Germany - 1.3.3 Living Standards in Weimar Germany

Question 1

By _____, living standards for workers began to improve

Answer 1

1924

Question 2

Describe how wages increased by 1924 (2)

Answer 2

• Worker’s wages increased and their working hours shortened
• But wealthier Germany did not like that the State was giving workers support

Question 3

Describe how housebuilding changed by 1924 (2)

Answer 3

• From 1925 to 1929, around 100,000 new homes were built for workers
• But the Republic still struggled with a shortage of house

Question 4

What was unemployment insurance and when was the system formed?

Answer 4

• In 1927, an insurance system was set up to help workers if they were unemployed or ill
• It charged 16.4 million workers 3% of their wages
  and in return it provided an average of 60 marks per week in unemployment and sickness benefits if they fell out of work

Question 5

What was the Weimar Republic called? (Hint: GAOGC)

Answer 5

The Golden Age of German culture

Question 6

As there was no ____________ (deliberate removing of content from the media) in the Weimar Republic, German culture began to thrive

Answer 6

censorship

Question 7

How did Weimar Germany have an impact on architecture?

Answer 7

• The Bauhaus School was set up in Weimar, in 1919, by the architect Walter Gropius - it led a new movement in architecture
• Gropius wanted to bring together all the disciplines (art, architecture, design, typography, sculpture, and so on)
• This school attracted many talented artists and designers, the Bauhaus movement overturned traditional ideas of architecture

Question 8

How did Weimar Germany have an impact on art? (2)

Answer 8

• There was a rise of Expressionism in art
• Weimar artists painted everyday life so that everyone could have access to their art. They wanted to make art that commented on problems in German society, or to make people think. Their style of work was called Expressionism, which was concerned with raw emotion, the seedier side of everyday life and confronting the disaster of the First World War. Artists like Otto Dix and George Grosz were influential to the movement, as was Paul Klee

Question 9

Which artists were influential to the rise of Expressionism in Weimar Germany? (3)

Answer 9

• Otto Dix
• George Grosz
• Paul Klee

Question 10

How did Weimar Germany have an impact on Film? (2)

Answer 10

• Films became popular all over the world in the 1920s. Expressionism flourished in film-making, particularly in Weimar Germany due to fewer restrictions. Some German films were very new and exciting in how they challenged traditional cinema
• Metropolis, which was released in 1927 was a popular German film by Fritz Lang

Question 11

What’s an example of a popular film that was released in Weimar Germany?

Answer 11

• Metropolis, by Fritz Lang

Question 12

How did Weimar Germany have an impact on music? (4)

Answer 12

• Music was shaped by the modern influences of America
• Music, such as Jazz, became very popular in Weimar Germany
• The cabaret emerged as an unrestricted form of entertainment
• Without censorship, performances were provocative (aimed to cause feeling) and could comment on politics and society

Question 13

What impact did Weimar Germany have on the role of women? (3)

Answer 13

• According to the constitution, all men and women over 2o were eligible to vote in elections
• Divorce was made easier for women and divorce became more common
• 112 women represented the German people in the Reichstag and there were more opportunities for women in sport and society

Question 14

How many women were elected to the Reichstag in Weimar Germany?

Answer 14

112

Question 15

What are 3 signs of improving living standards in Weimar Germany?

Answer 15

• Increasing wages
• Housebuilding
• Unemployment & illness insurance

Question 16

How many new homes were built between 1925 and 1929?

Answer 16

100,000

Question 17

Why did culture begin to thrive in Weimar Germany?

Answer 17

There was no censorship

Question 18

Between 1926 and 1928, how much did unemployment drop?

Answer 18

From 2 million to 1.3 million

Question 19

In 1925, a ____ rent tax was introduced to fund building associations

Answer 19

15%

Question 20

War veterans were helped under the ____ _____ ________ ____

Answer 20

1929 Reich Pension Law

Question 21

How many people were helped through the 1920 Reich Pension Law? (3)

Answer 21

• 750 000 war veterans
• 400 000 war widows
• 200 000 parents of dead servicemen

Question 22

What was the number of students in higher education before WW1?

Answer 22

70,000

Question 23

By 1928, how many students were in higher education?

Answer 23

110,000

Question 24

What was lacking still in the progress for women in politics?

Answer 24

Although almost 10% of Reichstag members were female by 1932, this is still a lot lower than their proportion in the population

Question 25

What did Article 109 of the Weimar Constitution say about the rights of women? (3)

Answer 25

• Women had equal rights with men
• Marriage was an equal partnership
• Women should be able to enter all professions on an equal basis with men

Question 26

How was their progress for women at work? (3)

Answer 26

• In 1918, 75% of women were in work, often doing jobs previously performed only by men
• Many part-time jobs were created in the expanding retail and service sector
• In the liberal professions of education and medicine, women made more progress. Between 1925 and 1932 the number of female doctors doubled (2500 - 5000)

Question 27

In what ways did the lives of women return to the way they had been pre-war? (4)

Answer 27

• By 1925, only 36% of women were in work - about the same as pre-war levels
• In jobs where women did the same work as men, they were paid 33% less on average
• Women were normally expected to give up work once they married
• Few women entered high-status professions: by 1933 there were only 36 female judges in Germany

Question 28

What was meant by the term ‘New Women’? (4)

Answer 28

• Where there were job opportunities in the cities, women gained greater financial independence
• Usually young, unmarried working women
• Growing up during the war, they were also used to greater social independence
• These ‘new women’ bought more clothes, wore short hair, more make-up, more jewellery and more revealing clothes. They smoked and drank more and went out unaccompanied

Question 29

What were supporting attitudes towards ‘new women’? (3)

Answer 29

• Some women felt liberated by new opportunities and freedoms
• The falling birth rate and rising divorce rate showed women choosing to have smaller families and leave unhappy marriages - in 1913 there were 128 live births per 1000 women but by 1925 this had fallen to 80. 1913: 27 divorces each year per 100,000 people, by 1920s this had risen to 60
• Some men accepted changing roles for women

Question 30

What were negative attitudes towards ‘new women’?

Answer 30

• Some women were daunted by the expectation that they should change
• Traditionalists complained women should concentrate on being mothers and wives
• Trade unions opposed women workers and equal pay and conditions for women that did work: they were worried that employers would think they could get away with paying women less in wages, and that this would drive down how much men got instead

Question 31

What were the 3 new artistic movements?

Answer 31

• New objectivism: the Arts shouldn’t show a romantic view of the world but life as it really os
• Modernism: the Arts should embrace the future and see beauty in cities, industry and technology
• Expressionism - the Arts should reflect the thoughts and feelings of the artists instead of being restricted to showing things exactly as they really look

Question 32

Describe the opposition to cultural changes (2)

Answer 32

• The extreme left wing (e.g. the communists) said the funding was money spent on extravagance, when working people needed basic help
• The extreme right wing (e.g. the Nazis) said the changes undermined traditional German culture