Paper 3, Option 37.2: Germany, 1871–1990: united, divided and reunited - 1 Social change in Germany and West Germany — Edexcel A-Level History
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Paper 3, Option 37.2: Germany, 1871–1990: united, divided and reunited - 1 Social change in Germany and West Germany explained
Paper 3, Option 37.2: Germany, 1871–1990: united, divided and reunited - 1 Social change in Germany and West Germany covers 2 specification points, including The growth of the urban working class, the… and Roles in the family and the workplace in the….
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Open a point below for its explanation and revision guidance.
Changes in class structure and prosperity, 1871–1990: the growth of the urban working class, the artisan tradition and its impact, the slow decline of the land-owning elite and the peasantry, the rise of the white collar workers (key developments: Bismarck's introduction of pensions and health insurance in the 1880s, social mobility after the Second World War).
Between 1871 and 1990, Germany's class structure transformed. Industrialisation swelled the urban working class, while the artisan tradition persisted, shaping workers' identities and politics. The land-owning elite (Junkers) and peasantry slowly declined as agriculture's share of the economy fell. White-collar workers (Angestellte) grew with the service sector. Bismarck's 1880s welfare reforms—pensions and health insurance—mitigated working-class hardship and set a precedent for state intervention. After the Second World War, social mobility increased, especially in West Germany, through education and economic growth. These changes altered prosperity, social relations, and political allegiances, though regional and gender inequalities remained.
The changing role of women, 1871–1990: roles in the family and the workplace in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries (key developments: the impacts of the First World War, Nazi policies, the Second World War and post-war opportunities).
Study women's roles in family and workplace across 1871–1990. In the nineteenth century, middle-class women were expected to manage the household while working-class women often combined domestic duties with paid work in factories, domestic service or agriculture. The First World War drew many women into munitions and transport, but most lost these jobs after 1918. Nazi policies pushed women towards motherhood and away from paid employment, though labour shortages later pulled them back. The Second World War again expanded female employment, and post-war opportunities in West Germany grew through the 'economic miracle', education and service-sector work, while the GDR encouraged women to combine work and family. Assess change and continuity, and compare phases.
Your focus
- Describe the changes in class structure and prosperity in Germany from 1871 to 1990.
- Explain the impact of Bismarck's welfare reforms and post-Second World War social mobility on German society.
- Assess the extent to which class divisions and prosperity changed over the period.
Show all 6 objectives
- Describe women's roles in the family and workplace in nineteenth-century Germany.
- Explain how the First World War, Nazi policies, the Second World War and post-war opportunities changed or reinforced those roles.
- Evaluate the extent of change in women's roles across 1871–1990 using specific evidence.
Paper 3, Option 37.2: Germany, 1871–1990: united, divided and reunited - 1 Social change in Germany and West Germany exam tips
Marking Points
- Explains the growth of the urban working class due to industrialisation and urbanisation, and its impact on German society and politics.
- Analyses the artisan tradition and its impact, including resistance to industrialisation and the role of guilds and small workshops.
- Assesses the slow decline of the land-owning elite and the peasantry, noting their loss of economic and political influence.
- Describes the rise of white-collar workers, their distinct social status, and their role in the expanding service sector.
- Evaluates the significance of Bismarck's welfare reforms (pensions and health insurance) in shaping class relations and state welfare.
- Examines social mobility after the Second World War, particularly in West Germany, and its limits.
- Explains nineteenth-century expectations: middle-class women confined to the home, working-class women combining domestic labour with paid work in factories, service or agriculture.
- Analyses the First World War as a turning point that drew women into munitions, transport and other male-dominated work, followed by post-war retreat from many of these roles.
- Explains Nazi policies that promoted motherhood and discouraged paid work, alongside later labour shortages that pulled women back into employment.
- Assesses the Second World War and post-war opportunities, including the 'economic miracle', expanding education and service-sector jobs, and the GDR's encouragement of women combining work and family.
- Evaluates continuity and change across the whole period, weighing short-term wartime gains against longer-term structural shifts in family and workplace roles.
Examiner Tips
- 💡Use specific examples, such as the Junkers in Prussia or the growth of Angestellte in the 1920s, to illustrate class changes.
- 💡Link economic developments to social structure, for example how industrialisation created new classes.
- 💡Consider continuity as well as change, such as the persistence of the artisan tradition into the twentieth century.
- 💡Anchor each phase to a specific development named in the specification, such as the First World War, Nazi policies, the Second World War or post-war opportunities.
- 💡Use precise evidence, for example employment sectors or policy names, rather than general statements about women's progress.
- 💡Address both family and workplace roles in each period to show balanced coverage of the statement.
Common Mistakes
- Assuming the working class was homogeneous; correction: it was divided by skill, religion, and region, with artisans distinct from factory workers.
- Overstating the speed of decline of the land-owning elite; correction: they retained political influence in the German Empire and beyond, especially in Prussia.
- Ignoring the limitations of post-war social mobility; correction: class barriers persisted, and women and migrants often faced restricted opportunities.
- Treating the First World War as a permanent transformation of women's work; correction: recognise that many wartime gains were reversed after 1918, so change was partial and uneven.
- Assuming Nazi policies alone determined women's lives; correction: consider economic pressures, regional differences and women's own choices alongside ideology.
- Describing post-war opportunities as identical in East and West Germany; correction: distinguish West German growth in service and education from the GDR's encouragement of combining work and family.