New Books Network Joseph Harley and Vicky Holmes eds., "Objects of Poverty: Material Culture in Britain from 1700" (Bloomsbury, 2025)
Dec 3, 2025
Joseph Harley, a historian at Anglia Ruskin University, joins the conversation to discuss his co-edited work, exploring the material culture of the poor in Britain. He highlights the surprising variety of objects owned by impoverished individuals, challenging misconceptions about poverty. Harley tackles the complexity of defining 'poor' across different contexts and showcases fascinating chapters on topics like repurposed wooden egg boxes and the emotional significance of makeshift dolls for working-class girls. The discussion promises fresh insights into the history of poverty through objects.
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Episode notes
Poor Households Had Rich Material Lives
- Poor people by 1700 owned many everyday and non-necessary objects that reveal rich lives.
- Joseph Harley argues these objects reframe history away from elite-focused narratives.
Make Academic Work Accessible
- Write accessibly to reach wider audiences beyond specialists when publishing academic work.
- Joseph Harley and Vicky Holmes deliberately kept chapters clear and affordable to attract general readers.
Reconstructing Ephemeral Objects Requires Creativity
- Sources for poor material culture are patchy and often non-extant, requiring creative archival work.
- Researchers combine surviving objects, inventories, diaries, and welfare records to reconstruct material lives.
