Rise of Respectable Society: A Social History of Victorian Britain, 1830-1900
This is a major study of Victorian society by one of our leading historians, the product of immensely wide reading and mature consideration. It offers a synthesis of the mass of new research material which has appeared since G. M. Young'sPortrait of an Ageand G. D. H. Cole'sThe Common Peoplehalf a century ago...Each chapter is an excellent, authoritative and elegant résumé, and will be invaluable to the student and of much interest to what used to be called the intelligent lay reader. (John BurnettTimes Literary Supplement)Anyone with more than a passing interest in nineteenth-century Britain should be grateful forThe Rise of Respectable Society...[It is] culled from a broad and scrupulous reading of the relevant historical literature...With its generous scope and its well-considered selection of details, the rewards of...[an] energetic perusal ofThe Rise of Respectable Societycan be great. (Harriet RitvoNew York Times)In both content and style [Thompson] sets a high standard for his fellow authors to follow...Packed with interesting and challenging examples and reflections...[Thompson has] fitted recent research into an impressive framework that will long remain a starting point for future discussion. (Neville ThompsonHistory)