Welcome to the Archive of Working-Class Literature.

This Archive aims to provide access to a collection of rare and little-known publications, written both by and for the British working class. Much of what was published and consumed would have been deemed contemporary ephemera; for instance broadsheets and chapbooks were a cheap way for the working classes to acquire new or popular songs, current news (often of particularly gruesome murders), and religious or politcal polemic. Broadsides had their literature printed onto one side of the sheet, while chapbooks would be folded to create a number of pages. Often published on poor quality paper, these publications would be passed around a family or social group and not treated with the same care and attention as the more expensive bound volumes. Chapbooks especially, with the folded paper, would be more liable to tear and disintegrate than other forms of publication. The survival of such material would have been mostly due to good luck and chance: an individual’s collection finding a sympathetic librarian or archivist. Therefore, the literature which has survived can be assumed to be a small proportion of the original publications. Their dismissal as ‘low’ culture contributed to the perception of ‘disposable’ literature, but their existence provides invaluable insights into working-class life and culture in the nineteenth century.

Many of the images here will not have been reproduced for public consumption since their original publication, and the contents of the site have been selected to indicate the broad range of literary publication. From political fiction which aimed to create a revolutionary atmosphere, to sermons delivered in the hope of preserving the status quo. From the ballads sung for entertainment at home or in the public house, to the socialist hymns sung at rallies and meetings. From utopian fiction, through balladry to polemic, the variety, energy and colour of the literature reproduced here shows the vitality of a literary culture which was often dismissed as debased, untalented and derivative because it deviated from mainstream forms of literature.

There are four primary aims of this project: to bring into visibility the vast amount of literature published by and for the working class; to encourage an appreciation of the literature for its own merits, understanding that it needs a different reading stance from that which has been labelled ‘high’ culture; to democratise access to rare literature, making it possible to be read without the need to travel to specific holding sites; and, while expanding the readership of this rare literature, to preserve the original by removing, or at least minimising, the necessity of handling. At present the site is in its first stages and focuses on the Victorian era; both the period and the site’s content will be expanded over time.

The title of this site is problematic: what is ‘working class’, what is ‘literature’? As with any large, fluid concepts there are a myriad of ways in which both, separately and together, could be defined. For the purposes of this site, the broadest possible definition will be applied in order for the site to carry as much of the vast and fascinating literature as possible. Therefore, the upper-middle-class Ernest Jones is included because his literature intended to radicalise the British working class and spoke on behalf of that class in the fight for the vote. The vicars of St. George’s church, Bolton were presumably middle or upper class, but were speaking directly to the local working class of their parish. These authors expected their literature to be read by, and to influence, the working-class reader. Does it matter that ‘working-class literature’ is not written by working-class authors? And what constitutes a ‘working-class author’? Can we label the socialist Robert Blatchford as working class? His parents were itinerant actors and he was apprenticed to a brushmaker, but his literature was written and published when he was editor and part-owner of one of the best-selling socialist periodicals. Does that make him non-working class? Blatchford’s best-selling pamphlet, Merrie England, was addressed to a fictional reader, John Smith a weaver from Oldham. Does this make his literature ‘working class’ because of its assummed addressee? One person Blatchford’s writing converted to socialism was the Countess of Warwick. Does this mean his literature is not ‘working class’? And does it matter? While Ernest Jones spoke to and on behalf of the unenfranchised, Blatchford and the vicars of Bolton spoke to the potentially revolutionary manual labourers but with polarised ambitions for the response to their arguments. Under different motivations, and with different ideas of readership in mind, all the literature in this Archive aimed to speak to the un/employed and un/skilled non-upper/middle classes. Such a broad-church approach will allow the widest possible scope for inclusion. Debate over definition will be inevitable and very much welcomed – at last the material will be available and discussion will be possible.

The Archive would not have been possible without the libraries and librarians who have given their permission for the images to be digitized and made public. The images have been acknowledged and links provided to the sites of the relevant holding library. Thanks to the Working Class Movement Library, Bolton Local Studies Library, Manchester Central Library, and Derby Local Studies Library.

Deborah Mutch