School of Social and Political Sciences - Theses
Permanent URI for this collection
Search Results
1 - 1 of 1
-
ItemThe Victorian Boy Scout Movement: a case study of adaptation from Edwardian times to today( 1989)This thesis is an enquiry into the world view of the boy scout association and the way that world view has been adjusted in the light of changing values and societal patterns. The boy scout association has been in existence for some eighty years and it has maintained its strength while almost all other comparable movements have had to disband because of falling membership and insufficient interest. The thesis explores how the association, established in Edwardian times and rooted in imperial middle-class values, has managed the process of adaptation. The thesis is also a case study of scouting in Victoria. The enquiry proceeds by examining three chronological periods selected for their historical significance to the movement. The first is the period from scouting’s inception in Victoria in 1908 until the First World War. The second is the decade 1930 to 1940. Finally is the period from 1967 to 1977. This work does not attempt a detailed historical account of the eras, but pauses to provide only a still shot of the movement at these times. The aim has been to be representative rather than exhaustive in the selection of material. When the movement was established, it was imbued with the spirit of imperialism, militarism and masculinity. It is in terms of these three central concepts that the thinking, values and activities of the movement have been observed to determine how they have survived, rearranged themselves or become something new over the years. This preparatory section will provide a brief sketch of scouting’s ideology, looking specifically at the origins of these three principal elements. (From Introduction)