Chapter 20 Cold War & Postwar Changes
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Transcript of Chapter 20 Cold War & Postwar Changes
Chapter 20Cold War & Postwar Changes
20.3- Western Europe &North America
Main Ideas
• Postwar Western societies rebuilt their economies and communities
• Shifting social structures in the West led to upheaval and change
Key Terms– bloc -a group of nations with a common
purpose– real wages - the actual purchasing power of
income – welfare state - a state in which the
government takes responsibility for providing citizens with services and a minimal standard of living
People to Identify
• Charles de Gaulle– the first president of the Fifth
Republic of France• Simone de Beauvoir
– wrote the book- The Second Sex
– influenced both the American and European women’s movements
People to Identify• John F. Kennedy
– the youngest elected president of the U.S.
– was assassinated in 1963• Martin Luther King, Jr
– a leader of the civil rights movement
– led a march on Washington, D.C., for equality
– He advocated the use of passive disobedience in gaining racial equality
Western Europe: Recovery• The Marshall Plan
helped the countries of Western Europe recover relatively rapidly from the devastation of World War II
• The 1950s and 1960s were periods of dramatic economic growth and prosperity in Western Europe
Western Europe: Recovery• For almost 25 years
after World War II, France was mostly led by Charles de Gaulle.
• France became a major industrial producer and exporter
Western Europe: Recovery• From 1949 to 1963,
Konrad Adenauer, leader of the Christian Democratic Union, served as chancellor of West Germany– West Germany’s
economy was revived– The unemployment rate
fell greatly
Western Europe: Recovery• At the end of World War II, Great Britain
had large economic problems– The Labour Party defeated Churchill’s
Conservative Party• promised far-reaching reforms• created a modern welfare state
– The British welfare state became the norm for most European states
Western Europe: Recovery• The cost of building a welfare state caused
Great Britain to dismantle the British Empire– Many British colonies gained their
independence
Western Europe: The Move toward Unity
• After World War II, many Europeans wanted European unity
• In 1957, France, West Germany, the Benelux countries, and Italy created the European Economic Community (EEC), also known as the Common Market.– The six member nations would impose no
tariffs on each other’s goods– By the 1960s, the EEC was an important
trading bloc
The Development of Canada• After World War II, Canada
increased its industrial development– a founding member of the UN in
1945 and joined NATO in 1949– The Liberal government of Canada
created a welfare state • national social security system • national health insurance program
The Emergence of a New Society• Postwar Western society had a changing
social structure– Managers and technicians joined the middle-
class groups– The number of people in farming declined
dramatically– The number of industrial workers declined as
white-collar workers increased– A consumer society developed as real
wages increased
The Emergence of a New Society• Buying on credit became
widespread in the 1950s– The automobile was a sign of
consumerism• Women in many Western countries
had gained the right to vote after World War-– Women in France and Italy gained
voting rights in the 1940s– Women who had worked during World
War II returned to traditional roles
The Emergence of a New Society• Birthrates rose, creating a “baby boom”
in the late 1940s and the 1950s• By the end of the 1950s, birthrates declined
– Married women entered the workforce– Women earned much less than men did for equal work– Many women worked and raised families at the same
time
The Emergence of a New Society
• By the late 1960s, women renewed their interest in the women’s liberation movement– The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir
influenced both the American and European women’s movements
The Emergence of a New Society
• Growing discontent in European and U.S. universities led students to revolt in the late 1960s
• In the 1970s and 1980s, student rebels became middle-class professionals