NCERT
Solutions for Class 10th: Ch 6 Work, Life and Leisure
History
Social Studies (S.St)
*Write in Brief*
1. Give two reasons why the
population of London expanded from the
Middle
of the eighteenth century.
→ The city of London was a magnet for the migrant
populations due to the
job opportunities provided by its dockyards and industries.
By 1750, one
out of every
nine people of England and Wales lived in London. So, the
population of London kept expanding through the eighteenth
and
nineteenth centuries.
→ During the first world war, London began manufacturing
motor cars and
electrical goods. This increased the number of large
factories, which in
turn increased the number of people coming to the city in
search of work.
2. What were the changes in the kind
of work available to women in
London between the nineteenth and
the twentieth century? Explain the
factors which led to this change?
Changes in the kind of work available to women in London
between the
Nineteenth and the twentieth century were primarily based on
industrial
and technological advancements. Consequently, women had to
work in
households for a living, and this led to an increase in the
number of
domestic servants. Some women also began to earn by lodging
out rooms,
tailoring, washing or making matchboxes. With the coming of
the First
World War though, women once again joined the industrial
sector.
3. How does the existence of a large
urban population affect each of the
following? Illustrate with
historical examples.
(a) A private landlord
(b) A Police Superintendent in charge of law and order
(c) A leader of a political part
(a) A private landlord benefits by increasing the rent and
he has more
control over the price. The rising population would lead to
increasing
demand for space, e.g. renting of buildings at high rates
were common in
London and Bombay.
(b) Anyone involved with law and order would find it
difficult with
increasing population in urban areas. He would have to work
hard to
maintain law and order as crime rates are usually high in
cities. For
example, London people employed policemen to curb the rising
crimes
during night.
(c) Political leaders would have more people voting and
hence more
responsibilities. In cities, masses of people could be drawn
to the
political causes as it happened in the Bloody Sunday of
November, 1887
in London. The metropolitan character of cities would compel
him/her to
be more secular and liberal on the one hand. On the other
hand, extremism or conservatism might also win them votes as
a
reactionary phenomenon, e.g. rise of Nazis in Germany or
Liberal
Democrats in France.
4. Give explanations for the
following:
(a) Why well-off Londoners
supported the need to build housing for the
poor in the nineteenth century.
(b) Why a number of Bombay
films were about the lives of migrants.
(c) What led to the major
expansion of Bombay's population in the
Mid-nineteenth century.
(a) Well-off Londoners
supported the need to build housing for the poor
in the nineteenth century on account of three reasons:
→ one-room houses of the poor came to be seen as the
breeding ground of
diseases, and hence, a threat to public health
→ Fire hazards became a worry in these over-crowded, badly
ventilated,
unhygienic homes
→ There was a widespread fear of social disorder, especially
after the
1917 Russian Revolution. Housing schemes were undertaken to
avoid a
rebellion by the poor.
(b) Bombay became an
attractive destination for people seeking jobs
after the British administration replaced Surat with Bombay
as its
principal western port. The consequent increase in trade and
industries
led to a great influx of people. Thus, migrants were (and
still are) an
important facet of Bombay. Most of the people in the film
industry were
migrants themselves, and wanted to portray the plight of
this class of
people through films. Thus, a number of Bombay films were
about the
lives of migrants.
(c) In mid-seventeenth
century, Bombay became East India Company's
principal western port, replacing Surat. Later, by the end
of the
nineteenth century, it had become an important
administrative as well as
industrial centre. All through these years, the prospects
for trade and
commerce, and employment kept increasing, thereby making
Bombay an
attractive destination for migrants.
*Discuss*
1. What forms of entertainment came
up in nineteenth century England to
provide leisure activities for the
people.
There were many forms of entertainment came up in nineteenth
century
England:
→ For the upper classes, an annual "London Season"
comprised of opera,
the theatre and classical music events was one of the
sources of leisure.
→ For the working classes, pubs, discussions and meetings
for political
action served the same purpose.
→ Libraries, art galleries and museums were new types of
entertainment
brought about through the utilisation of state money.
→ Music halls and cinema theatres too became immensely
popular with the
lower classes.
→ Industrial workers were encouraged to undertake seaside
vacations to
rejuvenate from the banes of working in the polluting
environment of
factories.
2. Explain the social changes in
London which led to the need for the
Underground railway. Why was the
development of the Underground criticised?
The development of suburbs as a part of the drive to
decongest London
led to the extension of the city beyond the range where
people could
walk to work. Though these suburbs had been built, the
people could not
be persuaded to leave the city and stay far away from their
places of
work in the absence of some form of public transport. The
Underground
railway was constructed to solve this housing problem. It
was criticized
initially because:
→ A newspaper reported the danger to health and asphyxiation
(lack of
air) and heat.
→ It was referred to as iron monsters, which added to the
mess of the
city. Charles Dickens in ‘Dombey and Son’ described its
destructive
process in construction.
→ About 900 houses were destroyed to make two miles of
railways.
3. Explain what is meant by the
Haussmanisation of Paris. To what extent
would you support or oppose this
form of development? Write a letter to
the editor of a newspaper, to either
support or oppose this, giving
reasons for your view.
Haussmanisation of Paris refers to the forcible
reconstruction of cities
to enhance their beauty and impose order. The poor were
evicted from the
centre of Paris to reduce the possibility of political
rebellion and to
beautify the city.
4. To what extent does government
regulation and new laws solve problems
of pollution? Discuss one example
each of the success and failure of
Legislation to change the quality of:
(a) Public life
(b) Private life
Government laws play an important role in controlling the
rates of
pollution in a city. However, simply passing laws is not
enough. They
need to be properly enforced as well. It is also a fact that
people tend
to find ways of getting around laws. So, apart from
legislations,
government also needs to carry out intensive public
awareness programmes
aimed at educating the public about the need and ways of
controlling
pollution; and about how they too have a stake in
environmental governance.
Public
Life:
• Failure: The Underground railway enhanced transport, but
caused the
demolition of many houses, rendering their inhabitants
homeless.
• Success: The British state used public funds to provide
for
entertainment forms such as museums, art galleries and
libraries for the
working classes.
Private
Life:
• Failure: The availability of one-room tenements and no
housing
facilities for a major part of the industrial revolution
time period
caused the family to get divided into smaller units. There
were even
cases where rural people had to leave their families behind
and live
alone in the urban areas where they worked.
• Success: British administrative officials built houses in
new suburbs
for fulfilling the housing needs of the working classes.
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