The Making of the English Working Class

by E.P. Thompson

The working-class community of the early 19th century was the product, neither of paternalism nor of Methodism, but in a high degree of conscious working-class endeavour. In Manchester or Newcastle the traditions of the trade union and the friendly society, with their emphasis upon self-discipline and community purpose, reach far back into the 18th century. Rules which survive of the Manchester small-ware weavers in the 1750s show already meticulous attention to procedure and to institutional etiquette. The committee members must sit in a certain order. The doors must be kept locked. There are careful regulations for the safe-keeping of the “box”. Members are reminded that “Intemperance, Animosity and Profaneness are the Pest and Vermin that gnaw out the very Vitals of all Society.”