Rethinking an Icon of Sixties Britain: The Mini and Its Place in the Post-War Motor Revolution
Year: 2022
Type: article
Abstract: The Mini was launched in 1959 during Britain's motor revolution. This iconic car has long been analogized with the popular iconography of the Sixties, but I argue here that this association only scratches the surface of its more complex meanings. Rather, the Mini embodied the tension arising from a motor revolution that was transformative yet limited. By looking at how the Mini was marketed, perceived, and used (and by whom), I suggest that it was a conduit through which Englishness and national decline were mediated against the backdrop of mass motorization. It also reflected the motor-car's growing importance as a public and private space. I draw on a number of historical sources to make this argument, including automotive advertising, a source that is currently underutilized by historians. In doing so, I seek to overcome the normative tendency in academic history to overlook the car's cultural significance.
DOI: 10.1093/tcbh/hwac006
Author: Jacob Harris
Institution: University of East Anglia
Language: English
Topic: American History and Culture
Subfield: Marketing
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W4226085307