Festival city the arts, culture and moral conflict in Edinburgh 1947-1967

• Main Author: Bartie, Angela
• Published: University of Dundee 2007
• Subjects: 700.74
• Online Access: http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.493266

The Edinburgh International Festival of Music and Drama was founded in 1947, and with the addition of the Fringe Festival (and later offshoots) it quickly established itself as the world's largest event of its kind. In the aftermath of World War II, the arts were looked to for moral and cultural revitalisation. However, the meanings of culture were soon challenged. By examining Edinburgh between 1947 and 1967, this contest over culture can be observed, traced and explored. Edinburgh was then renowned for its religious conservatism and, indeed, contained the headquarters of all the Scottish Presbyterian churches. At a time when, simultaneously, the place of the arts in society were given more importance and the status of organised religion declined, this thesis argues that the Festivals acted as vital arenas in which social and cultural tensions in British society were given space for confrontation. This resulted in clashes over the meaning of 'culture' and concepts of 'the arts', as well as instances of 'moral conflict. This study will put these clashes in the context of the upheaval and change that occurred during the 1960s by looking at the changing definitions of culture, new and experimental trends in the theatre, issues of morality and permissiveness, and the liberalisation of the arts from moral austerity. This research seeks to contribute to our understanding of the relationship between social and cultural change, as well as the way in which tensions between 'traditional' and 'new' attitudes and values were played out in the field of the arts. A chronological framework is used to analyse these shifts in the arts, culture and morality while a wide range of documentary archival, secondary and oral histories are drawn upon in order to examine the perceptions and influences of key groups and organisations. In doing so, this thesis attempts to give the 'Festival City' its rightful place in post-war social and cultural history.