James Mitchell, Lynn Bennie, and Rob Johns
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199580002
- eISBN:
- 9780191731099
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199580002.003.0004
- Subject:
- Political Science, UK Politics
This chapter provides a socio-demographic overview of the membership based on the survey: the party emerges as a male-dominated party with a high average age. A socio-economic profile shows the party ...
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This chapter provides a socio-demographic overview of the membership based on the survey: the party emerges as a male-dominated party with a high average age. A socio-economic profile shows the party to be predominantly objectively middle class though a majority reject any class identity. The proportion of members who were born in England is around that found in the Scottish population as a whole though the membership is drawn disproportionately from small town and rural Scotland.Less
This chapter provides a socio-demographic overview of the membership based on the survey: the party emerges as a male-dominated party with a high average age. A socio-economic profile shows the party to be predominantly objectively middle class though a majority reject any class identity. The proportion of members who were born in England is around that found in the Scottish population as a whole though the membership is drawn disproportionately from small town and rural Scotland.
Trevor Griffiths
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199247387
- eISBN:
- 9780191714429
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199247387.003.0009
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History
This book has examined the nature and dynamics of working-class identity in Britain in the half-century from 1880, focusing on the coal and cotton industries in Lancashire. It may thus be seen to ...
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This book has examined the nature and dynamics of working-class identity in Britain in the half-century from 1880, focusing on the coal and cotton industries in Lancashire. It may thus be seen to form part of a broader historiography which has sought to analyse more closely the central role accorded class in the social and political developments of that period. This historiography has come to emphasise alternative sources of identity which, at certain times and in particular contexts, cut across and so weakened the force of class loyalties. The fact that this period witnessed the emergence of a working class more culturally united than at any time before or since has not been fundamentally challenged. However, the evidence presented here suggests that, for Lancashire, that perspective is, in large measure, inaccurate. In reaching such a conclusion, this book has located the formation of class identity in the broader material context of working-class life, rather than in the agency of language: the medium through which perceptions of society and the individual’s place within it were articulated.Less
This book has examined the nature and dynamics of working-class identity in Britain in the half-century from 1880, focusing on the coal and cotton industries in Lancashire. It may thus be seen to form part of a broader historiography which has sought to analyse more closely the central role accorded class in the social and political developments of that period. This historiography has come to emphasise alternative sources of identity which, at certain times and in particular contexts, cut across and so weakened the force of class loyalties. The fact that this period witnessed the emergence of a working class more culturally united than at any time before or since has not been fundamentally challenged. However, the evidence presented here suggests that, for Lancashire, that perspective is, in large measure, inaccurate. In reaching such a conclusion, this book has located the formation of class identity in the broader material context of working-class life, rather than in the agency of language: the medium through which perceptions of society and the individual’s place within it were articulated.
Trevor Griffiths
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199247387
- eISBN:
- 9780191714429
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199247387.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History
This book examines the experiences and values which shaped working-class life in Britain in the half-century from 1880. It takes as its focus a region, Lancashire, which was central to the social and ...
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This book examines the experiences and values which shaped working-class life in Britain in the half-century from 1880. It takes as its focus a region, Lancashire, which was central to the social and political changes of the period. The discussion centres on two towns, Bolton and Wigan, which were geographically close but differed significantly in their industrial fortunes and their electoral development. The formation of class identity is traced through developments in the world of work, from the impact of technological and managerial innovations to the elaboration of collective bargaining procedures. Beyond work, particular attention is paid to the dynamics of neighbourhood and family life, the latter emerging as an important source of continuity in working-class life. The broader impact of such influences are traced through a close examination of the electoral politics of the period. The book fundamentally challenges the notion that the fifty years around the turn of the century witnessed the emergence of a working class more culturally and politically united than at any other time, either before or since. Rather, an alternative narrative of class development is offered, in which broad continuities in working-class life, in particular the survival of religious, ethnic, and occupational points of division, are emphasised. Despite the presence of strong and stable labour institutions, from trade unions to cooperative and friendly societies, the picture emerges of a working class more individualist than collectivist in outlook, more flexible in response to economic change, and less constrained by the broader solidarities of work and neighbourhood than has previously been assumed.Less
This book examines the experiences and values which shaped working-class life in Britain in the half-century from 1880. It takes as its focus a region, Lancashire, which was central to the social and political changes of the period. The discussion centres on two towns, Bolton and Wigan, which were geographically close but differed significantly in their industrial fortunes and their electoral development. The formation of class identity is traced through developments in the world of work, from the impact of technological and managerial innovations to the elaboration of collective bargaining procedures. Beyond work, particular attention is paid to the dynamics of neighbourhood and family life, the latter emerging as an important source of continuity in working-class life. The broader impact of such influences are traced through a close examination of the electoral politics of the period. The book fundamentally challenges the notion that the fifty years around the turn of the century witnessed the emergence of a working class more culturally and politically united than at any other time, either before or since. Rather, an alternative narrative of class development is offered, in which broad continuities in working-class life, in particular the survival of religious, ethnic, and occupational points of division, are emphasised. Despite the presence of strong and stable labour institutions, from trade unions to cooperative and friendly societies, the picture emerges of a working class more individualist than collectivist in outlook, more flexible in response to economic change, and less constrained by the broader solidarities of work and neighbourhood than has previously been assumed.
Trevor Griffiths
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199247387
- eISBN:
- 9780191714429
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199247387.003.0003
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History
Over the half-century from 1880, class identities in Britain appeared to find their most overt expression in the growth of trade-union organisation. Associational ties, for long confined to craft ...
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Over the half-century from 1880, class identities in Britain appeared to find their most overt expression in the growth of trade-union organisation. Associational ties, for long confined to craft minorities, came to extend to a peak of more than eight million workers by 1920. At the same time, a shared sense of interests within and across trades was seen to emerge from a series of large-scale industrial conflicts in the second and third decades of the 20th century. The necessary basis for the emergence of a collective consciousness of class appeared substantially in place. In certain sectors, including the coal and cotton industries, the density of membership in trade unions was such that questions concerning the role of labour organisations in promoting or containing class loyalties remain significant. This chapter considers the extent to which the temper of industrial relations gave rise to an unambiguous sense of class unity, as well as the extent to which the trade-union record accurately reflects the views of the rank and file.Less
Over the half-century from 1880, class identities in Britain appeared to find their most overt expression in the growth of trade-union organisation. Associational ties, for long confined to craft minorities, came to extend to a peak of more than eight million workers by 1920. At the same time, a shared sense of interests within and across trades was seen to emerge from a series of large-scale industrial conflicts in the second and third decades of the 20th century. The necessary basis for the emergence of a collective consciousness of class appeared substantially in place. In certain sectors, including the coal and cotton industries, the density of membership in trade unions was such that questions concerning the role of labour organisations in promoting or containing class loyalties remain significant. This chapter considers the extent to which the temper of industrial relations gave rise to an unambiguous sense of class unity, as well as the extent to which the trade-union record accurately reflects the views of the rank and file.
Trevor Griffiths
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199247387
- eISBN:
- 9780191714429
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199247387.003.0004
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History
This chapter examines the process of recruitment, the factors determining the timing, and the direction of the individual’s entry to work in Britain during the years 1880-1930, focusing on the coal ...
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This chapter examines the process of recruitment, the factors determining the timing, and the direction of the individual’s entry to work in Britain during the years 1880-1930, focusing on the coal and cotton industries in Lancashire. Throughout the period, despite the increasing intervention of state agencies, entry to work was mostly determined by personal connections. Responsibility for recruitment continued to devolve on to the workforce itself. In such circumstances, it is argued, family linkages were readily utilised, so that sons tended to follow their fathers into the same trade. Yet the importance which has been attached to kinship calls into question the broader cultural implications of internal work hierarchies. This chapter looks at contemporary attitudes to work and the ways in which this experience helped to shape the social outlook and the evolution of class identities.Less
This chapter examines the process of recruitment, the factors determining the timing, and the direction of the individual’s entry to work in Britain during the years 1880-1930, focusing on the coal and cotton industries in Lancashire. Throughout the period, despite the increasing intervention of state agencies, entry to work was mostly determined by personal connections. Responsibility for recruitment continued to devolve on to the workforce itself. In such circumstances, it is argued, family linkages were readily utilised, so that sons tended to follow their fathers into the same trade. Yet the importance which has been attached to kinship calls into question the broader cultural implications of internal work hierarchies. This chapter looks at contemporary attitudes to work and the ways in which this experience helped to shape the social outlook and the evolution of class identities.
Jonas Edlund
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- June 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780804754354
- eISBN:
- 9780804768153
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Stanford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.11126/stanford/9780804754354.003.0002
- Subject:
- Sociology, Social Stratification, Inequality, and Mobility
This chapter explores an important issue within political sociology: the role of institutions and political articulation in establishing a connection between class and its attitudinal correlates. It ...
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This chapter explores an important issue within political sociology: the role of institutions and political articulation in establishing a connection between class and its attitudinal correlates. It challenges the argument that the magnitude of class conflicts will differ across countries, and instead offers an alternative hypothesis suggesting that class conflicts will be more pronounced in the social democratic welfare regime than in the liberal welfare regime. The chapter contends that a more fruitful understanding of institutional feedback effects should focus on other measures of welfare state performance, such as the profile of risk-reduction in social spending priorities or income redistribution via taxes and transfers. In support of this alternative hypothesis, it compares six Western countries—Canada, United States, Sweden, Norway, Australia, and New Zealand—in terms of social stratification and social policy, as well as attitudes to welfare policy and redistribution. The chapter demonstrates that preferences regarding welfare state and redistributive politics are more linked to social class and class identity in the social democratic regimes than in the liberal regimes.Less
This chapter explores an important issue within political sociology: the role of institutions and political articulation in establishing a connection between class and its attitudinal correlates. It challenges the argument that the magnitude of class conflicts will differ across countries, and instead offers an alternative hypothesis suggesting that class conflicts will be more pronounced in the social democratic welfare regime than in the liberal welfare regime. The chapter contends that a more fruitful understanding of institutional feedback effects should focus on other measures of welfare state performance, such as the profile of risk-reduction in social spending priorities or income redistribution via taxes and transfers. In support of this alternative hypothesis, it compares six Western countries—Canada, United States, Sweden, Norway, Australia, and New Zealand—in terms of social stratification and social policy, as well as attitudes to welfare policy and redistribution. The chapter demonstrates that preferences regarding welfare state and redistributive politics are more linked to social class and class identity in the social democratic regimes than in the liberal regimes.
Carol A. Horton
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195143485
- eISBN:
- 9780199850402
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195143485.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, American Politics
This book traces the roots of the contemporary crisis of progressive liberalism deep into the nation's racial past. It argues that the contemporary conservative claim that the American liberal ...
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This book traces the roots of the contemporary crisis of progressive liberalism deep into the nation's racial past. It argues that the contemporary conservative claim that the American liberal tradition has been rooted in a “color blind” conception of individual rights is inaccurate and misleading. In contrast, American liberalism has alternatively served both to support and oppose racial hierarchy, as well as socioeconomic equity more broadly. Racial politics in the United States have repeatedly made it exceedingly difficult to establish powerful constituencies that understand socioeconomic equity as vital to American democracy and aspire to limit gross disparities of wealth, power, and status. Revitalizing such equalitarian conceptions of American liberalism, the book suggests, will require developing new forms of racial and class identity that support, rather than sabotage such fundamental political commitments.Less
This book traces the roots of the contemporary crisis of progressive liberalism deep into the nation's racial past. It argues that the contemporary conservative claim that the American liberal tradition has been rooted in a “color blind” conception of individual rights is inaccurate and misleading. In contrast, American liberalism has alternatively served both to support and oppose racial hierarchy, as well as socioeconomic equity more broadly. Racial politics in the United States have repeatedly made it exceedingly difficult to establish powerful constituencies that understand socioeconomic equity as vital to American democracy and aspire to limit gross disparities of wealth, power, and status. Revitalizing such equalitarian conceptions of American liberalism, the book suggests, will require developing new forms of racial and class identity that support, rather than sabotage such fundamental political commitments.
Trevor Griffiths
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199247387
- eISBN:
- 9780191714429
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199247387.003.0002
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History
Both the coal and the cotton industries in Britain were subject to important technological innovations during the years 1880-1930. The implications such innovations had for work practices reflect ...
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Both the coal and the cotton industries in Britain were subject to important technological innovations during the years 1880-1930. The implications such innovations had for work practices reflect much about the attitudes and expectations which prevailed on both sides of industry and provide some insight into the relationship between the work experience and class identities. The decline of Britain’s established export industries in the early 20th century has been traced to technological conservatism and the survival of organisational structures inappropriate to altered competitive conditions. Of late, however, a sturdy defence of British entrepreneurship has been mounted, arguing that technical and organisational choices represented the most rational and profitable course in prevailing market circumstances. This chapter examines such points to elucidate the role accorded labour, particularly skilled workers, in the leading industries of south-central Lancashire.Less
Both the coal and the cotton industries in Britain were subject to important technological innovations during the years 1880-1930. The implications such innovations had for work practices reflect much about the attitudes and expectations which prevailed on both sides of industry and provide some insight into the relationship between the work experience and class identities. The decline of Britain’s established export industries in the early 20th century has been traced to technological conservatism and the survival of organisational structures inappropriate to altered competitive conditions. Of late, however, a sturdy defence of British entrepreneurship has been mounted, arguing that technical and organisational choices represented the most rational and profitable course in prevailing market circumstances. This chapter examines such points to elucidate the role accorded labour, particularly skilled workers, in the leading industries of south-central Lancashire.
Thomas Austin
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- July 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780719076893
- eISBN:
- 9781781701775
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9780719076893.003.0018
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
This chapter delineates how middle-class identity has shaped discussions on film and documentary. Middle-class characters and concerns are repeatedly represented in popular film—both fiction and ...
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This chapter delineates how middle-class identity has shaped discussions on film and documentary. Middle-class characters and concerns are repeatedly represented in popular film—both fiction and documentary. But the critical tools with which to approach the classed nature of such portrayals need to be refined and developed. The same is true of class-sensitive perspectives on the media industries and media audiences. Some ways have been demonstrated in which screen representations of middle-class characters can be examined precisely as classed, rather than as simply neutral or taken for granted. The classed nature of such portrayals, the exact characteristics ascribed to the middle class, and the invitations made to a middle-class viewer are perhaps most readily available for analysis in films that stage meetings between members of the middle and working classes. The chapter is intended to act as a spur towards more critical thinking about class, in all its manifestations and complexities, within film and media studies.Less
This chapter delineates how middle-class identity has shaped discussions on film and documentary. Middle-class characters and concerns are repeatedly represented in popular film—both fiction and documentary. But the critical tools with which to approach the classed nature of such portrayals need to be refined and developed. The same is true of class-sensitive perspectives on the media industries and media audiences. Some ways have been demonstrated in which screen representations of middle-class characters can be examined precisely as classed, rather than as simply neutral or taken for granted. The classed nature of such portrayals, the exact characteristics ascribed to the middle class, and the invitations made to a middle-class viewer are perhaps most readily available for analysis in films that stage meetings between members of the middle and working classes. The chapter is intended to act as a spur towards more critical thinking about class, in all its manifestations and complexities, within film and media studies.
Martin Hyde and Rees Jones
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- January 2014
- ISBN:
- 9781447300588
- eISBN:
- 9781447310945
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
- DOI:
- 10.1332/policypress/9781447300588.003.0005
- Subject:
- Sociology, Gerontology and Ageing
This chapter explores the salience of social class and age for the formation of identities in later life. It draws on both cross-national and time-series data to provide both a global and historical ...
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This chapter explores the salience of social class and age for the formation of identities in later life. It draws on both cross-national and time-series data to provide both a global and historical view. The results show that neither class nor age is a dominant source of identity for older people. This lends support to the argument that there has been a dis-identification both of class and age amongst this age group. Moreover, age and class identities appear to operate independently of each other suggesting, from a relational sociology perspective, that other forms of identity and identification need to be examined. Ultimately these conclusions point to the need for continued research to understand how identities are formed in later life.Less
This chapter explores the salience of social class and age for the formation of identities in later life. It draws on both cross-national and time-series data to provide both a global and historical view. The results show that neither class nor age is a dominant source of identity for older people. This lends support to the argument that there has been a dis-identification both of class and age amongst this age group. Moreover, age and class identities appear to operate independently of each other suggesting, from a relational sociology perspective, that other forms of identity and identification need to be examined. Ultimately these conclusions point to the need for continued research to understand how identities are formed in later life.
Geoffrey Evans and James Tilley
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- March 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780198755753
- eISBN:
- 9780191816901
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198755753.003.0003
- Subject:
- Political Science, UK Politics
Chapter 3 documents the resilience of class identities and awareness. Changing class sizes and increased upward mobility have not weakened levels of class identification. There is even a modest ...
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Chapter 3 documents the resilience of class identities and awareness. Changing class sizes and increased upward mobility have not weakened levels of class identification. There is even a modest increase in the tendency for people in middle class occupations to see themselves as working class. This partly results from background effects, but it also reflects the declining impact of educational qualifications on middle class identification. Conceptions of classes are also persistent. People are slightly less inclined to judge class on the basis of occupation than in the 1960s, but the middle class is still associated with white-collar jobs and good incomes, and the working class with manual work and low incomes. Perceptions of class divisions and barriers remain constant, and perceptions of class barriers to friendships, for example, are still present. Class remains an important feature of subjective social awareness.Less
Chapter 3 documents the resilience of class identities and awareness. Changing class sizes and increased upward mobility have not weakened levels of class identification. There is even a modest increase in the tendency for people in middle class occupations to see themselves as working class. This partly results from background effects, but it also reflects the declining impact of educational qualifications on middle class identification. Conceptions of classes are also persistent. People are slightly less inclined to judge class on the basis of occupation than in the 1960s, but the middle class is still associated with white-collar jobs and good incomes, and the working class with manual work and low incomes. Perceptions of class divisions and barriers remain constant, and perceptions of class barriers to friendships, for example, are still present. Class remains an important feature of subjective social awareness.
Liam Connell and Victoria Sheppard
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780748637744
- eISBN:
- 9780748652143
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748637744.003.0013
- Subject:
- Literature, Criticism/Theory
Tom Leonard and Linton Kwesi Johnson have made use of place-specific spoken language in their poetry, which is represented in the text through experiments with orthography and phonetics. Leonard uses ...
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Tom Leonard and Linton Kwesi Johnson have made use of place-specific spoken language in their poetry, which is represented in the text through experiments with orthography and phonetics. Leonard uses ‘phonetic city dialect’ in Intimate Voices, and Johnson's poetry, as set out in Mi Revalueshanary Fren, brings together a Jamaican-English-speaking voice with a musically rooted ‘sound’. The language of Leonard's text seems principally to justify a class reading rather than a colonial one. The epithet ‘scruff’ in ‘Unrelated Incidents 3’ might be read as an attempt to reify class identity as a form of the ethnic labour, structuring the hierarchical divisions of labour by denoting class as an essentialist category. The comparison of Leonard and Johnson's dialect work suggests that the effort to undermine the linguistic hierarchies that have governed poetic form can be effectively utilised to expose the political lines of privilege that such hierarchies support.Less
Tom Leonard and Linton Kwesi Johnson have made use of place-specific spoken language in their poetry, which is represented in the text through experiments with orthography and phonetics. Leonard uses ‘phonetic city dialect’ in Intimate Voices, and Johnson's poetry, as set out in Mi Revalueshanary Fren, brings together a Jamaican-English-speaking voice with a musically rooted ‘sound’. The language of Leonard's text seems principally to justify a class reading rather than a colonial one. The epithet ‘scruff’ in ‘Unrelated Incidents 3’ might be read as an attempt to reify class identity as a form of the ethnic labour, structuring the hierarchical divisions of labour by denoting class as an essentialist category. The comparison of Leonard and Johnson's dialect work suggests that the effort to undermine the linguistic hierarchies that have governed poetic form can be effectively utilised to expose the political lines of privilege that such hierarchies support.
Lynda Mugglestone
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199250622
- eISBN:
- 9780191719486
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199250622.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Sociolinguistics / Anthropological Linguistics, Phonetics / Phonology
This book is a history of the rise and fall of the English accent as a badge of cultural, social, and class identity. The book traces the origins of the phenomenon in late 18th-century London, ...
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This book is a history of the rise and fall of the English accent as a badge of cultural, social, and class identity. The book traces the origins of the phenomenon in late 18th-century London, follows its history through the 19th and 20th centuries, and charts its downfall during the era of New Labour. The book provides a readable account of a fascinating subject, liberally spiced with quotations from English speech and writing over the past 250 years.Less
This book is a history of the rise and fall of the English accent as a badge of cultural, social, and class identity. The book traces the origins of the phenomenon in late 18th-century London, follows its history through the 19th and 20th centuries, and charts its downfall during the era of New Labour. The book provides a readable account of a fascinating subject, liberally spiced with quotations from English speech and writing over the past 250 years.
Megan Smitley
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- July 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780719079665
- eISBN:
- 9781781703069
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9780719079665.003.0001
- Subject:
- History, Social History
This chapter emphasizes the feminine public sphere. The notion of the feminine public sphere is based on the active participation of women in the formation of a middle-class identity, which was ...
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This chapter emphasizes the feminine public sphere. The notion of the feminine public sphere is based on the active participation of women in the formation of a middle-class identity, which was derived from a commitment to civic life and public service. Associationalism was a key feature of civil society in the 1870 to 1914 period, and while women's contribution to philanthropic societies has received some attention this study represents a more concerted effort to link women's public careers with the rise of a middle-class identity. By taking a fresh perspective on the ‘bourgeois public sphere’ through the lens of local, urban civic life—as opposed to high politics and the upper echelons of industrial capitalism—this research shows that the wives, sisters and daughters of men in the local elite mirrored their male kins' investment in a public profile in order to assert their own social position. The feminine public sphere of this study is the sphere of influence more affluent women carved out of a hostile, male oriented ‘public’ through heterodox interpretations of separate spheres; it is the discursive and organisational sites from which women contributed to the socio-political issues of their day while further reinforcing middle-class notions of civic duty.Less
This chapter emphasizes the feminine public sphere. The notion of the feminine public sphere is based on the active participation of women in the formation of a middle-class identity, which was derived from a commitment to civic life and public service. Associationalism was a key feature of civil society in the 1870 to 1914 period, and while women's contribution to philanthropic societies has received some attention this study represents a more concerted effort to link women's public careers with the rise of a middle-class identity. By taking a fresh perspective on the ‘bourgeois public sphere’ through the lens of local, urban civic life—as opposed to high politics and the upper echelons of industrial capitalism—this research shows that the wives, sisters and daughters of men in the local elite mirrored their male kins' investment in a public profile in order to assert their own social position. The feminine public sphere of this study is the sphere of influence more affluent women carved out of a hostile, male oriented ‘public’ through heterodox interpretations of separate spheres; it is the discursive and organisational sites from which women contributed to the socio-political issues of their day while further reinforcing middle-class notions of civic duty.
Fionnghuala Sweeney
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- June 2013
- ISBN:
- 9781846310782
- eISBN:
- 9781846313141
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Liverpool University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5949/UPO9781846313141
- Subject:
- History, American History: 19th Century
This book takes as its subject the effect of extraterritorial sites – Ireland, Haiti, Egypt – on Frederick Douglass's writing, self-construction, national, class and racial identity, and status as a ...
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This book takes as its subject the effect of extraterritorial sites – Ireland, Haiti, Egypt – on Frederick Douglass's writing, self-construction, national, class and racial identity, and status as a representative US American man. Douglass, the most prolific African American writer of the nineteenth century, embarked, after his escape from slavery in 1838, on a public career that would span the century and three continents. The narrative of his life in slavery remains a seminal work in the literary and historical canons of the United States, and has recently been included in the corpus of the American Renaissance. Much critical attention has been placed on Douglass's activities within the United States, his effect on socio-political reform, and his relationship to an oppressed and marginalized community of African Americans. Yet much of his literary and political development occurred outside the United States. This book focuses specifically on Douglass's Atlantic encounters, literal and literary, against the backdrop of slavery, emancipation, and western colonial process.Less
This book takes as its subject the effect of extraterritorial sites – Ireland, Haiti, Egypt – on Frederick Douglass's writing, self-construction, national, class and racial identity, and status as a representative US American man. Douglass, the most prolific African American writer of the nineteenth century, embarked, after his escape from slavery in 1838, on a public career that would span the century and three continents. The narrative of his life in slavery remains a seminal work in the literary and historical canons of the United States, and has recently been included in the corpus of the American Renaissance. Much critical attention has been placed on Douglass's activities within the United States, his effect on socio-political reform, and his relationship to an oppressed and marginalized community of African Americans. Yet much of his literary and political development occurred outside the United States. This book focuses specifically on Douglass's Atlantic encounters, literal and literary, against the backdrop of slavery, emancipation, and western colonial process.
Onoso Imoagene
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- September 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780520292314
- eISBN:
- 9780520965881
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520292314.003.0007
- Subject:
- Sociology, Migration Studies (including Refugee Studies)
In chapter 6, I show how the specific history an immigrant group has with the receiving country is an important aspect of the context of reception which does not receive sufficient attention in ...
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In chapter 6, I show how the specific history an immigrant group has with the receiving country is an important aspect of the context of reception which does not receive sufficient attention in segmented assimilation theory’s discussion of the black second generation. I show how national contexts—specifically how national identity and legacies of the past, from slavery, to colonialism, to color segregation—influence identificational assimilation among the second generation. The chapter analyzes respondents’ responses to two questions: What does being British or American mean to you, and do you feel British or American? It explains why, in the American case, most of the second generation articulate shared national myths and sentiments, but in the British case the second generation had narratives that, though widely shared, were not the national myths. Engaging the multiculturalism literature, the chapter discusses how legacies of the past and national identity are two rarely-considered factors affecting immigrants’ integration over time. Given the increased linkages between immigration and national security in discourse and policy, these findings add to our knowledge of the factors impacting the degree of national identification among immigrants.Less
In chapter 6, I show how the specific history an immigrant group has with the receiving country is an important aspect of the context of reception which does not receive sufficient attention in segmented assimilation theory’s discussion of the black second generation. I show how national contexts—specifically how national identity and legacies of the past, from slavery, to colonialism, to color segregation—influence identificational assimilation among the second generation. The chapter analyzes respondents’ responses to two questions: What does being British or American mean to you, and do you feel British or American? It explains why, in the American case, most of the second generation articulate shared national myths and sentiments, but in the British case the second generation had narratives that, though widely shared, were not the national myths. Engaging the multiculturalism literature, the chapter discusses how legacies of the past and national identity are two rarely-considered factors affecting immigrants’ integration over time. Given the increased linkages between immigration and national security in discourse and policy, these findings add to our knowledge of the factors impacting the degree of national identification among immigrants.
Mike Huggins
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- July 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780719065286
- eISBN:
- 9781781701669
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9780719065286.003.0009
- Subject:
- History, Cultural History
Racing was one of Britain's leading national sports, and the media gave it more prominence. The study of racing also adds a vital dimension to debates amongst historians about the extent of social ...
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Racing was one of Britain's leading national sports, and the media gave it more prominence. The study of racing also adds a vital dimension to debates amongst historians about the extent of social harmony, the political and social predominance of conservatism, the construction of gender identities, national sentiment, and the relationship between the economy and sport. Racing was a socially ranked and ordered microsociety that made clear to individuals their place in the social hierarchy. The chapter demonstrates the strength of British cultural conformity and cohesion. Betting had become commonplace to the extent that it provided a compelling world of alternative loyalties to class and politics and drew people together, not against capitalism, the establishment, but against the bookie. Cash betting was an integral part of a working-class identity that helped to define that class. Interest in racing was a key part of working-class sociability, at work, at home or in the pub.Less
Racing was one of Britain's leading national sports, and the media gave it more prominence. The study of racing also adds a vital dimension to debates amongst historians about the extent of social harmony, the political and social predominance of conservatism, the construction of gender identities, national sentiment, and the relationship between the economy and sport. Racing was a socially ranked and ordered microsociety that made clear to individuals their place in the social hierarchy. The chapter demonstrates the strength of British cultural conformity and cohesion. Betting had become commonplace to the extent that it provided a compelling world of alternative loyalties to class and politics and drew people together, not against capitalism, the establishment, but against the bookie. Cash betting was an integral part of a working-class identity that helped to define that class. Interest in racing was a key part of working-class sociability, at work, at home or in the pub.
Michelle Chase
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9781469625003
- eISBN:
- 9781469625027
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of North Carolina Press
- DOI:
- 10.5149/northcarolina/9781469625003.003.0003
- Subject:
- History, Latin American History
This chapter examines the construction of revolutionary masculinity that accompanied the formation of the rebel army and the armed urban underground (el llano). It first recovers the many unexpected ...
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This chapter examines the construction of revolutionary masculinity that accompanied the formation of the rebel army and the armed urban underground (el llano). It first recovers the many unexpected ways young men in the anti-Batista resistance expressed revolutionary masculinity, including references to male honor and martyrdom, fatherhood and Catholicism, proper sexuality, and middle-class identity. The chapter argues that the self-constructed image of the guerrillas and urban men of action as honorable, disciplined, and morally righteous young men helped “domesticate” political violence and make it more palatable for the Cuban public. Finally, the chapter charts the rise of the romantic icon of the guerrilla fighter or barbudo, a trope that soon eclipsed the many other actors of the anti-Batista struggle who have not been enshrined in either official history or popular memory.Less
This chapter examines the construction of revolutionary masculinity that accompanied the formation of the rebel army and the armed urban underground (el llano). It first recovers the many unexpected ways young men in the anti-Batista resistance expressed revolutionary masculinity, including references to male honor and martyrdom, fatherhood and Catholicism, proper sexuality, and middle-class identity. The chapter argues that the self-constructed image of the guerrillas and urban men of action as honorable, disciplined, and morally righteous young men helped “domesticate” political violence and make it more palatable for the Cuban public. Finally, the chapter charts the rise of the romantic icon of the guerrilla fighter or barbudo, a trope that soon eclipsed the many other actors of the anti-Batista struggle who have not been enshrined in either official history or popular memory.
Elyssa Faison
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520252967
- eISBN:
- 9780520934184
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520252967.003.0005
- Subject:
- History, Asian History
This chapter examines the 1930 Toyo Muslin strike in which female employees walked off the job and eventually fought a street battle with the police and strongmen hired by the company. This strike ...
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This chapter examines the 1930 Toyo Muslin strike in which female employees walked off the job and eventually fought a street battle with the police and strongmen hired by the company. This strike involved not only employer and employees, but a wide range of actors, including left intellectuals, social reformers, union activists and organizers, workers, their families, the townspeople of Kameido (the Tokyo neighborhood where the factories were located), the state (in the form of local police), right-wing gangs, and the company itself. What was at stake for each of these social actors varied widely, but the rhetoric deployed by the protagonists reveals the way debates over womanhood, class identities, and the meaning of civil rights and national responsibilities were central to the standoff.Less
This chapter examines the 1930 Toyo Muslin strike in which female employees walked off the job and eventually fought a street battle with the police and strongmen hired by the company. This strike involved not only employer and employees, but a wide range of actors, including left intellectuals, social reformers, union activists and organizers, workers, their families, the townspeople of Kameido (the Tokyo neighborhood where the factories were located), the state (in the form of local police), right-wing gangs, and the company itself. What was at stake for each of these social actors varied widely, but the rhetoric deployed by the protagonists reveals the way debates over womanhood, class identities, and the meaning of civil rights and national responsibilities were central to the standoff.
Sanjay Srivastava
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- January 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780198099147
- eISBN:
- 9780199084487
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198099147.003.0004
- Subject:
- Sociology, Urban and Rural Studies
Slum lives are entangled with those of the middle classes. Middle-class RWAs, as demonstrated in Chapter 3, have played a significant role in agitating for slum demolitions. This chapter explores the ...
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Slum lives are entangled with those of the middle classes. Middle-class RWAs, as demonstrated in Chapter 3, have played a significant role in agitating for slum demolitions. This chapter explores the middle-class city through focusing upon RWA activity in two contexts. The first relates to a protest movement against a hike in electricity tariff, and the second concerns the Delhi government sponsored ‘Bhagidari’ movement that brings together representative of RWAs, Market Traders Associations and state functionaries. The chapter suggests that while empirically there may not be a singular middle-class identity across Delhi, RWA-activity is itself part of the process of producing the notion of a homogenous middle-class in the city. It is, further, aligned to the notion of the consumerist family located in legally defined spaces, in touch with a transparent and responsive state machinery. It also produces narratives of ‘threats’ to the formal city from urban under-classes.Less
Slum lives are entangled with those of the middle classes. Middle-class RWAs, as demonstrated in Chapter 3, have played a significant role in agitating for slum demolitions. This chapter explores the middle-class city through focusing upon RWA activity in two contexts. The first relates to a protest movement against a hike in electricity tariff, and the second concerns the Delhi government sponsored ‘Bhagidari’ movement that brings together representative of RWAs, Market Traders Associations and state functionaries. The chapter suggests that while empirically there may not be a singular middle-class identity across Delhi, RWA-activity is itself part of the process of producing the notion of a homogenous middle-class in the city. It is, further, aligned to the notion of the consumerist family located in legally defined spaces, in touch with a transparent and responsive state machinery. It also produces narratives of ‘threats’ to the formal city from urban under-classes.
