Tong Cai - Suburban Heaven and Hell

     In Australia, a lot of economic and social change occurred after World War II. Australia changed its economic base by moving away from agriculture and transitioning into manufacturing. Melbourne was at the center of this transition and became the most industrialised city within Australia. Social norms were also changing, as an increasing number of women were seen entering into the work-force throughout the 1950’s, challenging traditional gender roles within the household. With the advancements in technology and infrastructure, what was once a compact and dense city turned into increasing urban sprawl, allowing the middle class to escape the “crowding and congestion of the centre for the space and amenity of the suburbs” (Davies, 2011). Furthermore, suburban life was very different between the working and middle classes as socio-economic positioning was a prominent factor (Pascoe, 2011). For this essay, suburban life in the 1950’s from a working class and middle class point of view will be looked at, drawing upon various examples from Melbourne suburbs such as Carlton, Collingwood and North Balwyn.

The Ideal Suburban Life

     “Home was the essential to post-war Australian dreaming” (Pascoe, 2011). It was every Australian’s dream to be able to own a large house, with a large backyard and front garden. This ideal was very much fuelled by the war, seen as a symbol of a brighter future. Ever since the 1880’s, the size of one’s property aided in social respectability. (Pascoe, 2011). The freedom to be able to live according to one’s values was very much related to the amount of housing space one’s family had. “The family is inherently an institution which has a love of privacy, a love of its own backyard, of its own amusements, and of its own way of life” (Pascoe, 2011). Also, safety and security were important for the ideal family home. Ensuring children with the best upbringing environment was a large post-war focus for families, and suburban life was seen as the most ideal way to accomplish this. These ideals were shared amongst the middle class and were certainly the case for suburbs such as North Balwyn, which is located 10km east of Melbourne CBD. Houses were usually single, detached homes with a garden (Pascoe, 2011), which reflected the Australian dream well.

Caption: “Typical North Balwyn House in the 1950s.”

Reality for the Working Class

    The working class lived in the inner suburbs as many could not afford to live further, as commuting into the city centre would be difficult due to the underdevelopment of the transportation system and also not being able to afford a private car. Inner suburbs, much like many other early cities such as London, were considered to be unsanitary, disease ridden and crowded. They were very undesirable places and seen as the slums of Melbourne. Looking back at the week 9 lecture “Slum Clearance” delivered by David Nichols, Collingwood was regarded as the worst suburb in Melbourne, seen as a symbol of the failure of society. It was an undesirable place to be topographically, as the miasma theory was still seen as the cause for diseases spreading via ‘bad’ and stagnant air, and since Collingwood was topographically low lying, it was believed to be the reason contributing to the place being disease ridden. Along with this, Collingwood was thought of to be a very unsanitary place, as sewerage and dirty rainwater would run down into the suburb, increasing death rates (Nichols, 2015). This can be compared alongside the conditions in London, England, where industrialisation of the city leaded to “a rapidly changing profile of mortality and morbidity” (Susser, 1998).

     The importance of safety and security was unfortunately rarely felt in family homes, with many cases of domestic violence happening amongst the working class suburbs. “Reflecting later in the interview, Elaine’s words made it clear that home and family had negative connotations for her, and she often felt safer on the outside” (Pascoe, 2011). It was something that people were all aware of, but never spoke about. “People were just doing things like that to vent their anger or their passions of their frustrations for being trapped where they were.” (Pascoe, 2011).

Changing Roles for Women

     Job opportunities were often barred from women and even when working alongside men in the same job, received less pay. Being a housewife and mother was the primary role that any women should take (Strachan, 2010). Starting from the 1950’s, women were finally speaking out and demanding equality. Although this was the case, many middle class women who moved further away from the city centre in the hopes of a better quality of life physically could not reach these opportunities, and very often felt isolated and helpless being so far away from friends and family. For example, the women of Lalor felt these affects as their husbands were off at work everyday, leaving their wives in the house to continue with traditional tasks and chores. Not only were women in charge of the upbringing of children, but they took on the challenge of creating something important and that they all craved. The “pivotal role for the women emerged: building community” (Scollay 2012). These women formed the “Lalor Women’s Social Club (LWSC)” and created a space named the Kinderhall, which was a kindergarten and a community hall, to facilitate the two things these women cared about the most. They were able to create “a caring atmosphere in which the children felt safe, loved and stimulated” (Scollay 2012).

Suburbs Today

    Suburban life was the ideal that every Australian strived for. The closer you were to the city, the more quality of life decreased. Although suburbs such as North Balwyn are still known to be very affluent areas, housing prices for Carlton are continually increasing, as more and more people now desire the compact, fast-paced city lifestyle. The sprawl of suburbia is the reason for increases in car dependency, and low connectivity to the city for those that do not own a car, and thus enhancing isolation.

Caption: “Apartment developments in Carlton.”

    

Even though it may seem that disparities between suburbs in Melbourne have lessened, many refuse to face the fact or are not informed that there are still a large group of citizens living in poverty and surprisingly, it is the suburbs that are the farthest suffering, such as Broadmeadows, Dallas and Coolaroo. Social norms are changing, with the mindset of citizens reversing and striving for a different lifestyle.

Reference List 

Davies, A. (2011). Suburban Employment Trends: A Melbourne Case Study. M/C Journal, 14(4).

Nichols, D. (Lecturer) (2015, May 5). Slum Clearance. Lecture. Lecture conducted from the University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.

Pascoe, C. (2011). Spaces Imagined, Places Remembered: Childhood in 1950’s Australia. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.

Scollay, M. (2012). Lalor. Sydney Australia: UNSW Press.

Strachan, G. (2010). Still Working for the Man? Women’s Employment Experiences in Australia since 1950. Australian Journal of Social Issues, 45(1), 117,130.

Susser, M. (1998). Does Risk Factor Epidemiology put Epidemiology at Risk? Peering into the Future. Epidemiol Community Health, 52, 608-611.