Aspirations and Anxieties: New England Workers and the Mechanized Factory System, 1815-1850

by David A. Zonderman

Overview

Aspirations and Anxieties is a working class intellectual history of early factory operatives in antebellum New England. The book focuses on the operatives' perceptions of technological and socio-economic changes in the mechanized workplace. The study uncovers a complex debate over many facets of the factory system—the machines and factory buildings, wages and hours, relations between managers and workers, and the content and character of protest. Finally, the book argues that the roots of this debate lie in the struggle to define the meaning of work itself in a period of profound social change.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780195057478
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	01/02/1992
Pages:	368
Product dimensions:	6.50(w) x 9.63(h) x 1.38(d)
Lexile:	1390L (what's this?)

About the Author

University of Wisconsin, Madison

Editorial Reviews

"An important contribution in the effort to give a historical voice to the working men and women who helped build American society."—CHOICE

"Zonderman does a brilliant job of documenting the divergent reactions of factory workers to the conditions of their work, revealing a complexity that rarely comes across in quantitative labor histories....A rich recording of rarely heard workers' voices, Zonderman's book is an important contribution to labor history that should not be missed by sociologists writing on organizations and occupations."— Contemporary Sociology

"David A. Zonderman has written a very find study....This monograph makes a major contribution to the field of the new labor history. Zonderman's first book whets the appetite for future efforts by this very talented young scholar."—History

"A well-researched and judicious study....There is much valuable discussion in this book. Zonderman is especially good at explicating the complex response of workers to machinery and to factory environments, topics he is the first to address in a sustained fashion."—The Journal of American History

"Zonderman's book warrants the thoughtful consideration of all Americanists."—Reviews in American History

"This book's clarity of organization and Zonderman's skill at weaving his sources into a coherent panorama make Aspirations and Anxieties a valuable supplement for undergraduate courses in nineteenth-century social or labor history. Scholars in these fields will want to read the work in its entirety....There is an excellent index and a thorough apparatus of notes and sources for those wishing to explore further the often fascinating chorus of workers' voices Zonderman has assembled."—The Historian

"This is a scholarly book, which provides important new insights into the experience of industrialisation in New England. Zonderman has marshalled an impressive array of evidence both primary and secondary....This book can be recommended as an enlightening and interesting study of the experience of industrialisation in New England."—Business History

"Zonderman provides a more comprehensive survey of workers' writings about early mechanization in New England than have previous authors."—Journal of Social History

From the Publisher