Topic 1: Social (1951-64) Flashcards
1
Q
6
Describe evidence of change to affluence and living standards (1951-64)
A
- pre-war slums cleared and replaced by new towns (e.g. Harlow in Essex)
- low unemployment
- growth of advertising industry after launch of ITV in 1955
- hire purchase enabled inc in household goods
- home ownership inc to 44% due to rising living standards
- other affluence figures
2
Q
4
Describe evidence of continuity to affluence and living standards (1951-64)
A
- most still lived in council houses and rented accom
- foreign holidays - only 2% of pop
- tripartite system limited eq of opp
- ‘13 wasted years’
3
Q
5
Describe evidence of change to class and the establishment (1951-64)
A
- upper class began to include those in finance, commerce and manu
- increase in those entering middle class professions e.g. teachers
- increase in salaried office employees as opp to professionals/self-employed
- Profoumo Affair press coverage showed marked decline in deference of wc
- early 60s saw explosion of satire: Private Eye and TW3
4
Q
5
Describe evidence of continuity to class and the establishment (1951-64)
A
- surveys throughout 50s/60s consistently showed that 2/3 of people identified as wc
- wc not especially political - even Lab party membership seen as odd
- upper class still focussed on traditional dialect: e.g. U speech (uc) vs non-U speech (mc)
- uc dominated politics - Eton alumni occupied 1/2 Eden’s cabinet
- class system remained established
5
Q
6
Describe evidence of change to the position of women (1951-64)
A
- by 1964, inc number of working women
- legislative improvements to mc pay:
- equal pay for teachers (1952)
- equal pay for civil servants (1954)
- second-wave freedom from labour saving devices
- washing machine ownership inc 54% from 1957 to 1959
6
Q
5
Describe evidence of continuity to the position of women (1951-64)
A
- 1950s avg age of marriage = 21
- 1951 women working - 1 in 5
- mortgages and banks in man’s name - women remained financially dependent on spouse
- family allowance paid to women - welfare state ensured women didn’t have to work
- attitudes remained decisively conservative
7
Q
7
Describe evidence of change to youth culture (1951-64)
A
- discernible youth culture emerged in 50s (labour saving devices for girls and national service ended in 1960 for boys)
- post-war baby boom swelled numbers - 10% of pop by 1959
- visibly and economically important - estimated in 1959 had £830m to spend
- targeted advertising - magazines, TV, transistor radio and explosion of record industry
- fashion/subcultures (Teddy Boys, American-jazz inspired ‘mods’, rock and roll-inspired ‘rockers’)
- clashes in 1964 in Brighton between mods and rockers
- CND - youth political movements
8
Q
2
Describe evidence of continuity to youth culture (1951-64)
A
- youth political movements (e.g. CND) had little impact
- youth groups lambasted in press (e.g. exagguration of violence in Brighton)
9
Q
5
Describe evidence of change to social attitudes and tensions (1951-64)
A
- Clockwork Orange portrayed taboo gang violence
- Greater sexual realisation in arts - 1960 publication of previously banned Lady Chatterly’s Lover
- rise in gambling - affluence
- abortion PMBs introduced between 1953-60 - even if failed, showed beginnings of more permissive society
- Homicide Act 1957 - abolished death penalty (with exceptions)
10
Q
4
Describe evidence of continuity to social attitudes and tensions (1951-64)
A
- backlash against ‘immorality and depravity’ in arts led by opposition from Mary Whitehouse and parts of press
- premium bonds schemes recieved criticism from church (form of gambling)
- capital punishment remained in force for murderers of police officers, those using firearms or while committing burglary
- society remained conservative
11
Q
4
Describe evidence of change to immigration (1951-64)
A
- 1948: 492 Jamacians on Empire Windrush -> 1961: 49k from Pakistan and India, 66k from Carribean
- first 18 months of 60s saw more immigrants than 5 years prior
- until WW2: black/south asian communities cocnentrated in dalipidated areas of London -> 50s: shifted northwards o industrial powershouses of Lancashire/West Midlands were jobs were readily available
- 1962 Commonwealth Immigration Act - ends right of unrestricted entry for Commonwealth
12
Q
2
Describe evidence of continuity to immigration (1951-64)
A
- After 1962 Act, the number of unskilled young immigrant men dropped dramatically (mostly dependents forming immigration thereafter)
- 1958 Cabinet meeting concluded there was a problem in finding housing - still concentrated in ghetto areas with high crime rates e.g. Brixton
13
Q
5
What was the Commonwealth Immigration Act 1962?
A
- Introduced by Home Sec Butler
- Ended right of unrestricted entry for Commonwealth
- Triggered by racial violence e.g. Notting Hill riots
- Exceptions of dependents of those already there or students
- Those who wished to enter had to gain voucher from Ministry of Labour
14
Q
4
Describe evidence of change to racial attitudes (1951-64)
A
- Blues music exploded in Britain
- Milly Smalls - first black singer success story in Britain
- 1957 Rent Act
- Oswald Mosely of far right ‘Union Movement’ - finished bottom of poll at 8 in 1959 elec (North Kensington)
15
Q
6
Describe evidence of continuity to racial attitudes (1951-64)
A
- Incidents of violence (Notting Hill, Teddy Boys, murder of Kelso Cochrane)
- Political movements - Teddy Boys influenced by Oswald Mosely
- Perfectly legal for landlords to stipulate ‘no colours’ signs
- Peter Rachman - Polish exec charged Black/Carribean imms exorbinate fees to rent his properties
- Profumo Affair - heightened fear of Carribean men
- Cross-relationships scowled upon
