The growth of materialism

• materialism= a world v view that regards material possessions, wealth and personal comfort as more important than any spiritual beliefs or practices
• post-reformation views on the value of family life led to a reassessment of attitudes to wealth and possessions: secure family life depended on possessing worldly goods and enough money to pay for them
• the expansion of Britain's power in Africa, the americas and the far east created trading opportunities that led to the development of capitalism
• capitalism= the political and economic system that allows wealth to be controlled by individuals and b businesses for private profit
• capitalism was reinforced in the nineteenth century by the Industrial Revolution- great wealth was created in banking, businesses and trading. this led to terrible financial poverty and appalling living conditions for those families who flocked to towns and cities to work in factories, etc. this inequity was challenged by the ideology of communism promoted by Karl Marx, but it went un heeded by British society as a whole
• communism= a political system in which power, wealth and status are equally shared by all who live in the community or nation
• ways materialism is seen in British society:

  • those who are wealthy tend to see their continued well-being as dependent on acquiring even greater wealth
  • those who are poor see the acquisition of money and possessions as the key to happiness
  • material possessions are seen as more important than spiritual qualities