Remembering the Past: Good Old Days — Bad Old Days

Abstract

Despite the scandal surrounding Jimmy Savile’s exposure as a sexual predator there is little that is truly surprising about the revelations. The unending stream of revelations reflects society’s morbid fascination with the past and its tendency to reinterpret the 1960s and 1970s in light of current values. The focus on the misdeeds of the past is used to give meaning to the problems confronting society today. It allows the revelations about Savile to serve as a moral condemnation of the permissive 1960s. This condemnation of past crimes is integral to the project of restoring moral order.