Fathers and Sons in the English Middle Class, C. 1870-1920

This book explores the relationship between middle-class fathers and sons in England between c. 1870 and 1920. We now know that the conventional image of the middle-class paterfamilias of this period as cold and authoritarian is too simplistic, but there is still much to be discovered about relationships in middle-class families. Paying especial attention to gender and masculinities, this book focuses on the interactions between fathers and sons, exploring how relationships developed and masculine identities were negotiated from infancy and childhood to adulthood and old age.

Drawing on sources as diverse as autobiographies, oral history interviews, First World War conscription records and press reports of violent incidents, this book questions how fathers and sons negotiated relationships marked by shifting relations of power, as well as by different combinations of emotional entanglements, obligations and ties. It explores changes as fathers and sons grew older and assesses fathers' role in trying to mould sons' masculine identities, characters and lives. It reveals negotiation and compromise, as well as rebellion and conflict, underlining that fathers and sons were important to each other, their relationships a significant - if often overlooked - aspect of middle-class men's lives and identities.

List of contents

Introduction Part 1: Childhood 1. Contact and Separation 2. Intimacy and Distance 3. Responsibility and Authority 4. Consumption Part 2: Adulthood 5. Closeness and Divergence 6. Succession and Inheritance 7. Conflict and Reconciliation 8. Emancipation. Conclusion

About the author

Laura Ugolini is a Professor of History at the University of Wolverhampton.

Summary

This book explores the relationship between English middle-class fathers and sons between c. 1870 and 1920, questioning how they negotiated shifting masculine identities and relations of power, as well as emotional entanglements, revealing negotiation and love, as well as rebellion and conflict.

Product details

• Authors: Laura Ugolini, Laura (University of Wolverhampton Ugolini, Ugolini Laura
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd.
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 09.01.2023
• EAN: 9780367767600
• ISBN: 978-0-367-76760-0
• No. of pages: 238
• Series: Routledge Research in Gender and History
• Subjects: Guides > Self-help, everyday life > Family; Humanities, art, music > History > Regional and national histories; European History, HISTORY / Europe / General, HISTORY / World, HISTORY / Social History, Social & cultural history, FAMILY & RELATIONSHIPS / Parenting / General, General & world history, British & Irish history, United Kingdom, Great Britain, Family & relationships, Advice on parenting, Social and cultural history, General and world history, Parenting: advice and issues, Relationships and families: advice and issues