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SWEDISH SCIENCE Pftçssn wmmmn SWEDISH SCIENCE PftÇSSN UNIVERSITY OF UMEÅ DISSERTATION ISSN 0345-0155 ISBN 91-7191-108-1 From the Department of English, Faculty of Humanities, Umeå University, Sweden Ardent Propaganda: Miners' Novels and Class Conflict 1929-1939 AN ACADEMIC DISSERTATION which will, on the proper authority of the Chancellor's Office of Umeå University for passing the doctoral examination, be publicly defended in Hörsal E, Humanisthuset, on Saturday November 11,1995. David Bell Umeå University Umeå 1995 ABSTRACT This study of the contribution of working-class fiction to the debate on class conflict in Britain is based on four novels written by two ex- miners between 1929 and 1939: The Gate of a Strange Field (1929) and Last Cage Down (1935), by Harold Heslop, and Cwmardy (1937) and We Live (1939), by Lewis Jones. These novels represent, in work- ing-class fiction, a unique combination of an archetypal working-class occupation, min­ ing, with central features of the 1930s cultural discourse, the role of political ideolog y in literature. This study takes as its starting point the perceptio n of these novels as having a spe­ cifically communicative function in the social and cultural context of the 1930s. It recognises their role in articulating the radical voice of the miner in the conflict of inter­ ests between capital and labour as exemplified by the coal industry. I also argue that the novels are influenced by the polarised discourse of British social and cultural life in this period. Cultural context is not seen simply as a reflection of 1930s attitudes and ideas, but also in relation to a tradition of work ing-class and miners' fiction that appropriates accepted literary forms for specific needs, in this case, the articulation of miners' griev­ ances in the 1930s, seen in terms of class conflict. This conjuncture of historical and contemporary cultural discourses acts as the organising principle of the first part of this study. The four novels are analysed in terms of a sub-genre classification of the realist novel: the roman à thèse. This approach facilitates an analysis focusin g on the deter­ mining influence of ideology as a totalising concept affecting the structure, content and message of these novels. I argue that the prime purp ose of these nov els is to constrain interpretation to a desired outcome, as represen ted by the doctrine inherent in the text. Two types of roman à thèse are distinguished: the apprenticeship, which builds on the precepts of the Bildungsroman, and the confrontational, which is non-transformational, depicting scenes of class conflict. The apprenticeship model consists of two types of exemplary narrative: positive and negative. This stud y demonstrates that, by applying the analytical model of a positive apprenticeship to Cwmardy, the narrative structures of the novel limit the potential for interpretation to the doctrinal assumptio ns underlying the text. The reader is expected to identify with the cl ass-conscious insights gained by the hero. The Gate of a Strange Field , in contrast, acts as a cautionary tale, illustrating the consequences of embracing a false doctrine. Both We Live and Last Cage Down are considered as novels of confrontation in which the primary conflict between capital and labour is modified by a secondary conflict within labour on the questi on of ways and means of achieving a socialist society. The conclusion reached is that these novels can only be understood in relation to the polarised social and cultural attitudes of the 1930s, and in relation to their place in a history of miners' literature that appropriates literary forms to engage in a debate on the class nature of British society. Keywords: working-class; miners; roman à thèse\ ideology; genre; context; communi­ cation. ARDENT PROPAGANDA: MINERS' NOVELS AND CLASS CONFLICT 1929-1939 © David Bell Editor Per Råberg Faculty of Arts University of Umeå S-901 87 Umeå, Sweden Distributed by Swedish Science Press Box 118 S-751 04 Uppsala, Sweden Printed in Sweden by Umeå University Printing Office, 1995 ISSN 0345-0155 ISBN 91-7191-108-1 ACTA UNIVERSITATIS UMENSIS UMEÅ STUDIES IN THE HUMANITIES 125 ARDENT PROPAGANDA: MINERS' NOVELS AND CLASS CONFLICT 1929-1939 David Bell UMEÅ UNIVERSITY 1995 David Bell. Ardent Propaganda: Miners' Novels and Class Conflict 1929-1939. Department of English, University of Umeå, S-901 87 Umeå, Sweden. Monograph 1995, 193 pp. Acta Universitatis Umensis. Umeå Studies in the Humanities 125. ISSN 0345-0155 ISBN 91-7191-108-1 Distributed by Swedish Science Press, Box 118, S-751 04 Uppsala, Sweden. ABSTRACT This study of the contribution of working-class fiction to the debate on class conflict in Britain is based on four novels written by two e x-miners between 1929 and 1939: The Gate of a Strange Field (1929) and Last Cage Down (1935), by Harold Heslop, and Cwmardy (1937) and We Live (1939), by Lewis Jones. These novels represent, in work­ ing-class fiction, a unique combination of an archetypal working-class occupation, min­ ing, with central features of the 1930s cultural discourse, the role of politica l ideology in literature. This study takes as its starting point the perce ption of these nov els as having a spe­ cifically communicative function in the social and cultural context of the 1930s. It recognises their role in articulating the radical voice of the miner in the conflict of inter­ ests between capital and labour as exemplified by the coal industry. I also argue that the novels are influenced by the polarised discourse of British social and cultural life in this period. Cultural context is not seen simply as a refle ction of 1930s attitudes and ideas, but also in relation to a tradition o f working-class and miners' fiction that appropriate s accepted literary forms for specific needs, in this case, the articulation of miners' griev­ ances in the 1930s, seen in terms of class conflict. This conjuncture of historical and contemporary cultural discourses acts as the organising principle of the first part of this study. The four novels are analysed in terms of a sub-genre classification of the realist novel: the roman à thèse . This approach facilitates an analysis focusing on the deter­ mining influence of ideology as a totalising concept affecting the structure, content and message of these novels. I argue that the prime pur pose of these nove ls is to constrain interpretation to a desired outcom e, as represented by the doctrine inhe rent in the text. Two types of roman à thèse are distinguished: the apprenticeship, which builds on the precepts of the Bildungsroman, and the confrontational, which is non-transformational, depicting scenes of class conflict. The apprenticeship model consists of two types of exemplary narrative: positive and negative. This stu dy demonstrates that, by applying the analytical model of a positive apprenticeship to Cwmardy, the narrative structures of the novel limit the potential for interpretation to the doctrinal assump tions underlying the text. The reader is expected to identify with the c lass-conscious insights gained by the hero. The Gate of a Strange Field , in contrast, acts as a cautionary tale, illustrating the consequences of embracing a false doctrine. Both We Live and Last Cage Down are considered as novels of confrontation in which the primary conflict between capital and labour is modified by a secondary conflict within labou r on the question of ways and means of achieving a socialist society. The conclusion reached is that these novels can only be understood in relation to the polarised social and cultural attitudes of the 1930s, and in relation to their place in a history of miners' literatu re that appropriates literary forms to engage in a debate on the class nature of British society. Keywords', working-class; miners; roman à thèse; ideology; genre; context; communi­ cation. To the memory of my parents: Richard Bell and Ruby Bell Contents Acknowledgements iii Introduction 1 1. Contextual, Communicative and Generic Considerations 19 2. Traditions 37 3. Social and Cultural Antagonism 63 4. "The Manner is of the Platform" 87 5. A "Mental Squint" 115 6. "First Class Propaganda" 145 Conclusion 183 Works Cited 187 iii Acknowledgements I wish to express my sincere thanks to Dr. Gerald Porter and Prof. Sven-Johan Spånberg whose valuable advice, criticism and hard work have helped to bring this project to fruition. John Stotesbury has provided the usual excellent com­ mentary on the final drafts of my manuscript. Needless to say, any remaining er­ rors are my own. Christina Karlberg has very kindly helped with the final layout of the manuscript. My colleague, Lars Johansson, and members of the Umeå seminar in English Literature are to be thanked for having diligently read and commented on my dissertation at its various stages of development. Dr. Andy Croft of Leeds University has given me access to private papers con­ taining a number of reviews used in this study. My thanks also to Dr. John Field for allowing me to quote from his unpublished paper and to Professor Dai Smith for his suggestions on Welsh writers. The Department of English at Umeå University has given much appreciated financial support, as have the Swedish Institute in Stockholm and Mitthögskolan in Östersund. I am also indebted to the library staffs at the County Library in Östersund, the University Library at Mitthögskolan, the Miners' Library at Swansea University, the British Library, and the National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth, for their help in retrieving many obscure references. The Miners' Library, Swansea University kindly provided office space, assistance and access to their holdings during my period of research in the U.K. Finally, a note of appreciation to relatives, friends and colleagues who have provided moral support, and to Chavok and Zingo who have invigorated my labours with regular bouts of much needed fresh air.
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