The 1930s have been a decade of great changes in the United Kingdom. Three succes-sive National governments left the British People quite lost in terms of leadership, especial-ly in those times of Great Depression. The raising of the taxes and the massive wave of unemployment led the poor to become even poorer but it also saw the expansion of the middle-class among the society. Indeed, this period saw the falling of prices of goods, the reduction of the number of large families, the settling of the reduction of working hours and the outbreak of paid holidays by the Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain which let families in less need. Moreover, the outbreak of household electrical goods such as televisions or vacuum cleaners marked the development of the popular culture and, therefore, of the middle-class . On the other hand, the quantity of poor remained massive among the working class and the rising of the conservative party after the appalling failure of Ramsay MacDonald’s government has made a contribution to it. Those changes stimulated interest from many authors in the postwar literature and the role of class has been crucial in the wri-ting of the period. Between two wars, it was the end of the birth setting your future. Many people didn’t know where they belonged anymore and trying to figure that out was the aim of most authors. Using their experience in their social class of origin or outside of it, they are the best placed to narrate and share their point of
By Definition, a rapid major change in an economy (as in England in the late 18th century) marked by the general introduction of power-driven machinery, or by an important change in the prevailing types and methods of use of such machines.- Merriam- Webster This definition over simplifies the industrial revolution. In reality the Industrial Revolution was much more complex and encompasses many different aspects. With that said the events that led to the Industrial Revolution were even more complicated. How and why Great Britain was the first to lead the Revolution was multifaceted and involves many aspects of economic and social developments. The predisposition of easily acquired recourse and healthy state politics allowed Great Britain to prosper. A core piece of the Industrial revolution was the advent of new technology. This technology would increase the production and efficiency of all factories. As more and more people flooded the cities and towns the demand for more goods skyrocketed pushing civilization into a new age. The Industrial Revolution was a cycle that feed itself, with need came technology and with technology came need and through this process arose new society. What led Great Britain to become the first country to star in the Industrial Revolution, comes down to a complex system of factors. Each aspect holds a major role in the contribution in the growth of the Industrial Revolution and of Great Britain.
social history with economic tendencies, The Shoemaker and the Tea Party incorporates many subfields of history; such as social, economic, and cultural histories successfully. The aspect of social history and the explanation of the lower classes propelling events of the American Revolution was particularly effective and fresh. Young uses members of lower classes to uncover various risings and rebellions. Members of the elite believed that the lower class were ramblers and were uncivilized. The radicalism of the common man was swept under the rug. Young mirrors the writing of E.P. Thompson’s, The Making of the English Working Class. Both writers are meticulous in their interpretation of the common man. Furthermore, Thompson and Young examine just how much class conflict effects the constructs of history.
The wage-earning class was the debtors, debtors who owed money and had to work to make a living for creditors, most of whom made up what would be known as the middle class. The tradition of fathers passing their land on down to their sons was slowly dying such as with Mayo Greenleaf Patch and his sons. Mayo Patch’s life was riddled with owing debts to the middle
There is a controversial debate about the 1920s, whether it was “roaring” or whether is was destitute. In the perspective of some historians, the 1920s brought a rapid increase in urbanization and boom in the economy, however, these historians fail to see the evident terrors that the 1920s brought. The positive uproar on the 1920s did not stand a chance against the rising negative roar of residential schools, the Stock Market Crash, and credit debt. Due to these tragic events, 1920s was brought a dark and negative atmosphere rather than one of contentment.
The time of struggle during the late 1920’s until the late 1930’s was shown in everyday lives of people
During the late 1700s, production and manufacturing were centralized around people’s homes and farms. The majority of the work produced was done to provide for individual or community use; often hard labor, basic machines, and hand tools were used to carry out tasks. An era of powered machines and factories created the Industrial mark across the nation. Textile and iron industries developed the steam engine to help improve transportation and exchange to increase manufactured goods. While the impact improved the standard of living for a small majority, others a large majority remained poor and living in poverty. Urban cities that housed large manufacturing plants that provided jobs in often overcrowded cities and poor living conditions.
The 1920s, also known as the “Roaring Twenties”, was a time period of great prosperity. During the 1920s, major changes occurred. The Twenties marked the start of a new lifestyle for the world, in which styles such as appearances were different, the system of money changed, and things were viewed much differently than they were in past generations. There was a major shift in living conditions when people went from living in rural areas to urban areas, in which the “big city” became the center of affairs. Although the 1920s were a new and exciting time period, they caused much conflict for the people of past generations who were not used to this great change.
The third social class demonstrated in the novel was the lower class, that included the workers and farmers who struggled to make ends meet. In to novel, the Cunningham’s is a good example of the lower working class. The Cunningham’s were farmers. Many people back than believed farmers were very poor, but it was the fact that the depression hit them the hardest that made them struggle so much financially, “Are we as poor as the Cunninghams? Not exactly. They Cunninghams are country folks, farmers, and the crash hit them the hardest” (Lee,
Bang! That was the sound of “the shot heard around the world.” British troops, under the command of the King George III faced off against a few citizens of Boston which became recognized as the start of the Revolutionary War. It is recorded that Patrick Henry said, “We should not forget that the spark which ignited the American Revolution was caused by the British attempt to confiscate the firearms of the colonists.” King George III influenced the Revolutionary war through his lapses in judgement, his overbearing hold on the colonies and his hunger for more power.
Jane Austen’s Persuasion challenges the notion that one’s social class determines one’s happiness. In the novel there is the upper class, which includes Sir Walter Elliot and his family; the nouveau rich, such as Admiral Croft and Captain Wentworth; and the poor
The book is far from a complete history and instead focuses on one specific sector of British history, the plight of the poor in early 20th century Manchester. Three main points seems to fight their way to the forefront, as they drive the direction and tone of the book. The first main point stressed is the elaborate and complex social stratification. Roberts says on the first page, "I grew up in what was perhaps an ideal
controlled society. The author believes that the 1930’s was a corrupt society to live in due to the
Life can at times seem bad, even in the lives of some of the most prestigious, rich, popular people in the world. Bad hair, lack of sleep, abundance of homework, and an absence of money have the tendency to put a damper on some people's days, among other things. Too many times, though, in today's society things are taken for granted. Imagine not having a place to sleep, having no means of education, or having all hard-earned funds taken by the government, not even leaving enough to feed the family. This is how it was for Englanders in the 1800s. The condition of the working-class in 19thcentury England was, without a doubt, disgusting and miserable. The circumstances were spiraling out of control and the working class was
With the stock market crash of 1929, many factory workers lost their jobs, the economy suffered severe inflation of prices, and the usual commodities, such as food and shelter, became harder to obtain. Hunger, poverty, and unemployment ravaged the broken economy and forced many out of their homes and into the slums and on the streets. People struggled just to survive even to the next day. In addition to the already difficult proletarian life of the working class, the ever-expanding realm of factories and machines forced skilled workers to become obsolete. Fordism and the Industrial Age caused the average working man to be highly replaceable. Unemployment rates gradually accumulated to a whopping 24.9% and inflation fell to a -10.3%. These conditions created a cycle of poverty, which was nearly impossible to escape. Another side effect of the growing technological advances was the dehumanizing effects of the machine on man. As the Great Depression drew on, millions of Americans were sent into poverty and left unemployed and hungry. Many actors and filmmakers took it upon themselves to address these conditions. Charlie Chaplin was one such icon whose silent film, Modern Times set during the Great Depression Era, provided a greater critique of the end of the Industrial Revolution and the beginning of the Great Depression. “Modern Times” criticizes the effect of machine on man and individualism during the Industrial Revolution and the rampant poverty in the Great Depression.
In this essay, I shall consider why there was almost no violence in white Australia during the depression of the 1930s. In doing so, I will outline the generally accepted narrative of depression era life, which expresses a dark time of suffering for those who lived it, before turning to the contemporary historian ** Potts, who has challenged not only this narrative, but also the figures for unemployment which are used in perpetuating the generally accepted view of depression life. From there, I will examine the leftist political group, the communist party, and assert that their attitude and behaviour was a factor which contributed to the lack of violence. And, in contrast to the communist party's view on depression conditions, I will contend that records from the period indicate that conditions were not as bleak as commonly presented. Instead, people's basic requirements for nutrition, clothing, and shelter, were not disregarded by the government. The