A book that revolutionised our understanding of English social history. E. P. Thompson shows how the English working class emerged through the degradations of the industrial revolution to create a culture and political consciousness of enormous vitality.
The Making of the English Working Class (Penguin History)
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About the Author
E. P. Thompson was born in 1924. Although never a member of the British academic establishment, he became one of the most influential, and political, historians of the twentieth century.
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'THAT the number of our Members be unlimited.' Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
'THAT the number of our Members be unlimited.' Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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53 of 55 people found the following review helpful
By conjunction
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
An extraordinary volume looking at a period (1780-1832) when the manufacturing classes got organised and gradually reduced wages and rationalised production, with the aid of a good deal of machinery. Thompson shows how the increasingly impoverished and alienated working classes, as they gradually came to think of themselves, worked their way through a variety of radical postures, including Jacobinism, dissent and methodism, constitutional reform, and then repressed by the Tory government during the Napoleonic wars went underground and turned up in 1816 more radical and numerous than ever. By this time we have highly organised if localised trade unions, groups and clubs in every neighbourhood studying Cobbett, The Black Dwarf and other radical literature, embracing agitation for universal suffrage and the cooperative ideas of Robert Owen. We also get fascinating pictures of men like Cobbett, Henry Hunt, William Blake and Hazlitt as well as many less well known names and the countless thousands who suffered and struggled in the interests of their class. Thompson also shows how historians who have not done his colossal research have often settled for Whig propaganda about the mindless character of the working class, or the condescension of contemporary historians like Place who wanted to play down the energy and commitment of radical elements.
Above all Thompson for the most part works hard to get a balanced view sometimes from limited information and keeps his tongue in his cheek much of the time. He is witty and cheerful, and the book is full of quotations from original sources. A great read if you want to really understand what was going on when Britain became 'great'.
46 of 48 people found the following review helpful
By "mattwilso"
Format:Paperback
I had two major preconceptions which this book has reduced to rubble. The first was that social history was boring; the second was that all working class movements were (disappointingly) lead or supported by the middle-classes, and once the middle-classes got what they wanted and put the brakes on the movements they led the workers collapsed. This led me to view the working class (from which I spring) as pliant, disordered and whimsical. However, this book has taught me: social history is not boring; and the working classes are not feckless, whimsical and slavish (at least not a majority at that time). This is the story of a whole way of life for the lower swathe of society being slowly and calculatedly ripped limb from limb then stitched back together by and for people who found it profitable for themselves to do so. However, the process was not acted on passive beings; hearteningly, the people upon whom some of the cruellest (sustained and systematic) acts in history (before the 20th Century) were perpetrated on fought back, and did a good deal to frustrate the aims of Authority. There was heroic resistance and a great deal of this resistance was led by the working classes themselves. The resisitance, by its nature, also developed political consciousnes, political involvement, and an admirable way of life that seems to have left this country now - returning home from work (12 - 14 hours in those days) and educating yourself. The story is well told, although admittedly it starts slowly and for those who have no interest in statistics they will find a few dull patches. Nevertheless, it is a vital, fascinating and inspiring work. We seldom hear of this period of history in ways other than 'the Nasty Bonaparte' and 'Hero Wellington'. It is envigorating to know that in Britain Wellington wasn't everybody's hero, that people thought for themsleves and were prepared to do something about their situation, nor was the war being fought viewed as a clean-cut good v evil duel adrumbating the wars of the Twentieth Century. Anecdotes, tales of sacrifice, notes on literary figures, cruelties of a ruthless ruling class, spies, dissemblers, controversies and daring conspiracies: there are other histories to be told; this book tells one of them and tells it very well.
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
By dannydiddle
Format:Paperback
The study of history has been through a number of fashions since the end of the Second World War. Marxism, more traditional Whig approaches and post-structuralism have all been among the most influential in how historians approach their discipline. But one name stands out when postwar social history is discussed: E. P. Thompson.
It is true that Thompson displayed support for Marxist ideas and was a member of the CPGB until 1956. However, his theories on the development of social class are far from doctrinaire. Whereas Althusser in France was developing a much more structuralist approach to class, Thompson believed that working-class agency lay at the heart of the development of working-class culture and politics. The prefaces outline this approach very clearly and are, for me at least, some of the most important parts of this book. He also looks at traditional forms of radicalism and saw in England the continuation of these as the working class developed and bonded together to face the new world of industrialisation. This is reflected in other works by Thompson where what was seen as corruption in government was often the source of discontent rather than the lack of democracy. However, both added up to the same thing for radicals: the need for a political system much more open to widespread participation. Traditional forms of discontent, such as rioting, were also maintained and helped to demonstrate that the working class were not just victims of structural changes to England's economy and society.
In 'The making of the English working class', Thompson also pays homage to the role of religion in working-class life demonstrating that Thompson is aware of how rich and vibrant the working-class experience was. The associational culture of the working class, be it in trade unions or in sports clubs, has become an essential part of social history research and this must owe something to Thompson and his work in liberating the less poweful in society from their stereotypical role as merely the victims of economic developments. Undoubtedly Thompson is a left-wing historian but this should not dissuade anyone from reading this excellent work because it gives such a detailed view of the development of working-class consciousness, even if, ultimately, this consciousness did not endure as some thought it would.
It is true that Thompson displayed support for Marxist ideas and was a member of the CPGB until 1956. However, his theories on the development of social class are far from doctrinaire. Whereas Althusser in France was developing a much more structuralist approach to class, Thompson believed that working-class agency lay at the heart of the development of working-class culture and politics. The prefaces outline this approach very clearly and are, for me at least, some of the most important parts of this book. He also looks at traditional forms of radicalism and saw in England the continuation of these as the working class developed and bonded together to face the new world of industrialisation. This is reflected in other works by Thompson where what was seen as corruption in government was often the source of discontent rather than the lack of democracy. However, both added up to the same thing for radicals: the need for a political system much more open to widespread participation. Traditional forms of discontent, such as rioting, were also maintained and helped to demonstrate that the working class were not just victims of structural changes to England's economy and society.
In 'The making of the English working class', Thompson also pays homage to the role of religion in working-class life demonstrating that Thompson is aware of how rich and vibrant the working-class experience was. The associational culture of the working class, be it in trade unions or in sports clubs, has become an essential part of social history research and this must owe something to Thompson and his work in liberating the less poweful in society from their stereotypical role as merely the victims of economic developments. Undoubtedly Thompson is a left-wing historian but this should not dissuade anyone from reading this excellent work because it gives such a detailed view of the development of working-class consciousness, even if, ultimately, this consciousness did not endure as some thought it would.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
The great Thompson
s book is all any person needs to guide them through the Victorian Era. Proffesor Thompson whilst writing much about Yorkshire captures the essentials of the age and through his... Read more
Published 6 months ago by Mancolm S
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Book I would take on a Desert Island
First read this at least 30 years ago. Still have a paperback copy in my bedside draw. It is my companion when I seek comfort or get lost in the daily grind of work, home, work &... Read more
Published 10 months ago by Solo Walker
5.0 out of 5 stars
History as it should be written.
One of the best and most vital pieces written on 'History from Below'. Those who works with history of any period should take note. Read more
Published 16 months ago by Brian
5.0 out of 5 stars
Masterpiece
This book is a must for students of this period;whatever their political persuasion, which is not to say that it is entirely impartial. Read more
Published 19 months ago by Trollope
5.0 out of 5 stars
history
Love my history and this is quite in depth. Never realised how much history the english working classes have. Suitable for anyone interested in English History.
Published 22 months ago by bykerbill
5.0 out of 5 stars
Marxist history in action
Other readers have commented on the book's compelling narrative and vivid style. What interests me about it mainly is that it's an attempt to apply Marxist tools to historical... Read more
Published on 31 Dec 2010 by Dr. G. L. Thomas
2.0 out of 5 stars
The Making of the Working Class in Thompson's image
This book has the reputation of being a classic of social history, and few histories of the period covered (1780 - 1832) omit reference to it. Read more
Published on 1 Dec 2010 by Excalibur
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great account of a fascinating movement and a pivotal period
Rightly considered Thompson's masterpiece, this is a fascinating history, from a committed Marxist standpoint, of how the working class both shaped and was shaped by the economic,... Read more
Published on 11 July 2010 by Jeremy Bevan
2.0 out of 5 stars
Condescension as a literary form
Thompson was a curiously desiccated 'useful idiot'. Edward and Dorothy Thompson had occasional TV appearances - for example a Channel 4 thing with Tariq Ali and Sheila Rowbotham. Read more
Published on 14 Jun 2010 by Rerevisionist
5.0 out of 5 stars
Making of the English Working Class
Today Thompson's Marxist views are somewhat out of fashion, but this study is trully masterfull. You may hate his opinion and question his selection of sources, yet to ignore this... Read more
Published on 3 Oct 2002 by Mr Ian Field
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