The Character of Credit (Cambridge Social and Cultural Histories) [Hardcover]

Margot C. Finn (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521823420 | ISBN-13: 978-0521823425 | Publication Date: September 15, 2003

Using a wide range of printed sources and paying particular attention to distinctions of gender and class, Margot Finn examines English consumer culture from three interlocking perspectives. Finn considers representations of debt in novels, diaries and autobiographical memoirs; the transformation of imprisonment for debt; and the use of small claims courts to mediate disputes between debtors and creditors. This major study of personal debt from 1740 to 1914 will appeal to social, legal and cultural historians, literary scholars and readers interested in the history of consumer culture.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This impressively researched, lucid, and often beautifully written book is a powerful testimony to the way interdisciplinary methodologies are transforming social, economic, legal, political, and gender history...Like all good books, this one inspires readers to think more deeply about their own time." Margaret R. Hunt, Amherst College, American Historical Review

"...an ambitious and important book...highly recommended..." EH.NET

"This is not just a book that deserves to be widely read, but a book which ought to prompt and guide a great deal of further research by historians following the paths opened up by Margot Finn." Institute of Historical Research

"Social History at its very best." Victorian Studies

"... fascinating and convincing new book... an important, accomplished, and highly informative work, and a valuable addition not only to the history of money in England but also to the work devoted to the social life of the economy." H-Albion (H-Net)

"Finn's excellent book offers both an important history of retail credit in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and a model of intelligent interdisciplinary history...Finn's analytic brilliance, her skill in weaving together many narratives , her ability to synthesize a massive body of recent scholarship will be valuable to historians, economists, lawyers, and literary scholars." Susan Staves, Brandeis University

"This is a rich book. Indeed, as the first book in the new Cambridge Social and Cultural Histories series it sets an impressively high standard." Working, Julian Hoppit, University College of London

"A wonderful book...this is an admirable work of scholarship, based on a wealth of primary sources. It will be read with advantage by business, economic, and social historians alike." Business History Review, Robin Pearson

Book Description

Using a wide range of printed and manuscript sources, and paying particular attention to distinctions of gender and of class, Margot Finn examines English consumer culture from three interlocking perspectives: representations of debt in novels, diaries and autobiographical memoirs; the transformation of imprisonment for debt; and the use of small claims courts to mediate disputes between debtors and creditors. This major new study of personal debt from 1740 to 1914 will appeal to social, legal and cultural historians, literary scholars and those interested in the history of consumer culture.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 376 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (September 15, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521823420
• ISBN-13: 978-0521823425
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,193,392 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.