pp 200 Demy 8vo 1996 paperback
ISBN 0-7083-1271-3
Life in a Welsh Countryside has won its place as a classic and its influence upon subsequent studies in this field has been considerable. Now available for the first time in paperback with a new Introduction by Harold Carter, it describes and analyses the culture of rural Wales as it manifested itself in the late 1930's in the life of the inhabitants of a parish in rural Wales. An account of the economic life of the people and of the farms and cottages in which they lived provides a background for a detailed study of family life, the social significance of blood-ties, the activities of youth, the social intercourse between scattered farms and the interplay between rural neighbourhoods and hamlets. The latter part of the book deals with the role of religion, the social implications of denominationalism, leisure-time activities, the attitude of tenant to landlord, the connection between religion and politics, and the factors affecting social status and prestige.
`The merits of studying intensively a selected area as representative of the whole is clearly demonstrated in this vivid account of life in the Welsh borderland parish of Llanfihangel yng Ngwynfa . . . ' (Man)
`Analyses of European social systems have been considerably enriched by this study of a rural Welsh society. . .' (American Anthropologist)
`. . . a book which one can not only mention with pleasure, but strongly recommend to be read.' (Schweizerisches Archive für Volkskunde)
`. . . it is by far the best book of its sort that I have yet seen. While no factor in the life, outlook and prospects of the people is omitted, humanity is never smothered by statistics. . .' (The Countryman)