Tag: Poetry

Labour history news

Call for poems for the 1926 General Strike Centenary

The Fig Tree online webzine and Crooked Spire Press of Chesterfield have announced a new special issue to commemorate the centenary of the 1926 General Strike. Submissions are sought for poems covering the following topics: Poems written specifically for this project, and not previously published elsewhere, will be selected for inclusion in a special issue of The Fig Tree. If there is sufficient interest, Crooked … Continue reading Call for poems for the 1926 General Strike Centenary

Unknown's avatargregorybillam
Commentary

Class Encounters: John Clare, poet

In the fifth of our series on meetings with figures from labour history, Mike Mecham encounters the ‘peasant poet’ John Clare. For Malcolm Chase 1820 was a pivotal political year for Britain and Ireland. It also saw the publication of the first, and most successful, collection of poems by John Clare (1793-1864), selling more copies than his stable-mate John Keats. The ‘Peasant Poet’ was then … Continue reading Class Encounters: John Clare, poet

Unknown's avatarEditorMC
Bursary reports, MA & BA bursaries

Jay Kerslake (Leeds) on the role of poetry in The Woman Worker

Trade unionism, prior to the First World War, can easily appear a solely male occupation. Female workers were excluded from many unions on grounds of sex and subsequently despised by many of their male peers for driving down wages. This made women especially vulnerable to exploitative labour practices and also weakened male union action, which was undercut by cheap, unorganised female labour. In 1906 Mary … Continue reading Jay Kerslake (Leeds) on the role of poetry in The Woman Worker

Unknown's avatarEditorMC