The ragged trousered philanthropist

BTW This propfessor well knew Lord Street, Liverpool well; he himself was a Liverpudlian.

MayBee70

The two books that shaped me politically were Germinal by Zola and Orwell’s A Clergyman’s Daughter, which made me realise how easy it is to go into a downward spiral and not get back up again.

Yes, that is very true, especially in the past when destitution led to the workhouse.

Just picked up the book and read the first couple of lines of the foreword.

What a giant Tony Benn was.

They don’t make them like that any more.

I wrote that every society contains an elite group.

Whitewavemark, it's not my assumption it's directly from the lips of a professor of social anthropology.

I’m not sure. You can make that assumption really caleo

I think that it very much depends on the economic system that a society employs - and I’m not talking about socialism.

Traditional societies frequently have no real hierarchy and everything is shared equally for the good of all. Greed is completely and simply not tolerated.

So I think that man’s nature is much more philanthropic than
You suggest, however, I do recognise that our behaviour is very much governed by the economic system in which we live. So greed is a necessary attribute in a capitalist system, that promotes the individual and not the social group.

Tressell's book (the only one he wrote) is an outstanding novel about the exploitation of the working class before the safety net of the welfare state was created. Definitely worth a read.

Thanks for the recommendation and the extract.

I never read the book. If the author is saying that every society and every culture contains an elite group , and social classes we must agree that is human nature.

Socialists strive to regulate society's class structure by aiming for social mobility so that people from the lower classes may. through their own merit, get to rise in the class structure. In short, everyone has a chance in life.

To give everyone a chance in life socialists endorse free high quality education for all, paid out of taxes.

The two books that shaped me politically were Germinal by Zola and Orwell’s A Clergyman’s Daughter, which made me realise how easy it is to go into a downward spiral and not get back up again.

eddiecat78

My book club read it a few years ago. It was hard going but we all said we were glad we had read it. I found it particularly interesting as some of my ancestors were involved in the same work as the main characters. The book really brought to light the reality of how hard their lives must have been

It really does highlight social injustice and how the overseer has such power over the workmen and how he exploits them to line his own pockets.

Indigo8

BevSec

Oreo

Have heard of it, haven’t read it, but remembered reading a book by George Orwell, Down And Out In Paris And London which highlights the lives of the working poor.The real eye opener tho was just listening to both my Grandads and their working early lives and living conditions in London.

I will have a look for that book also Oreo.

I find George Orwell's observations about class very astute and very readable. I would recommend 'Keep the Aspidistra Flying' and 'The Road to Wigan Pier' both by George Orwell.

I have read the Road to
Wigan Pier, excellent read. I will have a look out for the other one. I have also read the Grapes of Wrath, again highlighting the hardships endured in the past, it too was an excellent read.

BevSec

Oreo

Have heard of it, haven’t read it, but remembered reading a book by George Orwell, Down And Out In Paris And London which highlights the lives of the working poor.The real eye opener tho was just listening to both my Grandads and their working early lives and living conditions in London.

I will have a look for that book also Oreo.

I find George Orwell's observations about class very astute and very readable. I would recommend 'Keep the Aspidistra Flying' and 'The Road to Wigan Pier' both by George Orwell.

I read it as a student and saw it performed at the Oxford Playhouse. All a long time ago!
For those who are interested, it might be available on Audiobooks. It is very thought provoking. I might read it again, when I get to the end of my very high pile of books to be read.

A book I read last year, which was a massive eye opener as to subsistence level work with no welfare support, The Grapes of Wrath, albeit in the US. I had a sketchy idea of The Depression but didn't know about the dust bowl farmers, year on year droughts and the bank foreclosures that forced swathes of the population west to exploitation and near starvation.

My book club read it a few years ago. It was hard going but we all said we were glad we had read it. I found it particularly interesting as some of my ancestors were involved in the same work as the main characters. The book really brought to light the reality of how hard their lives must have been

Precipice not The Precipice.

I've bought the book it having been mentioned several times on GN, it's on the to read pile.

I'm another to the 3 simultaneous books on the go. I always have a novel, at the moment that's, The Echo Chamber, John Boyne, on Audible I'm listening to The Precipice by Robert Harris, usually when I'm, ironing, cooking or wake early hours of the morning. My 3rd book is non fiction, at the moment I'm reading The Plantagenets, which I read at a much slower pace, I've only just finished the reign of King John, Magna Carta and all of that

Oreo

Have heard of it, haven’t read it, but remembered reading a book by George Orwell, Down And Out In Paris And London which highlights the lives of the working poor.The real eye opener tho was just listening to both my Grandads and their working early lives and living conditions in London.

I will have a look for that book also Oreo.

Have heard of it, haven’t read it, but remembered reading a book by George Orwell, Down And Out In Paris And London which highlights the lives of the working poor.The real eye opener tho was just listening to both my Grandads and their working early lives and living conditions in London.

Whitewavemark2

I have three piles of books to read one is easy but good novels of mostly murder mystery genre, but I also like a wide range. At the moment it is an Elly Griffiths murder mystery.

The second pile is what I would class as classic novels and the “Ragged trouser” is in my second pile and is next to read once I have finished my current one, which is an Arnold Bennet “The Old Wives”

The third is non-fiction - mostly political or social history, but also a wide range, like biography etc. and my current one is by Professor Margaret MacMillan. “The War that ended Peace” about events beginning in the nineteenth century and ending on the eve of WW1.

So I generally have 3 books on the go - depending on my mood.

I shall never live to read them all!!

Interested to read remarks by those who have read it though.

I am the same with books on the go. It really is an interesting read and as RosieMaws2 points out, really does highlight how grim life was then and how you could suddenly be destitute. Thank goodness for our welfare state. Reading this book really does help me to understand what life was like back then and the grim reality for the poor. Well worth a read.

I have three piles of books to read one is easy but good novels of mostly murder mystery genre, but I also like a wide range. At the moment it is an Elly Griffiths murder mystery.

The second pile is what I would class as classic novels and the “Ragged trouser” is in my second pile and is next to read once I have finished my current one, which is an Arnold Bennet “The Old Wives”

The third is non-fiction - mostly political or social history, but also a wide range, like biography etc. and my current one is by Professor Margaret MacMillan. “The War that ended Peace” about events beginning in the nineteenth century and ending on the eve of WW1.

So I generally have 3 books on the go - depending on my mood.

I shall never live to read them all!!

Interested to read remarks by those who have read it though.

Yes as I mentioned, the book I tried to read was Philanthropists.

It’s misleading to suggest ONE “ragged-trousered philanthropist” when the title is in fact plural.
According to Amazon
In "The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists," Robert Tressell presents a poignant exploration of early 20th-century working-class life in England, skillfully weaving social critique and vivid characterization into a narrative that is both engaging and enlightening. Using a semi-autobiographical approach, Tressell immerses the reader in the struggles of the impoverished decorators who work tirelessly yet receive scant remuneration exposing the stark inequalities of capitalism

The book was written in times when there was no backup if you didn’t work you had nothing apart from charity.

Unfortunately people have died though act or default of the benefits system.
Like the man whose payments were cut off which meant he couldn't top up his electric card.
He was a diabetic needing insulin. His fridge had no electric. He had multiple health issues and lived alone. He died.

valdali

Re the quote -

If some of the "superior types" suffered a bankrupcy or a severe mental illness, as the chances are some will, my betting's they would be hurtling naturally to the bottom pdq.

They certainly would!