The Cultural Critics: From Matthew Arnold to Raymond Williams

The book explores the concept of culture as employed by English literary intellectuals over the past 100 years, tracing the tradition of criticism through the writings of Matthew Arnold, F. R. Leavis, and Raymond Williams. It discusses the role of art in society and examines its treatment by different groups of intellectuals, providing a basis for a critique of the quality of life in modern industrial society.

Format: Hardback
Length: 342 pages
Publication date: 01 December 2023
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

Originally published in 1979, this study delves into the concept of culture as employed by English literary intellectuals over the past century, a period marked by continuous redefinition and transformation. The tradition of criticism in which these intellectuals wrote viewed the artistic imagination as a moral force in society and a vital mechanism for social change. The author traces this tradition through the writings of various English intellectuals, utilizing the three primary figures of Matthew Arnold, F. R. Leavis, and Raymond Williams to elucidate the concept. Through the analysis of their contemporaries, she demonstrates how the concept was employed and modified, spanning from J. S. Mill, John Ruskin, and William Morris to George Bernard Shaw, D. H. Lawrence, T. S. Eliot, and R. H. Tawney, as well as Richard Hoggard, Richard Wollheim, and R. S. Peters. By addressing the questions of art's role in society and examining their treatment by different intellectual groups, the author provides a foundation for a robust critique of the quality of life in modern industrial society. This book holds appeal to students of literature, cultural history, and the sociology of culture.

Weight: 800g
Dimension: 216 x 138 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781032645353