Tag: Social History
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‘Does the Bicycle Make Women Cruel?’: Freedom, Feminism and the Fin de Siècle
Elizabeth Hill explores nineteenth century fears over women cycling, and how cycling played a role in women’s liberation.
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City of God: Cinema as Social Commentary
Lydia Collier-Wood’s review of Mierelle and Lund’s City of God engages with social inequality, violence, and cinematic realism.
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Using Nick Hedges’ Photography to Challenge Narratives of Widespread British Affluence in the 1960s
Many historians deem the 1960s to be a decade of consumerism and affluence which affected the working class. Lauren Hood seeks to complicate this notion through analysing the striking photography of Nick Hedges, who captures the bleak reality for many working class Britons.
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Eugenics and the Dangers of Simplifying Intolerance
Eugenics, coined by Francis Galton in 1883, aims to influence future generations’ racial quality, intertwining with scientific racism and legislative practices such as forced sterilisation. Kate Philips evaluates how the idea of eugenic and its historical interpretations possess a dark side, implicated in human cognition and societal values.
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Hulme Crescents: A Case Study in Manchester’s Post-Slum Clearance Experiment and a Lesson for British Social Housing
Many British industrial cities were marked by decline after the Second World War. Jake Beecroft recounts the case of Hulme Crescents in Manchester, illustrating the failures of urban renewal and advocating for people-centred urban planning.
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Is Gossiping Feminist? The History Behind the Villainisation of ‘Tell-Tales’
Abbie Teal explores the history of gossip as a female practice and how perceptions of this have evolved over time.
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Kommunalka: The Thin Wall Between the Public and the Private in Soviet Collective Housing
Kommunalka, shared apartments in the Soviet Union, emerged post-World War II, fostering unique communities despite a lack of privacy. Olivia Hiskett reflects on their complex blend of Soviet ideology, necessity, and pre-revolutionary communal traditions, shaping social dynamics amidst distrust.
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The Art of Arpilleras under Augusto Pinochet’s Authoritarian Rule
Augusto Pinochet’s dictatorship in Chile (1973-1990) was marked by violence and repression. Louisa Steijger discusses female responses through arpilleras, vibrant tapestries documenting daily life and resistance.
Retrospect Journal 