Chapter 20 Cold War & Postwar Changes

1. Chapter 20Cold War & Postwar Changes 20.3- Western Europe & North America

2. Main Ideas • Postwar Western societies rebuilt their economies and communities • Shifting social structures in the West led to upheaval and change

3. 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

4. People to Identify • Charles de Gaulle • the first president of the Fifth Republic of France • Simone de Beauvoir • wrote the book- TheSecond Sex • influenced both the American and European women’s movements

5. 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

6. 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

7. 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

8. 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

9. 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

10. Western Europe: Recovery • The cost of building a welfare state caused Great Britain to dismantle the British Empire • Many British colonies gained their independence

11. 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

12. 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

13. 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

14. 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

15. 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

16. The Emergence of a New Society • By the late 1960s, women renewed their interest in the women’s liberation movement • TheSecond Sex by Simone de Beauvoir influenced both the American and European women’s movements

17. 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