Ichihashi, Hideo (1994) Working-class leisure in English towns 1945-1960 : with special reference to Coventry and Bolton. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

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Abstract

The popular perception of the years 1945 to 1960 is that
they constituted a transitional period from austerity to
affluence. Material gains in the post-war years gradually
increased, enhanced by full-employment, the establishment of
the welfare state and a growing quantity of consumer goods.
At first glance, it seems that working-class people's nonmaterial
life, too, greatly changed. 'Traditional' leisure
such as cinema-, pub- and football-going declined, replaced
by more consumption-oriented, home- and family-centred
leisure, such as television watching, do-it-yourself and
pleasure motoring. Critics have seen this was symptomatic of
the erosion of 'traditional' working-class-life styles,
underlined by more communal and solidaristic social
relationships.
A close examination of post-war leisure in two workingclass
towns questions the above dichotomy, and shows the
significant continuity and diversity of people's leisure
patterns. These were often deeply divided according to
gender, age, life-stage and locality. Despite the rapidly
changing trends of commercial leisure, and the increased
intervention of the public sector in social life, the selfdetermined
nature of working-class leisure does not seem to
have been eroded. On the contrary, the general affluence of
post-war Britain seems to have contributed in a modest way
to increased leisure opportunities in which people could
express their personal and social identity with less
hesitation than before.

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD)
Subjects:	D History General and Old World > DA Great Britain G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GV Recreation Leisure
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Leisure -- England -- Coventry -- History -- 20th century, Leisure -- England -- Bolton -- History -- 20th century, Working class -- England -- Coventry -- History -- 20th century, Working class -- England -- Bolton -- History -- 20th century, Coventry (England) -- Social life and customs -- 20th century, Bolton (England) -- Social life and customs -- 20th century
Official Date:	May 1994
Dates:	Date Event May 1994 Submitted
Institution:	University of Warwick
Theses Department:	Department of Social History
Thesis Type:	PhD
Publication Status:	Unpublished
Supervisor(s)/Advisor:	Tiratsoo, Nick, 1952-
Sponsors:	Overseas Research Students Awards Scheme (ORSAS) ; Japan Scholarship Society
Extent:	xv, 491 leaves
Language:	eng

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