1942 Victory or Vested Interest?

Description

An Important Work, First Edition, Scarce

The first edition of this work in the original paper boards.

This publication of lectures delivered to the Fabian Society was privately printed for members of the Labour Book Service, and is consequently scarce. The lectures provide a fascinating insight into socialist perspectives on the Second World War, democracy, and equality, through prominent figures in 1940s Britain.

Among these lectures is George Orwell’s ‘Culture and Democracy’. He was reportedly angered by the alterations made to his original lecture upon its publication, stating: ‘it gives a quite false impression of my written style and makes me use phrases which I should never dream of using’ (27 July 1942). Other contributors include: socialist historian G. D. H. Cole, a member of the Fabian Society who wrote many political essays, often concerning the Labour Party; Harold Laski (1893-1950), the chairman of the Labour Party from 1945 to 1946; Mary Sutherland (1895-1972), Chief Women's Officer for the Labour Party and the British representative to the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women from 1947 to 1952; and Francis Williams (1903-1970), the first public relations advisor to PM Clement Attlee from 1945 to 1947.