Songs of Protest, Songs of Love: Popular Ballads in Eighteenth-Century Britain

Hardback

Main Details

Title Songs of Protest, Songs of Love: Popular Ballads in Eighteenth-Century Britain
Authors and Contributors      By (author) Robin Ganev
SeriesStudies in Popular Culture
Physical Properties
Format:Hardback
Pages:256
Dimensions(mm): Height 234,Width 156
Category/GenreFolk and traditional
ISBN/Barcode 9780719078903
ClassificationsDewey:782.430949109033
Audience
Undergraduate
Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly
Illustrations Illustrations, black & white

Publishing Details

Publisher Manchester University Press
Imprint Manchester University Press
Publication Date 10 December 2009
Publication Country United Kingdom

Description

Songs of Protest, Songs of Love shows how songs can bring back voices from the past in a new way. The focus of the book is on rural Britain in a time of crisis. As the traditional rights of peasants were being jettisoned to enforce a new system of enclosure, rural labourers chanted out their concerns in songs of protest. These songs became increasingly strident and popular after the 1770s as rural life became even more precarious with fluctuating grain prices and uncertain employment opportunities. Many ballads in the eighteenth century were love songs. But these are also rich in social meaning. Many of these love songs celebrated the free and easy sexuality of rural workers, especially milkmaids and ploughmen, which was contrasted with the tepid and flaccid sex life attributed to urban aristocrats. The book will be of interest to scholars, advanced students and readers with an interest in cultural history and popular ballads. -- .

Author Biography

Dr Robin Ganev is Assistant Professor in British History at the University of Regina.