Gender, work, and education in Britain in the 1950s

About this book

"The Coronation in 1953 marked the start of a 'New Elizabethan Age'. Improvements in education together with an expanding economy ensured a range of employment opportunities for young people. Yet girls' full acceptance into the world of adult women was still confirmed by marriage and motherhood rather than a high powered career. Jobs might offer a 'stop-gap' between school and marriage. This book examines the gendered nature of the term 'career' during the 1950s through a focus on girls' school-leaving decisions. Employment education came from a variety of sources: the Youth Employment Officer, careers' advice in schools, women's and girls' magazines and the career novel. Using both written sources and interviews with women who left school in the 1950s it focuses on the relationship between individual 'women' and the overarching representation of 'Woman' in a decade which has been overlooked in favour of the swinging sixties."--Jacket.