizon.  The workers headed home.

He told her to put on lipstick. So she did.

Jonestown- Nov. 18th, 1978: 918 die when forced at gunpoint to drink cyanide Kool-Aid.

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     Throughout history, there have many major instances of rebellion and conformity.  Institutions like government and schools desires to have its citizens abide by their laws.  But when these rules are delineated from, a small revolution has been sparked.  Rebellion incites change while conformity encourages complacency.  In these tiny stories, rebellion and conformity are discussed and represented in picture form.

     Honor Code Notice: Men must now shave their eyebrows. I had wanted to come up with a funny tiny story that poked fun at the Honor Code. Yet, it is serious in motive.  I wanted to question what would happen if BYU's Honor Code really were to change, who would comply with it and who would not?  Would there be punishment for rebellious behavior, or would we just be barred from the Testing Center? Today, some individuals (men in particular) find the Honor Code strict enough.  They will grow their luscious beards out during the summer, enjoying their masculinity at its peak.  Yet, these men will return to school in the fall baby-faced for they can no longer relish in the splendor of their own facial hair.  If men at BYU are so willing to rid themselves of their beards, would not they be just as compliant to shaving their eyebrows?

      "ANNA, SHUT THAT RACKET OFF!!!"  When I was in middle school and high school, I vented out my anger using music.  I would come home, blast me some My Chemical Romance or Sharkspeed, while pretending to Joan Jett on guitar.  My mom would be banging on my ceiling from upstairs, yelling at me to keep it down.  This use of music as rebellion has been used throughout history, but during the 20th century, music took on a knew role.  Rock and roll had just entered humanity's consciousness, leaving girls breathless as they screamed and fainted over artists like Elvis and the Beatles.  During the 60s, music became a point for spreading a message of liberation and of drugs, sex, and rock n' roll.  In the 90s, Nirvana came out with "Smells Like Teen Spirit," which was dubbed the "anthem for apathetic kids."  During the 2000s, we have seen a transformation of the content in songs.  More explicit lyrics are allowed, and now homosexuality is openly talked about with singers like Lady Gaga and Macklemore.  Music has been one of mankind's most powerful tools in shattering social norms with consequences which affect generations to come.

     The last of the sunlight trickled over the horizon.  The workers headed home. World War II had a great impact on society in America.  Suburbia was forming, consisting of uniform, pastel houses, white picket fences, and a lawn.  The men worked from 9 to 5, coming home expecting dinner to be made.  The men kept their heads down at work to hold on to their job and provide for their family.  This is a positive example of conformity in which people are following the rules not just for the benefit of themselves, but for the betterment of their family. However, men encouraged certain expectations of women which would soon be broken as feminism comes along.

      He told her to put on lipstick. So she did.  A wife and husband are leaving for a party. He tells her to put lipstick on, even though she has already prepared herself.  The wife is tired of his nagging and constant ordering around, and she decides to not obey his orders.  This picture is related to the second wave of feminism when women still held on to their femininity and took on more "masculine" roles.  It was only upon the return of their soldiers when women were forced back into their kitchen, a position they now felt was not the only one they could fill.  Women could work just as well as men, and began drafting their demands for an equal nation.  Their rebellion has resulted in more equal pay for men and women, an acceptance that woman can be doctors, and the legalization of birth control and other female rights.

      Jonestown- Nov. 18th, 1978: 918 die when forced at gunpoint to drink cyanide Kool-Aid. Jim Jones led his Peoples Temple congregation to Jonestown in search of utopia.  The only thing the members were met with was paranoia and death.  It is a grave assumption to presume that all of the members willingly partook of the cyanide laced Kool-Aid which was administered to them as a way to accepted life.  Jones' Red Brigade patrolled the area, ensuring that the members took their poison or feel the same wrath that befell the murdered Congressman.  Unfortunately, there was not great uprising to resist Jones' wishes.  There were even some extremely willing to drink the Kool-Aid; mothers with infants were some of the first to end their lives.  But some suggested alternative routes to death while children cried and screamed in protest. Unfortunately, only a fraction of the congregation survived, but let it be known that the residents of Jonestown were not all blind sheep walking to their own slaughter.

     This series of photos compares and contrasts rebellion vs. conformity and the effects therein. This it the uniting theme throughout and is visually represented by having all of the pictures black and white except for one color burst.  It has been seen throughout time that complacency does not garner change, only rebellion can.