Thomas, Matthew (1998) Paths to utopia : anarchist counter-cultures in late Victorian and Edwardian Britain 1880-1914. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

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Abstract

Most historiography on British Anarchism has concluded that the Anarchists
contributed very little to the political, social and cultural life of Britain. This thesis aims to
provide an alternative view. The failure of Anarchism as a coherent political movement has
been adequately charted by others. The purpose of the present work is to investigate the
impact of Anarchist ideas and practices within the wider political culture. It will
demonstrate that Anarchism had significant things to say about many of the issues
troubling British society at the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth
centuries. The Anarchist contribution often demonstrated a high degree of originality and
coherence and therefore deserves to be taken seriously.
The first chapter outlines the evolution of British Anarchism from the 1880's
onwards in order to construct a chronological and organisational context for the thematic
debates that follow. It provides an historical account of the various Anarchist groups in
Britain and their relations with the rest of the Socialist movement. Chapter Two builds on
this by discussing the various social and cultural mileux characteristic of British
Anarchism. The following chapters present evidence of the Anarchist contribution to a
variety of diverse developments in British society between the 1880's and 1914. In order,
these are educational practices, communal ways of living, trade unionism, Syndicalism and
finally the status of women in society. The conclusion maintains that, although Anarchist
influence was weakened by sectarianism and organisational failures, the Anarchists
nevertheless made an original contribution to the political culture, both as theorists and
practical activists.

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD)
Subjects:	D History General and Old World > DA Great Britain H Social Sciences > HX Socialism. Communism. Anarchism
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Anarchism -- Great Britain -- History -- 19th century, Anarchism -- Great Britain -- History -- 20th century, Great Britain -- Social life and customs -- 19th century, Great Britain -- Social life and customs -- 20th century
Official Date:	July 1998
Dates:	Date Event July 1998 Submitted
Institution:	University of Warwick
Theses Department:	Department of History
Thesis Type:	PhD
Publication Status:	Unpublished
Supervisor(s)/Advisor:	Hinton, James
Extent:	vi, 335 leaves
Language:	eng

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