Poverty of Disaster - Debt and Insecurity in Eighteenth-Century Britain

Eighteenth-century Britain saw significant numbers of the middle classes imprisoned for debt, with many motivated by a fear of financial failure rather than a desire for upward social mobility. This study examines the role that debt insecurity played within society, and the fragility of the credit relations that underpinned it.

List of contents

Introduction; Part I. Structures of Insecurity: 1. The scale of incarceration: debt and the middling sort; 2. Credit and the economic structures of insecurity; 3. Social structures of insecurity; Part II. The Insecure Self: 4. Keeping in credit: reputation and gender; 5. Occupational identities and the precariousness of work ; Part III. The Debtor's Body: 6. Punishing the body: harm and the coercive nature of credit; 7. The worth of bodies: debt bondage, value and selfhood; Conclusion.

About the author

Tawny Paul is Senior Lecturer in the Department of History at the University of Exeter where her research focuses on the economic and social history of eighteenth-century Britain. She has published widely on the history of economic life as well as in the field of heritage studies. She is the author of numerous journal articles and co-editor of Art and Public History: Approaches, Opportunities, and Challenges (2017) with Rebecca Bush.

Summary

Eighteenth-century Britain saw significant numbers of the middle classes imprisoned for debt, with many motivated by a fear of financial failure rather than a desire for upward social mobility. This study examines the role that debt insecurity played within society, and the fragility of the credit relations that underpinned it.

Product details

• Authors: Tawny Paul, Tawny (University of California Paul
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press ELT
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 31.01.2021
• EAN: 9781108739252
• ISBN: 978-1-108-73925-2
• No. of pages: 299
• Series: Cambridge Studies in Early Modern British History; Cambridge Studies in Early Mod
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > Regional and national histories; Social sciences, law, business > Sociology > Social structure research; European History, Social & cultural history, Economic history, 18th century, c 1700 to c 1799, British & Irish history, United Kingdom, Great Britain, Social issues & processes, HISTORY / Europe / Great Britain / General, Social and cultural history, Social and ethical issues, C 1700 To C 1800