Which People's War? examines how national belonging, or British national identity, was envisaged in the public culture of the World War II home front. Using materials from newspapers, magazines, films, novels, diaries, letters, and all sorts of public documents, it explores such questions as: who was included as 'British' and what did it mean to be British? How did the British describe themselves as a singular people, and what were the consequences of those depictions? It also examines the several meanings of citizenship elaborated in various discussions concerning the British nation at war. This investigation of the powerful constructions of national identity and understandings of citizenship circulating in Britain during the Second World War exposes their multiple and contradictory consequences at the time. It reveals the fragility of any singular conception of 'Britishness' even during a war that involved the total mobilization of the country's citizenry and cost 400,000 British civilian lives.
Reviews
The subjects covered are familiar enough but most readers will come across something new. * Geoffrey Best, Times Literary Supplement *
Rose's meticulous footnotes make it an excellent vehicle for the more advanced student and scholar to follow up issues raised in the text and not only those concerning the Second World War. * Gill Sinclair, University of Kent *
immensely impressive * Annual Bulletin of Historical Literature *
More than a decade after its publication, Which People's War? remains a model for students interested in contemporary cultural history, as well as a salutary reminder of the implicit exclusions inherent in any nationalist project * Laura Beers, Reviews in History *



Book Information
ISBN 9780199273171
Author Sonya O. Rose
Format Paperback
Page Count 300
Imprint Oxford University Press
Publisher Oxford University Press
Weight(grams) 1g
Dimensions(mm) 233mm * 157mm * 20mm