Changing Culture: c. 1900 - Present
AP Concept: 6.3 New Conceptualizations of Global Economy and Culture
Key Concepts
Societal Changes
Globalizing Culture
Key Concepts
- People challenged traditional forms of society and culture
- Popular and consumer culture spread globally
- The feminist movement built on successes of the suffrage movement to fight for social and economic parity between genders
- Women first gained the right to vote in New Zealand, Australia, and Finland, while British and American women won the right to vote after 1920
- Women continued to fight for jobs outside their traditional image, and began to create a new image with changing fashion and popular culture
- Both world wars allowed women to work in traditionally male jobs and gave them more power as wage-earners, but they struggled to maintain this power at the end of the wars
- The feminist movement of the 1960s and 1970s publicized issues of child care and equal pay for equal work
- While women have taken on roles as heads of government in countries like Britain and Israel, many women still struggle for equality in politics, law, and medicine
- The sexual revolution redefined gender roles as well
- Access to birth control allowed women more control over their reproductive lives, and women began to challenge the institution of marriage and bear children while unmarried
- Countries in the developing world experienced various changes to gender roles, as well
- Some socialist and communist countries instituted legal reforms for women, but traditional beliefs still existed
- Literacy rates for women in many areas of the world, including South Asia, are still far below those of men, despite having powerful female heads of state
- Several countries dealt with booming populations in various ways
- China established a one-child policy, preventing around 250 million births and rescuing the country from a challenging population increase
- New forms of spirituality emerged in the late 20th century, and others applied specific ideas from existing religions to modern-day problems
- New Age religions drew inspiration from Eastern and Western traditions and combined them with self-help psychology
- Liberation theology developed within the Catholic Church as a response to Latin American poverty
the teachings of Jesus Christ are seen as a vehicle for liberation from unjust conditions
- As the world becomes more connected, cultural boundaries blur between countries, leading to cultural conformity
- Western companies and entertainment have spread worldwide, leading to what some term cultural imperialism
- American companies like McDonald's and Coca-Cola are globalized
- Western ideas of materialism and consumerism have spread, as well, though they clash with more traditional cultures and ideas in many countries
- The English language is used in many countries, transmitted through entertainment and the Internet
- Cultural diffusion also exists between countries
- Global media allowed Bollywood, or Indian cinema, to spread throughout the world
- Sports have become internationalized through the Olympics and the World Cup Soccer matches
|
Related Links: AP World History Quizzes AP World History AP World History Notes Interdependence: c. 1900 - Present |