British Socialism

Downloads: Under 100
Pages: 347

Read PDF online Download Save

About this book

Political labels prove slippery in J. Ellis Barker's examination of British socialism. He begins by setting sharply different definitions beside one another, then argues that the movement must be judged through its practical proposals as well as its theories. Chapters range across land, taxation, banking, education, the army and relations with trade unions. The result is a political study organised around the institutions and policies that socialist change would affect.

Barker's critical stance is part of the book's character. His contents include both the perceived danger of the movement and ways to check its progress. In the agriculture section, he weighs claims about Britain's capacity to grow food against arguments over land ownership. Readers interested in political debate can use the book to examine how competing ideas about property, government and collective welfare were presented and challenged.