Women in Fifties Britain: A New Look

Book Details

• Author: Penny Tinkler

• Publisher: Routledge

• Language: English

• Edition: 1st

• ISBN: 9780367234317

• Pages: 190

• Cover: Paperback

• Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.9 x 0.5 inches

• Weight: Not specified

About the Book

Women in Fifties Britain, edited by Penny Tinkler, offers a compelling and richly detailed examination of what it meant to be a girl or woman in post-war Britain. While the 1950s are often remembered through stereotypes of contented housewives, glamorous icons, and jive-crazed teenagers, this collection reveals a far more complex and nuanced picture of women's lives during a period of societal transformation.

Drawing on both new and established sources, this book brings together a wide array of perspectives and experiences—from farmer's wives and working mothers to Jewish refugees, university-educated women, and activist housewives. By embracing an interdisciplinary and intersectional approach, the contributors challenge conventional historical narratives and reposition women's experiences at the center of Britain's post-war reconstruction.

Topics explored include:

• Gendered labor and domestic responsibilities

• Post-war emotional landscapes and sociability

• Race, class, and sexuality in shaping women’s roles

• The political and social legacy of World War II

• Shifting identities in private, public, and professional spaces

This engaging volume not only enriches our understanding of women's history, but also offers new insights into broader themes such as modernity, reconstruction, and the politics of gender. Originally published as a special issue of Women’s History Review, the collection serves as an essential resource for students and scholars in gender studies, history, sociology, and post-war British studies.

Women in Fifties Britain is an important and timely contribution to feminist historiography—redefining how we see the 1950s and the women who helped shape it.