ENGLISH

Austerity in Britain: Rationing, Controls, and Consumption, 1939-1955

Book information

Publisher
Oxford University Press, USA
Year
2000
ISBN
0198204531, 9780198204534
Open Library ID
OL6899708M
Language
english
Format
PDF
Filesize
2 MB (1853468 bytes)
Edition
First edition.
Pages
304\304
Orientation
no
Scanned
yes
Time added
2012-02-04 16:00:00

Description

Austerity in Britain is the first book to explore the entire episode of rationing, austerity, and fair shares from 1939 until 1955. These policies were central to the British war effort and to post-war reconstruction. The book analyzes the connections between government policy, consumption, gender, and party politics during and after the Second World War. It qualifies the myth of common sacrifice on the home front and highlights the limitations of the fairshares policy which failed to achieve genuine equality between classes or between men and women. The continuation of rationing and austerity policies after 1945 was central to party politics. Disaffection, particularly among women, undermined Labour's popularity while the Conservatives' critique of austerity was instrumental to the party's victories at the general elections of 1951 and 1955.

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