Topic Four - The Changing Quality of Life 1918-1979 Flashcards
How is a person’s standard of living determined?
- access to clean water
- adequate sanitation
- quality of diet
- standard of housing
- availability of healthcare
What is meant by ‘real wages’?
Income expressed in terms of purchasing power as opposed to actual money received
How many people died and were injured in WW1?
died - 702,000
injured - 1,670,000
What did the real cost of living fall by between 1920 and 1938?
more than a third
How many people were unemployed by the end of the 1920s?
1 million
By December 1930, how many people were unemployed?
2.5 million
What were the worst effected areas in Britain?
- The North of England
- Scotland
- Wales
What were the impacts of mass bombing?
- 40,000 deaths
- over 2 million homes destroyed (2 in every 7)
Who declared ‘most of our people never had it so good’ ?
Harold Macmillan in the 1950s
How did wages change from 1950-1959?
They doubled
How much did Britain spend on consumer goods?
1957 - £1 billion
1960 - £1.5 billion
Name some reasons for the consumer society
- low energy prices
- credit
- rise in wages
Explain some reason for the Consumer Society
- global economic boom: benefitted many people
- consensus: maintained full employment 1947-1951
- strong trade unions: negotiated higher wages
- Welfare State: basic standard of living increased for many
What secondary factors contributed to a person’s standard of living?
- work-life balance
- levels of social capital
- impact of relative over absolute poverty on levels of satisfaction
What did average real incomes grow by from 1918-1979?
- fivefold growth
- helps to explain imrpoved diets, health and housing
What did average real incomes grow by from 1918-1979?
- fivefold growth
- helps to explain imrpoved diets, health and housing
How did government intervention impact standard of living?
- legislation
- targeted spending
- propaganda
- all three state led factors contributed to improving quality of life
What technological advances contributed to changes in standard of living?
- those in communications,
- transport,
- domestic life
What did Lloyd George promise by the end of WW1?
‘a land fit for heroes’
When did the post-war boom collapse into recession?
1921
When did wages for the poorest in society stop falling?
1934
Why did living standards for most Britons improve in the inter-war years?
- ## prices were falling faster than wages were
Why did family sizes decrease post-WW1?
- an increase in contraception
- meant family incomes had to be shared between fewer people
How many men received disability pensions in 1921?
- 1,187,450
Why did WW1 cause an increase in healthier eating habits?
rationing was implemented at the end of WW1
How had infant mortality been changed by 1922?
it had been halved
Why did life expectancy increase in the inter-war years?
- advances in medicine
- improved healthcare
- improved sanitation
What was hospital care seen as in the inter-war years?
- post-code lottery
What did unemployment never fall below during the 1930s?
1 million
How were heavy industries impacted post WW1?
- began to decline
- New Industries were appearing
- heavy industries included coal and textiles
What did the decline of heavy industry create in Britain?
- stark regional variations in living standards
- the gap between the wealthiest and the poorest widened in the 1920s and 1930s
Why did the North face more severe economic depression?
- high unemployment due to decline fo traditional industries
- low consumption
When did Consumerism spread to the Middle Class?
before 1939
When did a mass consumer market begin in Britain?
after the late 1940s
Why was there regional variations in the consumer society?
- families on lower incomes couldn’t take part in the growth of consumerism until purchase prices and running costs had fallen to an affordable level
What does Total War mean?
everyone was effected by the war
Why did mass bombing have a positive effect on living and working standards?
- opportunity for homes to be re-built after the Blitz
- the widespread introduction of bathrooms, kitches and modern appliances to homes
- bombing of old industries forced modernisation across Britain which brought with it better working conditions
What did Total Evacuation expose?
- raised awareness of the squalor in which ‘slum children’ had been living
Why was rationing introduced in WW2?
lack of supplies
How did rationing in WW2 improve standards of living?
- provided the poorest with more to eat
- a healthier diet was encouraged
- However: the wealthiest had their diets negatively restricted
What council did the Government establish during WW2 to promote creative pursuits?
The Council for the Encouragement of Music and Arts
Why was an improved average rate of pay for workers during WW2 limited?
- could only buy as much as their rations allowed
What is economic austerity?
- reduced spending of government
- increased taxes
Why did Attlee’s Labour party fail to introduce their new Welfare State during WW2?
- expensive
- would cost money the government didn’t have
What years was the ‘Age of Austerity’?
1945-1951
What measures did the austerity government introduce?
- cut backs to deal with the cost of war
- increased taxes on imcomes and items
When was rationing repealed?
1954
- shows the extent to which Britain failed to recover economically from the cost of WW2
What was Marshall Aid?
financial aid provided by the USA to Europe to help with recovery after WW2
By what point had Britain managed to recover from WW2?
by the late 1950s
How much did Britain spend on consumer goods in 1957 compared to 1960?
1957 - over £1 billion
1960 - £1.5 billion
What does a steep increase in money spent on consumer goods in Britain from 1957-1960 show?
consumption of luxuries had increased dramatically in a short space of time
What were wages like in 1959 compared to 1950?
twice as high
What is Consumerism?
a series of attitudes and behaviours associated with the consumption of goods and services
What were the 7 reasons for Consumer Society in Britain?
- Global Economic Boom
- Welfare State
- Low Energy prices
- Consensus
- Credit
- Rise in wages
- Strong Trade Unions
How did the global economic boom lead to increased consumerism?
- it effected everyone
How did the Welfare State lead to increased consumerism?
- most people had a higher basic standard of living
How did Consensus lead to increased consumerism?
Consensus was formed to maintain full employment which had been achieved during WW2
How did strong Trade Unions lead to increased consumerism?
negotiated higher wages for workers
What did people enjoy after 1951 in Britain which led to a growth in consumerism?
increased disposable income
How did gas sales change from 1952-1970? What did this show?
- they more than doubled
- increased domestic energy consumption clearly indicated the increase in consumerism related to the home
How did homes change in the consumer society?
- more comfortable
- warmer
- cleaner
- moved from open-fire heating to central heating
Why were improvements in the standards of homes in Britain important?
they became places to spend increasing amounts of free time
how many homes in Britain had TVs by 1970?
almost every home
What factor was significant in the increasing significance placed on personal appearance and hygeine?
the role of advertising
How did the money spent on advertising change from 1947 to 1970?
it increased threefold
When did the start of the ‘supermarket’ era begin?
- 1950
- opening of the first Sainsbury’s in Croydon
What was the significance of supermarkets?
- they drove prices down
- gave people more choice
What were the main impacts of Credit?
- allowed workign class families to buy consumer goods such as cars
- made it more socially acceptable for people to live beyond their means
Why were people concerned about the spread of consumerism to British society?
- worried about the Americanisation of British culture
What was ‘Shelter’ in the 1960s, who did it aim to help?
- a housing charity
- founded in 1966
- aimed to help the 12,000 people nationwide who were homeless
How many people were living below the poverty line in 1967?
7.5 million
What were the living conditions like in high rise flats being built during the 60s and 70s?
- cold
- damp
- dangerous
- high levels of crime on these estates
When did Cinema become a popular leisure pursuit?
during WW1
When were ‘talkies’ introduced, what impact did this have?
- 1928
- further increased the popularity of going to the cinema
How many times did the average person go to the cinema per year in 1950?
28 times
- more than any other nation
Why did Cinema experience further popularity during WW2?
increased demand for escapism
Who was cinema mainly targeted at?
- young
- urban people
What % of young people went to the cinema once a week in 1946, how did this compare to the older generation?
1946: 69% of 16-19 year olds
1946: 11% of over 60 year olds
Did people in the North or South attend the cinema more frequently?
- North
- twice as much as people in the South
Why were there concerns with the growing popularity of cinema?
- concerns about the impact of films on ‘impressionable audiences’
What were the BBFC concerned with?
- the ‘Americanisation’ of cinemagoers
- saw it as their duty to protect Britons from bad language, sex and submissive ideas
What did the 1927 Quota Act do?
ensured that british film made up 20% of those shown by 1936
When and why did cinema attendance fall until?
- late 1980s
- growth of TV
What was the highest recorded number of cinema ticket sales in a year across Britain?
- 1946
- 1.635 billion
What were the major waves of American influence on popular music throughout the decades?
during WW1: ragtime and jazz
1930s: swing and bop
1940s: Country and Western, Rhythm and Blues
1950s: Rock and Roll
Why were dance halls significant during the early 20th Century?
- allowed working class men + women to enjoy a degree of luxury
- seen as a socially acceptable way of meeting a partner
Which band was significant in the 1960s?
- The Beatles
- ‘Beatlemania’ by mid-1963
Why were the 1970s significant in the development of music?
- ‘escapist’ era
- number of different music trends in popular music
- ‘glam rock’ in the early 70s
- a rise in New York inspired disco
- new music style also influenced fashion trends
What artists were popular within the ‘glam rock’ genre?
- Slade
- Gary Glitter
Which band rose to fame in the late 1970s?
The Sex Pistols
Television was the most significant development in which industry?
mass media
How did the existence of TV change the family dynamic?
- shows reached a large audience so had widespread significance
When did televisions become popular?
after WW2
When were moving pictures first broadcast to homes?
1929
Why did television sales increase in 1953?
- the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II was broadcast on TV
- from here TV grew more popular
Why was television significant in changing class structure?
the domestication of free time blurred class lines
When did the BBC Monopoly on free time end?
- 1955
- 14 independent companies were allowed to begin broadcasting
What was the 1963 Television Act?
- forced the ITV companies to screen two plays and two current affairs programmes in addition to the regular news broadcasts
What two opposing genres grew in popularity owing to growth in television?
- Satirical programmes became popular and influenced youth
- hard-hitting, social realist plays were produced that contained controversial material but ultimately didn’t inspire rebellion in the working class
When did the term ‘teenager’ begin to be used regularly?
after 1945
How did ‘teenagers’ partake in the consumer society?
- money from part-time jobs such as babysitters
- could spend money on entertainment and luxuries
What were ‘Milk Bars’?
- cafes/diners that were popular with the youth in the 1950s
When, where and by who was the first ‘Milk Bar’ opened?
- 1952
- opened by Italian Immigrants in London
How was the music in milk bars significant?
- provided by a jukebox rather than a live band
When was the jukebox invented?
-1927
- In America
How was youth culture impacted by advertising
- advertisers wanted to tap into the youth markert
How did fashion and music change in the 1960s and 70s?
- mass media had widened the gap in fashion and music taste even before television
- lots of options available for the youth to adopt
What were some popular fashion styles in the 60s and 70s?
- Mods
- Rockers
- Hippies
- Skinheads
- Punks
What was adult perception of youth culture like? Was this an accurate perception?
- many adults felt that youth was out of control
- the reality was that there had only been a slight increase in youth crime throughout the 50s and 60s
What created a national community of interest in sports?
- radio
- national press
What two sports were considered national sports because of their popularity?
- football
- cricket
What was the first sporting event to be televised?
1948 London Olympics
Why was the televising of the 1948 London Olympics limited?
- low sales of TV sets
- broadcast radius of only 25 miles
How did TV increase the scale revenue tied of sport?
- it injected lots of media and advertsing revenue into sport
- provided a large incentive for professional players to assert their worth and reject earlier financial limits
What was the significance of Britain in the nationalisation of sport?
Britain was the global leader in transforming local games to national sports through clearly and consistently maintained rules
Why was it easier for Britain to organise sports teams and establish leagues?
- Britain was the first industrial nation
- workers were easily split into teams and from there into leagues
What made national leagues possible in Britain?
a rise in:
- mass transport
- communications
When was the Football Association founded?
1888
How did sports clubs hold significance?
became a source of local pride and loyalty
How did working hours fit around sport?
- regular working hours and saturday half-day allowed for involvement in competitive sport
- encouraged by bosses as a healthy use of free time
Growth in what three areas accelerated interest in football?
- national newspapers
- radio
- cinema
How did average attendance at top football matches change from 1914 to 1938?
1914: 23,000
1938: 31,000
How did average attendance at top football matches change from 1914 to 1938?
1914: 23,000
1938: 31,000
Why were people drawn to football matches?
low ticket prices
How did attendance to football matches change from 1960-70 to 1979-80? Why did this occur?
- 1969-70: 29.6 million
- 1979-80: 24.6 million
- growth of TV
What was ‘Hooliganism’?
- violence at sporting events from fans
How many people watched England win the 1966 World Cup on TV?
32 million people
What did football become increasingly dominated by?
the interests of big business
- seen through a rise in advertising at football matches
