MA Social and Cultural History

I've always believed that the rules of history are to be respected and, wherever possible, should be well regarded. However, rules are made to be broken now and then, and too often serious historical work descends into a morass of intellectualism and high-flown language that is understandable only to the few.

On this point historians should hang their heads in shame: if we can not communicate to a general audience then what is our purpose?

Many historians, I suspect, hide behind their intellectualism because, once their arguements have finally been digested, they actually have very little to say.

I will not pretend to be an authority upon the topics presented here. However, I feel that my work was well researched and is, importantly, fresh. If you are a casual reader, please do not let the academic angle put you off: I have tried to maintain a clear and entertaining style and I'm sure there is much in here you will find of interest.

	Click on images to view articles   The Lost of London: a detailed investigation into streetwalkers and vagrants, and the reactions towards them from 1885-1905       Department stores not only changed the way we shopped, the architecture of the city, but also the face of gender relations.       Cheap booze, bad company and drunken behaviour: not a student diary, but a study of New York Saloons from 1845-1895.       An examination of the secretive and often deadly Nizari Ismailis of Iran – better known as the Assassins – in the medieval period.     News from Nowhere has been hotly debated since it was published, but the role of the River Thames in the work is often overlooked.       RETURN TO HOMEPAGE

Another country

The past is both familiar
and alien. And the echoes of events long gone can often overturn our own preconceptions and guide our decisions for the future. That history is now a poor relation in schools is something I find disturbing. How can a society understand itself without knowing where it has already been?