15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fascinating Social histroy of England, November 28, 2000
This review is from: England in the Age of Hogarth (Paperback)
Most of us are familiar with the Political History of the 18th Century, which seems to be over-Romanticized. In this excellent book Derek Jarrett describes what it was like to be a Squire, a woman or a Child in this very rough age, by todays' standards. It wasn't like the Williamsburg Themepark at all. Described are how people from different walks earned a living, what they did for pleasure when they had time, and the Violence which seemed to permeate all Classes. Life was tough in the Georgian Age. The illustrations are almost all by William Hogarth who often showed the dark side of English Society of the mid-18th Century. Prints like "Gin Lane", "Rake's Progress" or the "Cockpit", show how rough life was, and go very well with the concise well-written text. The sources are all excellent. No doubt, the reader will come away with a new view toward the 18th Century. This book is accessible from everyone from the High School Student to the Scholar, and Jarrett writes in a way that keeps the reader interested. More Historians should write like him.
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