The London Underworld in the Victorian Period: Authentic First-Person Accounts by Beggars, Thieves and Prostitutes (v. 1) [Paperback]

Henry Mayhew (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 25, 2005

The first and possibly the greatest sociological study of poverty in 19th-century London. Mayhew and his collaborators explored hundreds of miles of London streets in the 1840s and 1850s, gathering thousands of pages of testimony from the city's humblest residents. A classic reference source for sociologists, historians, and criminologists.

Product Details

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Dover Publications (July 25, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0486440060
• ISBN-13: 978-0486440064
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #459,122 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars View into the underbelly of Victorian England, October 22, 2007

By 

Tannhauser (Philadelphia PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The London Underworld in the Victorian Period: Authentic First-Person Accounts by Beggars, Thieves and Prostitutes (v. 1) (Paperback)

The book is heavily referenced in Theodore Dalrymple's "Life at the Bottom" and due to the impact of that work, I placed an order for Mayhew's classic work.

Personally, for a survey of the side of London that Merchant Ivory films tend to miss, this book isn't the way to go.

Ideally, this should be a resource for Sociologists like Dalrymple or perhaps criminologists.

The extensive statistics and, frankly, difficult to decipher language of that time, make for a tedious read for the layperson.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Educational and Fascinating, September 10, 2011

By 

FreeFalconer - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The London Underworld in the Victorian Period: Authentic First-Person Accounts by Beggars, Thieves and Prostitutes (v. 1) (Paperback)

I ordered this book as part of my ongoing obsession with the Victorian era. (Blame Sarah Waters.)

The accounts are fascinating in and of themselves. I was ready for a lot of one-sided moralising from the author, Mayhew, but he has (had?) a very modern approach to the plight of London's poor. It was a pleasant surprise to realise that people of the era could see and understand the social injustice of the time.

Having read the words of the beggars, thieves and prostitutes, it is difficult to understand how some of them (particularly the prostitutes) could have done anything other than what they did. I feel almost as if I know them now - this book is the next best thing to actually meeting and speaking with these people.

Best of all I never felt like I was ploughing through the book, working to get an understanding of the people. I raced through the book, fascinated. Later I went back, re-reading certain parts.

More than worth the price.

3 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars mayhew's characters, April 20, 2009

By 

J. Sikorski "joyradish" (Hoboken!) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The London Underworld in the Victorian Period: Authentic First-Person Accounts by Beggars, Thieves and Prostitutes (v. 1) (Paperback)

I read Mayhew's Characters, a 1950's edition of selections by Quennell. It is great! The London street life is vividly described by those who live it. Mayhew evidently was only interested in the poor, in a time when class differences were drastic thanks to the Industrial Revolution. We hear from Street Patterers, A Watercress Vendor, Chimney Sweeps, Tramps and Prigs, and all kinds of interesting types. Quennell mentions Mayhew's Underworld, and I can't wait to read it!