E. P. Thompson and English Radicalism

Roger Fieldhouse is Emeritus Professor at the University of ExeterRichard Taylor is Emeritus Professorial Fellow at Wolfson College, University of Cambridge

Intellectually exploratory and written with admirable clarity, E.P.Thompson and English radicalism achieves the almost impossible: it does justice to a great historical thinker and practitioner who also wrote poetry, loved liberty, hated humbug and resisted the inner and the outer hold of capital over human existence and experience. It illuminates a valiant, many-sided, quizzical friend of the people for readers who know his work and for those yet to discover his writing.'Sheila Rowbotham, author of 'Dreamers of a New Day: Women Who Invented the Twentieth Century' (2010) 'This eloquent set of essays manages to address, both sympathetically and critically, the many and varied aspects of Thompson’s life, as a historian, a teacher, a poet, a political activist, a Marxist and libertarian, and an Englishman and a cosmopolitan. Thompson’s legacy is hugely relevant for the troubled times in which we now live.'Mary Kaldor, The London School of Economics and Political Science"A major book on Edward Thompson, who died 20 years ago, is an important reminder of the loss of English radicalism and the need to revive it"(Michael Barratt Brown, The Spokesman, 124, 2014)"If adult education for social change and the pursuit of social justice sometimes feels like an idea that got lost along the way, this collection reminds us that there is nothing inevitable about this, and that people with passion and agency, committed to listening,learning and teaching, as Thompson was, can and do make a difference."(Alan Tuckett; Adults Learning, July 2014)"In the current swamp of neoliberal ideology and bankrupt 'coalition' politics, it's good to be reminded of other, more hopeful, possibilities."(Sir Peter Scott, Times Higher Education Supplement, July 2014)...this collection of essays explores in some detail the diverse range of activities and interests of this 'passionate and romantic polymath.

• 1. E.P. Thompson: a short introduction – Roger Fieldhouse, Theodore Koditschek and Richard TaylorPart One: Adult education, history and literature2. Thompson: the adult educator – Roger Fieldhouse 3. The making of The Making – David Goodway4. The possibilities of theory: Thompson’s Marxist history – Theodore Koditschek5. The uses of literature: Thompson as writer, reader and critic – Luke SpencerPart Two: Policy, theory and peace campaigns6. Thompson and socialist humanism – Kate Soper7. Thompson’s concept of class: the flesh and blood of self-emancipation – Nina Power8. Thompson and the early new left – Michael Newman9. Thompson and the Peace Movement: from CND in the 1950s and 1960s to END in the 1980s – Richard TaylorPart Three: E.P.Thompson: an overview10. Paradox and the Thompson ‘School of Awkwardness – Bryan D PalmerAfterwordAppendix: Thompson’s writing styleSelect BibliographyOther sourcesIndex