Social Developments Flashcards
Effects of the post war boom
Rising living standards
Access to credit through hire purchase
Housing improvements, clearance of slums
End of rationing, food prices low.
Examples of housing improvements
New towns like Harlow, Kirkby, Stevenage, Crawley, Corby and Cwmbran.
Slums were cleared and replaced by these new towns
Access to cheap mortgages
What was hire purchase
Where a buyer pays a deposit on an expensive item then they then pay monthly instalments to hire said item over the length of a contract.
What did a growth in affluence enable
Leisure opportunities
An increase in TV ownership
More time and money to develop hobbies
Boom in car ownership
Statistics highlighting affluence in this period
10 million TV sets in use by 1960
50% of the population watched TV in the evening
Car ownership rose by 25% between 1957 and 1959
60,000 people holidayed each week with Butlins.
Class situation in 1951
Britain was in a deferential, conformist society with a respect for authority.
Class loyalties were strong, especially in elections.
Class attitudes in the late 1950s
Shift in attitudes
Exposure of The Establishments old fashioned methods, suez crisis, scandals.
Rise of CND encouraged challenge to authority
Factors influencing a decline in deference
Profumo affair
Satire boom
Academic studies (Hoggart - The uses of literacy 1957, Sampson - The anatomy of Britain 1961) highlighting Britain’s ‘class ridden’ society with a lack of social mobility
The ‘angry young mens’ political plays attacked conformist attitudes - Look back in anger 1956
Perception of the ruling elite
Emphasised arts education in preference to science
Blocked talent from outside The Establishment
Tried to cover its own mistakes
View of women in the 1950s
Ideally a housewife
Average marriage was aged 21
75% of all women married
Only 1 in 5 worked in 1951
Improvements for middle class women
Equal pay for teachers (1952) and Civil servants (1954)
Impact of labour-saving devices
1957-1959, the number of households with a fridge rose by 58% and with a washing machine by 54%
The adverts for these devices presented a women in the kitchen - lack of improvement
What was the New Commonwealth
Countries who had recently gained independence from Britain - India, Pakistan, West Indies.
There started to be an inflow of immigrants from these countries arriving in Britain - in the wake of the Empire Wind Rush in 1948.
How many immigrants had settled in Britain by 1958?
200,000
Public attitudes to immigration
Mixed attitudes,
Some were generally tolerant and had a feeling of ‘getting along’
There were, however, many examples of racism, tension and hostility.
Growth of outward migration
1.32 Britons left in the 1950s
1.96 million left in the 1960s
Job seeking, economic opportunities and housing opportunity drove them out.
Notting hill riots and growth in racism
In August 1958 there were outbreaks of racially motivated violence in Notting hill, mainly white youths attacking West Indians, the police were unprepared and lacked experience.
Oswald Mosley set up the Union Movement on a platform for repatriation. ( returning someone to their place if origin)
What was passed in 1962 to control immigration?
1962 Commonwealth Immigrants Act - limited the number of immigrants allowed into Britain
Why was their an emergence of a discernible youth culture? (5 Key reasons)
Booming economy - more disposable income for young people.
Growth of advertisement and consumerism created the teenage image.
Boys no longer had to take part in National Service after 1960.
Labour saving devices gave young women more freedom.
The post-war baby boom swelled the number of teenagers in the late 50s and 60s.
What defined the ‘Teddy Boys’ and when were they prominent?
Early 1950s
The wore long coats, narrow trousers and winklepicker shoes
Challenged older people and social order through their dress sense and behaviour
What defined the ‘Rockers’ and when were they prominent?
Late 1950s
Wore leather clothes and rode heavy motorcycles
Influenced by Rock music that reached Britain in 1955
What defined Mods and when were they prominent?
Late 1950s
Wore smart suits, rode scooters and listened to ‘sophisticated’ pop music
Mods and Rockers clashes and public reaction
Rioting in Margate and Brighton in May 1964 - fighting went on for 2 days with the police struggling to restore order
Moral panic for the public, believed they were undermining society
Public reactions exaggerated the levels of violence.
Changing attitudes shown in pop culture
Racial tension and sex and violence in ‘Sapphire’
Gritty realism and themes of race and poverty in ‘Z Cars’
Homelessness and poverty in ‘Cathy Come Home’
Gang violence in the novel ‘A Clockwork Orange’
Reaction to changing social attitudes in pop culture
Black lash against this ‘immorality and depravity’ led by Mary Whitehouse
Undermined decency in society
Majority opinion in Britain remained socially conservative
Overview of social change
Greater affluence —> more consumerism and lifestyle changes
Less deference
New tech changes womens lives
Immigration and emigration changes Britain’s demography
Distinct and visible emergence of youth culture
Traditional attitudes questioned
Overview of social continuity
Women were still primarily housewives
Many areas in Britain saw little immigration
Britain as a whole was still largely socially conservative
