Social History of Europe, 1945-2000

Hartmut Kaelble has been Professor Emeritus at Humboldt University in Berlin since 2009. From 1971–1991, he was Professor of Social History at Free University Berlin and from 1991–2008 at Humboldt University. He has been a visiting professor at Harvard University, St. Antony’s College Oxford, Maison des Sciences le l’Homme (Paris), EHESS and Sorbonne (Paris I). His most recent book is History of Europe 1945–1989 (Beck 2011), and he has also published widely on comparative history, history of Franco-German relations, history of European democracy during the 19th and 20th centuries, the history of Europe since 1945, and also the history of European society, European identity, and European public spheres.

“A sweeping, fact-filled analysis, this well-researched survey can serve as text and reference work with its graphs and very selective bibliography.”  ·  Choice“As Kaelble stresses, this is not simply a social history from the point of view of social classes. Going beyond this abstraction, it covers family, work, consumption, values, religiosity and urban as well as rural life. Given that it also includes social meanings, social symbols, rites and myths, it is in certain respects nearly a cultural history, while some chapters could fit into the framework of political history… All in all, this book is a great achievement, from which the reader can learn a lot… [It] is well written and highly valuable as a source of knowledge about Europe in the second half of the twentieth century.”  ·  European Review of History—Revue européenne d’histoire “The series of essays in this book provide readers of every ilk with a solid overview of European social history, and the factors that caused it to change over the course of the second half of the 20th-century. This book will prove invaluable to scholars working in all fields of modern European history, and it will aid politicians, social activists, and others, plan for the future by learning from the past. In short, A Social History of Europe 1945-2000is destined to be a classroom standard, and it deserves a place in every library.”  ·  History in Review“Without a doubt, this book offers also for the general reader a fascinating journey of discovery through Europe, which shows surprising commonalities on the one hand and illuminating differences on the other.”  ·  Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung“…with this book, Hartmut Kaelble has written a work that will impact political as well as scholarly debates for a long time to come.”  ·  Der Tagesspiegel“Kaelble’s book offers rich and brilliantly analyzed material in a retrospective view - a look back before Europe takes the next step into the future.”  ·  Financial Times Germany“This book could not be more timely…Students of contemporary history will soon include this book among those standard works that are a must-read. But also politicians and the large number of Euroskeptics would be well advised to study it closely.”  ·  Neue Zürcher Zeitung

• List of Figures and TablesForewordIntroductionPart I: Basic Social ConstellationsChapter 1. FamilyChapter 2. LaborChapter 3. Consumption and Standard of LivingChapter 4. Changing Values and SecularizationPart II: Social Hierarchies and InequalitiesChapter 5. Elites, Intellectuals and Social MilieusChapter 6. Inequalities within Socio-Economic Circumstances and Opportunities for Social MobilityChapter 7. MigrationPart III: Society and StateChapter 8. The Media and European PublicChapter 9. Social Movements, Social Conflicts, and Civil SocietyChapter 10. The Welfare StateChapter 11. City Growth, City Life, and Urban PlanningChapter 12. EducationChapter 13. Summary