The Rise of Mass Culture at the Turn of the Century Education and Leisure Chapter 13, Section 3, Part B

Mass Society  a society whose citizens are characterized by having impersonal relations, a high degree of physical and social mobility, and a trend to conform to external popular norms.

Education

Universal education was a product of the mass society of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.  Before then, education was primarily for the wealthy and upper middle class.  Between 1870 and 1914 most western governments began to set up state-sponsored primary schools. Boys and girls between 6 through12 were required to attend.  The first female colleges were really teacher-training institutes.

LONDON, 1900

 The firms of the Second Industrial Revolution needed skilled, knowledgeable labor.  If they had an elementary education, boys and girls of the working class could aspire to jobs previously not assessable to them.  Teaching  White-Collar Jobs

 The chief motive for public education was political.  Extending the right to vote called for a better-educated public.

 Compulsory education created a demand for teachers.  most were women since the job appeared to be an extension of the “natural role” of female nurturing.  The increased education increased literacy (the ability to read).  Where there was universal schooling, by 1900 most adults could read.

Leisure Activities

“Eight hours for work, eight hours for rest, and eight hours for what we will.” Worcester, Massachusetts Carpenters’ Union 1889 YearHours Per Week Changes in the United States Work Week More time away from work led to more leisure time.

Amusement Parks  Coney Island  Tunnel of Love

Fasion  In mid-18 th century, a woman of means wore five or six petticoats under her dress. Her skirt was long so that writers of etiquette books like Emily Thornwell's The Lady's Guide to Perfect Gentility had to provide instructions of how to lift it in a graceful and decorous way when climbing stairs or walking on a muddy street. A woman of the time often wore a corset since it was considered fashionable to have a "wasp" waist.

Bicycling and Roller Skating

Spectator Sports  Baseball

Live Performances and Motion Pictures  Vaudeville  Ragtime  The Circus  Silent Pictures

Consumerism  Department Stores  Chain Stores  Five and Dime Stores  Mail-Order Catalogs

Increased literacy  helped spread newspapers.  In London, millions of copies were sold each day.  Often they were sensationalistic, with gossip and gruesome stories of crime.

Newspapers and Advertisements Sensationalism subject matter, language, or style producing or designed to produce startling or thrilling impressions or to excite. Mass Culture: the culture that is widely circulated by the use of the mass media

Vaudeville