A Phenomenology of Working-Class Experience

Charlesworth examines themes of poverty and class by focusing on a particular town--Rotherham--in South Yorkshire, England, and using the personal testimony of disadvantaged people who live there, acquired through recorded interviews and conversations. He applies to their life stories the interpretative tools of philosophy and social theory, drawing in particular on the work of Pierre Bourdieu and Merleau-Ponty. Charlesworth argues the culture described in this book is not unique to Rotherham and the problems identified in this book will be familiar to economically powerless and politically dispossessed people everywhere.

• Examines personal consequences of social phenomena such as deprivation and inequality
• Uses personal testimony to illustrate the effects of poverty and class on quality of life and life chances
• Adopts a phenomenological approach