Product Description

England was the world’s first great industrial nation. Yet the English have never been comfortable with industrialism. Drawing upon a wide array of sources, Martin Wiener explores the English ambivalence to modern industrial society. His work reveals a pervasive middle- and upper-class frame of mind hostile to industrialism and economic growth. From the middle of the nineteenth century to the present, this frame of mind shaped a broad spectrum of cultural expression, including literature, journalism, and architecture, as well as social, historical, and economic thought. In this edition, Wiener reflects on the original debate surrounding the work and examines the historiography of the last few decades. Written in a graceful and accessible style, with reference to a broad range of people and ideas, this book will be of interest to all readers who wish to understand the development - and predicament - of modern England.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #646696 in Books
• Published on: 2004-09-13
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 236 pages

Review
‘He offers a much more reliable ideological chart of modern Englishness than any previous cultural history, and does so coolly and persuasively.’ Tom Nairn, The Guardian

‘An important book, one that deserves to be read and pondered by everybody who has some portion of Britain’s destiny in his (or her) hands.’ The Economist

‘No rational reader could resist the impact of this book.’ Laurence Lafore, The New Republic

‘In a broad and imaginative way he has provided much material for an understanding of the mentality of the English elite … This book makes an important contribution to understanding English values.’ Peter Stansky, Victorian Studies

'Now Weiner has returned to the fray with a revised edition. To read it is to be reminded of the stimulating power of ideas - and the ever-present influence of the past on the present … Macintyre gives a perceptive account of the culture of sacrifice, made for the mother country in two world wars, the making of the modern, multicultural society, ad, of course, looks at the unifying role of cricket.' BBC History

About the Author
Martin J. Wiener is the Mary Jones Professor of History at Rice University. His previous books include Between Two Worlds: The Political Thought of Graham Wallas (1971), Reconstructing the Criminal (Cambridge, 1990), and Men of Blood: Violence, Manliness, and Criminal Justice in Victorian England (Cambridge, 2003).

Customer Reviews

An extremely unpleasant book
Wiener's thesis as articulated in this book can be summarised as :
'the industrial revolution was wonderful and unrestrained economic growth is also. However unfortunately there exists within English culture weak characteristics such as concern for the environment & Wordsworth's nature poetry which dares to question the gospel of economic growth'.
Wiener seems to believe that any concern over pollution or the human cost of the industrial revolution is some foppish upper-class indulgence.
A myopic, stale and nasty little book.