Vagrancy in English Culture and Society, 1650-1750

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Synopsis

CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title 2017The first social and cultural history of vagrancy between 1650 and 1750, this book combines sources from across England and the Atlantic world to describe the shifting and desperate experiences of the very poorest and most marginalized of people in early modernity; the outcasts, the wandering destitute, the disabled veteran, the aged labourer, the solitary pregnant woman on the road and those referred to as vagabonds and beggars are all explored in this comprehensive account of the subject. Using a rich array of archival and literary sources, Vagrancy in English Culture and Society, 1650-1750 offers a history not only of the experiences of vagrants themselves, but also of how the settled 'better sort' perceived vagrancy, how it was culturally represented in both popular and elite literature as a shadowy underworld of dissembling rogues, gypsies, and pedlars, and how these representations powerfully affected the lives of vagrants themselves.Hitchcock's is an important study for all scholars and students interested in the social and cultural history of early modern England.

Book details

Series:
Cultures of Early Modern Europe
Author:
David Hitchcock, Beat Kümin, Brian Cowan
ISBN:
9781472589958
Related ISBNs:
9781350058125
Publisher:
Bloomsbury Publishing
Pages:
248
Reading age:
Not specified
Includes images:
No
Date of addition:
2018-10-23
Usage restrictions:
Copyright
Copyright date:
2016
Copyright by:
N/A 
Adult content:
No
Language:
English
Categories:
History, Nonfiction, Social Studies