Thoughts while unpacking

I've been listening to music while unpacking at the new house. The song "Johnny Get Angry" as performed by Joanie Sommers got me thinking. This song was #7 on the Billboard charts in 1962, so it probably resonated with many people at the time. Take a look at the following lines:

Johnny, I said we were through
Just to see what you would do
You stood there and hung your head
Made me wish that I were dead

CHORUS
Oh, Johnny get angry, Johnny get mad
Give me the biggest lecture I ever had
I want a brave man, I want a cave man
Johnny, show me that you care, really care for me


She sings that she wants a "man" who will tell her what to do. In today's way of thinking, this is very repressive, and one would hope that few people think like that now.

On the other hand, the song uses the subjunctive well. How much do you want to bet that teenagers today would have said "Made me wish that I was dead"?

So, apparently we've moved forward in some ways, but not in others.