''Class: A View From Middle England'' is a 1979 book by English author

Jilly Cooper Dame Jilly Cooper, (born Jill Sallitt; 21 February 1937) is an English author. She began her career as a journalist and wrote numerous works of non-fiction before writing several romance novels, the first of which appeared in 1975. Cooper is ...

that offers a humorous, satirical commentary on the English class system. While categorized as non-fiction, it presents its commentary through fictional characters presented as caricatures of different social classes, illustrating Cooper's views on class distinctions and social behaviours. The book received positive reviews upon publication, although Mary Cadogan described how portrayals of working-class people were less successful than those of other classes. The work has led to Cooper being compared to Nancy Mitford and analysis over subsequent decades after publication has led it to be drawn on as a text, for example in ''Scoff: A History of Food and Class in Britain,'' and it has been analysed by historians and sociologists studying class in Britain, including

David Cannadine Sir David Nicholas Cannadine (born 7 September 1950) is a British author and historian who specialises in modern history, Britain and the history of business and philanthropy. He is currently the Dodge Professor of History at Princeton Unive ...

and Laurie Taylor.

Synopsis

The book is a humorous, satirical commentary based on the lives of fictional characters who are caricatures of Cooper's views of the English class system. Upper classes are represented by Harry Stow-Crat and family, with middle and working class characters given names such as Jen Teale, Mr and Mrs Nouveau-Richards and Mr and Mrs Definitely-Disgusting. Their fictional lives are followed from birth to death throughout the book.

Reception

Mary Cadogan reviewing the book in the '' Birmingham Daily Post'' described it as a humorous work that treats the concept of class without snideness or superiority. She stated that depictions of the upper and middle classes had "deadly precision", but that the book was less successful in its coverage of working class lives. Cadogan does also recognise that Cooper understands that class distinctions "fray at the edges" which introduces complexity to the analysis. Diana Pulson writing in the '' Liverpool Daily Post'' criticised the characterisation as "pretentious". Upon its publication, Ralf Dahrendorf reviewed it for the ''

London Review of Books The ''London Review of Books'' (''LRB'') is a British literary magazine published bimonthly that features articles and essays on fiction and non-fiction subjects, which are usually structured as book reviews. History The ''London Review of Book ...

'', describing the work as one where "the characters are fun, the observations acute". Comparisons were immediately drawn to Nancy Mitford at publication by both Pulson and Dahrendorf, with the latter characterising her writing style as "somewhere between Nancy Mitford and a ''Daily Mail'' column". Promotion of the publication included a book tour to Australia in May 1980.

Audio

An audio cassette of the book was released in 1982 with Penelope Keith as the voice over; the '' Aberdeen Evening Express'' described her as the "logical choice" since she had acted in '' To the Manor Born'' in a role that reflected "the impoverished upper class".

Analysis

Paul Fussell discusses Cooper's approach to social class in his 1992 book. The book was part of Laurie Taylor's sociology syllabus at the

University of York The University of York (abbreviated as or ''York'' for Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a public Collegiate university, collegiate research university in York, England. Established in 1963, the university has expanded to more than thir ...

. Published in 2000

's ''Class in Britain'' assessed Cooper's book, pointing out that Cooper herself had felt that it did not fully describe the intricacies of the British class system. Cannadine also used it as evidence for women's attitudes to class, describing how Jilly Cooper gives the impression that women's opinions mirror those of patriarchal figures in their lives, but that he is uncomfortable with that. David Rush continued to cite Nancy Mitford as a source for Cooper's views on the upper classes in 2018. Cooper's book is also drawn on for Pen Vogler's 2020 work ''Scoff: A History of Food and Class in Britain.'' Vogler uses a range of examples from Cooper's book to indicate social class, including: marmalade brand; the nomenclature of lunch and dinner; coffee at breakfast; mashed potato; the 'chicness' of goose at Christmas; and fish knives. Tabitha Lasley, giving an overview of Cooper's works in ''

Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentleman ...

'' in 2022, addresses the lack of marital social mobility in the books by describing how Cooper "sidesteps" class by having key characters marry foreigners. The same year German writer Detlev Piltz published a book on the British class system, which drew on Cooper's ''Class''.

Synopsis

Reception

Audio

Analysis

Notes

References

Further reading