In her essay Slouching Towards Bethlehem, Joan Didion vividly constructs her vision of the hippie movement in San Francisco through her anecdotal experience in 1967. Her conviction captures a strong dislike of this social movement, as his experience indicates that he did not condone the society created during the hippie movement. Others, such as John Stuart Mill, believe that social movements, such as the hippie movement, are the culmination of the individuality of others and are necessary for the progress of society. Both of their perspectives show a part of truth, which can be formulated into a new belief. All social movements should be respected in their own time and should not be condoned, but not all social movements can be considered progress for society. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essayDidion begins the essay by painting a distraught picture of America and finally goes on to discuss the "social hemorrhage" in San Francisco, referring to the hippie movement. He makes friends along the way, as he tells his story of meeting people who were living high, dropping out, and leaving every shred of conservatism at the door. In his conversation with two runaway teenagers, he creates a sense of disappointment and sadness towards the teenagers through verbal montage. She asks what they planned to do next and the boy replies, "I've always been mining in a metal shop, welding... You can't plan ahead anyway" (92). The girl says she could babysit. Then he asks the teenagers how they saw their future when they were children; This abruptly changes the entire conversation for the reader, as the girl responds that she wanted to be a veterinarian. From this, without even expressing her exact opinion, Didion deduces the consequences of the hippie movement on being harmful to young people and what they could be without hippie influence. Evidently, the transition from conservative to liberal stature seemed like a downgrade for the company to Didion. However, Mill explains: “There is always a need for people… to discover new truths… to begin new practices… This cannot be denied by anyone who does not believe that the world has already achieved perfection… " (53 ). For Mill, in order for society to progress, these social movements must occur as people need to educate themselves and change. It also maintains "life in what already existed" (53) as it keeps man's intellect alive. Mill's statement is contradicted by Didion's descriptions as she tells the story of Deadeye and Gerry who seem to live a life of feckless ambition. Their marriage almost seems like a comical decision made by children when explained by Didion. This childish fascination seems to be evident in the adult life of hippies, which consequently affects children as they have to live in an environment of drugs and unregulated freedom. Five-year-olds will attend “high school” because it is the norm for society at the time. It is very logical from a conservative point of view that the social values ​​of the hippies are essentially eliminated. Mill, however, does not believe this is a bad thing to happen to society. He writes «...it is important to give as much freedom as possible to unusual things, so that over time it will appear which of these are suitable to transform into custom» (56). In order for society to move forward, we must be willing to collectively let go of the notion of what we believe to be traditional. Condemning the hippie movement, Didion states that the values ​​it supports are the only ones to use..