Story: Women and men

New freedom, old problem

An important part of changing behaviour in the 1960s and 1970s was greater sexual openness. Sex before marriage was normal enough – first babies had often been born less than nine months after marriage – but in this period sex with no thought of marriage became commonplace. In this 1972 film clip, a couple flirt and kiss. The title of the film – Gone up north for a while – was a phrase used when unmarried women vanished to have a baby in secret. The film follows the young woman through the subsequent pregnancy and birth.

Using this item

Archives New Zealand - Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga
Reference: Gone up north for a while. National Film Unit, 1972.

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How to cite this page:

Charlotte Macdonald, 'Women and men - Challenge and reaction: 1960s–1990s', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/video/29252/new-freedom-old-problem (accessed 20 April 2024)

Story by Charlotte Macdonald, published 5 May 2011, updated 1 Aug 2017