[.ca] Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, the (ISBN 0007204507)

Utterly unknown masterpiece:
A friend of mine sent me this book, which I had never heard of at the time. If you get past the awkward title, and the somewhat purple Victorian prose, it really is a wonderful book. First and foremost, it reads really well. It's well-written, the story is compelling, and the characters likeable. The overall flavor I would describe as Dickensian, although nowhere near as baroque or whimsical. So it's not some boring polemic. And, second, it's socialist in its outlook. It explains socialism and the old Labour movement not in some theoretical, jargonistic way, but by means of practical examples that the central character uses to explain the movement to his co-workers. At the same time they're learning, you're learning, too - and it's very well done. Of course, the plot of the story drives home the lessons you've learned as well. And the arguments for more social equity work - I guess they can be argued against, if you're so inclined, but they're not at all simplistic or overly idealistic - they're really rather practical. Overall, a wonderful book for just about anyone thinking about the construction of society - even capitalists who'd like to cut their teeth against challenging political arguments.

Good introduction to socialism:
This book is essentially classic socialist thought bundled into a story, all be it a story based closely on the life of the author. Half biography, half political philosophy course in socialism the Ragged trousered Philanthropists somehow works as a novel. The plot is interesting but tedious at times, the dialog is spot on and the atmosphere is brilliant. This is no doubt due to the personal experience of the author. It is very preachy, a no holds barred attack against capitalism and a shockingly biased view of socialism. But it's a brilliant way to find out about Socialsim, at times inspiring and delving deep into minds of those who wish for change. The book is very good, worth four stars maybe. I gave it three because of the text book feel it generates at times.

The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists:
A lady I worked with, a long time ago, recommended this book to me. It is genuinely Socialistic in outlook (although Mr. Tressell was not afraid to critise what he saw as 'wrongs' in Socialism itself. This makes great sense, as no one political system is perfect as we all know. The book is based on a Company of builders in the early 20th Century 'Botich & Co.' if I remember rightly. You read the conditions of the workers which are pretty harrowing (as working class environment was, at the time). You meet the workers' families as well. You see the struggles they have to survive on the times when bad weather put the builders 'off work' The Foreman liased between the Management and the workers. I cannot remember his name now, as it is a long time since I have read the book.He is an important character. Some of the workers' try to justify their injustices as being 'what they, as working class people must expect' There was One man who joined the company, who tried to educate his fellow workers as to how wrong they were, about the inequalities of Capitalism. He was not popular for taking this stance. It sounds a heavy book, but it is extremely readeable. I recommend it to anyone interested in how people lived and worked. It does NOT force you into taking a political stance. The book is there to be enjoyed...

Be enlightened:
I think that this book is excellent. It illustrates the workers, who have been made ignorant by a capitalist system premised on the values of feaudalism, in which wokers - or serfs - know their place, which is at the bottom of the hierachy. This contributes towards the workers intrasigence in their refusal to see the causes of their poverty, which subsequently causes them to be ingnorant. Those who became enlightened to the true causes of their poverty could be forgiven in their reluctance to fully embrace socialism for they were in a minority, and prone to assault as illustrated in the book. This attitude prevails today, as it did in the early part of the 20th century, in that the majority of the British working class still insist that poverty, and inequality are caused by the drunken, the lazy unemployed, lone parents asylem seekers, and cheap foreign imports. As this attitude is encouraged by media propaganda, in a similar manner as those who benefit from the system in Tressell's book, then the working classes of post modern Britain remain just as intrasegent and ignorant as ever, the majority seeing edication as irrelevant to to them. One aspect of the book that I am grateful to Tressel for is the way he highlighted the conditions of women in working class Britain in the early 20th century. By doing this Tressell gives credibility to the feminist movement, and its achievements so far.