A University of Sussex PhD thesis Available online via Sussex Research Online: http://sro.sussex.ac.uk/ This thesis is protected by copyright which belongs to the author. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the Author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the Author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given Please visit Sussex Research Online for more information and further details ‘RATIONING HAS NOT MADE ME LIKE MARGARINE ’ FOOD AND SECOND WORLD WAR IN BRITAIN : A MASS OBSERVATION TESTIMONY Natacha Chevalier Thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor in Philosophy in Contemporary History University of Sussex January 2016 ii I hereby declare that this thesis has not been and will not be submitted in whole or in part to another University for the award of any other degree Signature………………………………………….... iii University of Sussex Natacha Chevalier Thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Contemporary History ‘Rationing Has Not Make Me Like Margarine’. 1 Food and Second World War in Britain: A Mass Observation Testimony Summary This thesis enhances our understanding of the British Kitchen Front through the examination of primary sources from Mass Observation Archive. It illuminates the everyday life of civilians, the impact of the war food restrictions on their eating habits and practices, but also on their perspectives and behaviours. Moreover, it argues that while the food practices of these civilians were modified by the wartime rationing and food scarcity, other factors of influence, namely social class, personal and familial circumstances and time were critical regarding eating habits, food choice and priorities. In order to conduct this research and respond to the difficulties presented by the sources examined, a tailor-made method of data extraction, categorisation and analysis has been designed. Using the advantages of both quantitative and qualitative methodologies, this method allowed an unusual quantitative treatment of massive qualitative data, the creation of measurable and comparable figures as well as their qualitative contextualisation. It was found that scarcity of food effectively modified the diet of the diarists, but also their actions and their perspective. The food difficulties generated new behaviours, some unlikely to have existed prior to the war, and modified relationships. The value of food changed as well, modifying its role in private and public sphere. However, as argued, the social class and the familial status of the diarists were a key dimension of the management and perception of the food situation, influencing their choice, decision and priorities as well as their response to it. The passing of time also proved to be influential regarding the adaptation and the evolution of the opinion and feelings of the diarists. Rather than drastically challenging the existent literature, the present research suggests that some interpretative differences concerning the Home Front experience could be the result of a variation of focus and of sources employed, indicating the need to enlarge the historical perspective, to include more in depth analysis of qualitative data, and to take into account the factors of influence presented into this work. 1 MOA DR 1553 Reply to April 1943 Directive iv Acknowledgment This thesis is at the same time the result of a lonely process and a team achievement as without my husband Jonas, it would simply not exist. Jonas has my greatest gratitude for having been so supportive (morally, financially and very patiently) but also for the software he created especially for this research, offering his time and his computing genius to my study. He deserves more than I could ever give him in return for his help. I have also a debt to the rest of my family. My children Judy-Ashley and Victor, my grand-children, Yvan and Océane, as well as my mother, Jacqueline and my stepfather, Louis, have my gratitude and apologises for having to share my attention and my time with a thesis that took their mother, grand-mother and daughter away for so long. I am also grateful to Ian Gazeley, my main supervisor, for his time, his friendly patience and his sense of humour, but above all for sharing his knowledge and using his pedagogic skills. While he gave me advices and directions, he also let me make my own experiences and learn by myself, the best way in my opinion. Thank you to my second supervisor, Claire Langhamer, for her support regarding the cultural approach of my thesis, but also for her advices concerning the priorities to remember when doing such a long research. I consider myself as very fortunate to have had these two wonderful supervisors at my side for this academic journey. Of course, other people have been important during that journey. To begins with Christoph Conrad, Professor at the University of Geneva. Christoph believed in me and supported me from my BA to my PhD. He ought to have a special mention as he is the one who told me about Mass Observation Archive at the first place, planting the seeds of this study. I am also very grateful to Mr. Bednarczyk and the Hans Wildorf foundation for the essential financial support provided during my studies. I have been lucky to have met wonderful people these last years, some whose friendship has been precious, Sally Palmer, Kelly Spring, Chris Kempshall and Jo Baines, Alexa Neale, Anthony McCoubrey and Tom Van Deijnen, Astrid Zajdband, Fillip Degreef, Mélanie Méthot, Rose Holmes and many others, but also recognised scholars in the field of food studies like Anne Murcott, Peter Scholliers or Harry West who showed interest and kindness, sharing experiences and offering advices. Naturally, without the efforts made by all the people involved in Mass Observation, in the past or today, I would not be here and this thesis would not have been written. A special thank you to Dorothy Sheridan, Kirsty, Jessica, Fiona, and to Adam Matthew Digital and the team that digitalised the Archive’s material and made it available online. The testimonies found in Mass Observation are the essence of my work. Therefore, this thesis is dedicated to its founders and to all these civilians who took the time to answer questionnaires and to write a diary in spite of the difficulties, offering us today these remarkable sources. v TABLE OF CONTENT INTRODUCTION ..............................................................................................................3 CHAPTER I: CONTEXTUALISATION .................................................................................23 CHAPTER I, PART I: SOURCES AND METHODOLOGY.......................................................24 1. Mass Observation ................................................................................................................24 2. Methodology .......................................................................................................................30 The Data and their Treatment: Directive Replies of April 1943 .................................................... 31 The Data and their Treatment: The diaries ................................................................................... 36 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................................... 41 CHAPTER I, PART II: HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXTUALISATION..............................42 1. British Eating Habits and Wartime Food Situation .................................................................42 The Historical and Cultural Factors of British Eating Habits.......................................................... 43 Pre-War and Wartime Food Situation........................................................................................... 49 2. Middle-Classes and their Diet ...............................................................................................59 Middle class: Historical Summary.................................................................................................. 60 Social class and food habits........................................................................................................... 65 British Middle-class Pre-War diet.................................................................................................. 66 Analysis of the Sources and British Middle-class Food Patterns................................................... 70 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................................... 77 CHAPTER II: PRIMARY SOURCES ANALYSIS ....................................................................80 CHAPTER II, PART I: DIRECTIVE REPLIES OF APRIL 1943..................................................80 1. The Wartime Food Situation Prior April 1943 ........................................................................81 2. The Research........................................................................................................................84 Directive and Respondents............................................................................................................ 84 The Replies and their Analysis......................................................................................................