An Introduction to the Industrial and Social History of England

Cheyney, Edward Potts, 1861-1947Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 3.8
Word count
557K words
Chapters
56

Tags

English Originals World History Social ChangeSocial ObservationEconomic HistoryBritish Industrial HistoryHumanistic CareCivic AwarenessInstitutional EvolutionHistorical MaterialAcademic StudyIndustrial Revolution

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.An Introduction to the Industrial and Social History of England by CheyneyAuthor: Cheyney, Edward Potts, 1861-1947,Language: English, Class: HC: Social sciences: Economic history and conditions, Special topics, Release Date: Jun 1, 2007

Editor's review

Cheyney's introduction to English industrial and social history traces the long transformation of England from an agrarian to an industrial society along clear narrative lines, balancing institutional change with the interaction between economic organization and social structure. Its value lies not in piling up historical data but in helping readers build a holistic view of history: to understand seemingly isolated events such as enclosure, the decline of guilds, and the rise of the factory system as links in a chain of social evolution. The prose is academic in tone but plain in language, and the chapters are clearly divided, making it suitable as a framework text for readers approaching economic history in the original English for the first time. Readers need not rush to memorize dates and statute names; follow the author's line of inquiry—how industrial change reshaped daily life and class relations—then check the specific facts afterward for a more solid grasp. For those preparing to read history in English or seeking to fill gaps in their background in English history, this is a low-cost, well-structured starting point.

Who it's for

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Reading tips

  1. Read the table of contents and the opening and closing paragraphs of each chapter first to build a framework of evolution from agrarian to industrial society, then read chapter by chapter.
  2. Mark unfamiliar information such as statutes and place names as you go, and look them up after finishing a chapter to avoid interrupting your reading rhythm.
  3. After each chapter, write two or three sentences on the key changes in social structure during that period to form your own timeline notes.
  4. Read alongside general histories of England to embed the thread of economic history within the political history narrative.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

Contents

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11
  12. 12
  13. 13
  14. 14
  15. 15
  16. 16
  17. 17
  18. 18
  19. 19
  20. 20
  21. 21
  22. 22
  23. 23
  24. 24
  25. 25
  26. 26
  27. 27
  28. 28
  29. 29
  30. 30
  31. 31
  32. 32
  33. 33
  34. 34
  35. 35
  36. 36
  37. 37
  38. 38
  39. 39
  40. 40
  41. 41
  42. 42
  43. 43
  44. 44
  45. 45
  46. 46
  47. 47
  48. 48
  49. 49
  50. 50
  51. 51
  52. 52
  53. 53
  54. 54
  55. 55
  56. 56

FAQ

Is this book difficult in English? Can non-English majors read it? Overall it is an academic introduction with plain language and clear chapters, and the sentence structures are not complex, but it involves many institutional terms and historical proper names. Non-English majors can first read one chapter with a dictionary, get used to the terminology, and then continue; if your reading speed is too slow, it is advisable to read a Chinese overview of English history first as a foundation, then return to the original text.
Do I need a background in English history before reading this book? It is not mandatory, but a background will make it smoother. The book unfolds in chronological order and explains major events, so readers with no background can still follow the main thread; if you are completely unfamiliar with English political history, it is advisable to keep a concise general history of England at hand and consult it whenever names or dynastic changes come up for a more complete understanding.
This is a public-domain e-book. Is the quality of the edition guaranteed? The book comes from Project Gutenberg and is a public-domain electronic text. The content was entered from an early edition, and the main text is usually quite readable, but there may be a few typesetting or OCR remnants. It is suitable for reading and study; if you intend to use it for academic citation, it is advisable to check a formally published print edition or a version in an authoritative database.

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About the author

Cheyney, Edward Potts, 1861-1947 Author · American · 1861–1947

Edward Potts Cheyney (1861–1947) was an American historian who taught for many years at the University of Pennsylvania and specialized in Tudor England and early modern European history. Two of his works are included here: An Introduction to the Industrial and Social History of England and The American Nation: A History — Volume 1: European Background of American. The former shows his interest in the evolution of England's social and economic structure and his skill in connecting industrial development with social change; the latter reflects a research scope extending to European expansion and the background of American colonization. Public information about the details of his life is limited, and the available profile can only outline his scholarly identity and main focus. His writing is distinguished by careful use of historical sources and a plain style, and may be consulted by readers seeking to understand England's social transformation and the early modern European background.