Poverty: A History

Bronislaw Geremek; Translated by Agnieszka Kolakowska

Published by Blackwell, Oxford, United Kingdom & Cambridge, USA, 1994

About this Item

No other listing of this book references the presence of a dust jacket. There are a number of listings that identify the book as 'new.' From personal experience I would recommend you contact such booksellers and ask them if their 'new' book has a dust jacket. This one does and it is in excellent condition. Both the book and the jacket are in excellent condition. You can see the blue covers of the book in the photos. They are exceptionally clean. The gilt lettering on the spine is very bright. There is no significant wear on the covers. The edges and corners are in excellent shape, no rubbing. There is a teeny tiny dent on the front bottom edge. The page edges are very clean. The book is very solidly bound from cover to cover with nicely tight pages throughout and nicely tight covers as well. The pages are exceptionally clean. Scrolling through, I'm not finding any instances of soiling. The white inside covers and end papers are perfectly clean as well. I'm also not finding any instances of creasing. There are no markings. No attachments. And no one has written their name or anything else anywhere. I've always had the jacket in a fitted protective cover. The jacket is very clean. I don't see any soiling. I don't see any conspicuous wear. There are no tears. The flaps are in excellent condition, very clean, no wear. The jacket is not priced or clipped. From the dust jacket: 'The rich and those in authority in church and state, over the centuries, expressed mixed feelings about the poor, have oscillated between pity and fear, compassion and revulsion. Why this should have been so, the effects it had on private and public actions, and the changing nature and origins of the poor themselves form the subject of this book. A great sweep of time is covered, from the first millennium to the present day. Even in the Middle Ages, the author suggests, there was little sentimentality about the poor-- other than for those who chose to be so-- and charity was valued as a way of excusing what was kept. Then the poor had functions, as the means of securing divine salvation through the giving of alms, and as contractors who would pray for their benefactors. But with the economic crisis that afflicted Europe in the sixteenth century, mass poverty came to be seen as harmful, dangerous and a source of instability: the poor must be forbidden to beg and, lest they stole, provided with work. Most of the principles of modern poor relief were now formulated, in parishes, cities and nationally. Few of these arrangements succeeded for long. This book shows how central the role of poverty has been through the history of Europe. It casts a fresh and revealing perspective on the actions of individuals, groups and nations, and on the underlying nature of the greatest social changes the continent has experienced. Widely regarded as one of the classics of post-war historical writing, it is now available in English for the first time.'. Seller Inventory # 004667

Bibliographic Details

Title: Poverty: A History

Publisher: Blackwell, Oxford, United Kingdom & Cambridge, USA

Publication Date: 1994

Binding: Hardcover

Condition: Near Fine

Dust Jacket Condition: Near Fine