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Men in reserve: British civilian masculinities in the Second World War

Pattinson, Juliette, McIvor, Arthur, Robb, Linsey (2017) Men in reserve: British civilian masculinities in the Second World War. Cultural History of Modern War . Manchester University Press, 400 pp. ISBN 978-1-5261-0069-6. (The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided) (KAR id:60314)

The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided. (Contact us about this Publication)
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http://www.manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9781526...

Abstract

Men in reserve focuses on working class civilian men who, as a result of working in reserved occupations, were exempt from enlistment in the armed forces. It uses fifty six newly conducted oral history interviews as well as autobiographies, visual sources and existing archived interviews to explore how this group articulated their wartime experiences and how they positioned themselves in relation to the hegemonic discourse of military masculinity. It considers the range of masculine identities circulating amongst civilian male workers during the war and investigates the extent to which reserved workers draw upon these identities when recalling their wartime selves. It argues that the Second World War was capable of challenging civilian masculinities, positioning the civilian man below that of the 'soldier hero' while, simultaneously, reinforcing them by bolstering the capacity to provide and to earn high wages, frequently in risky and dangerous work, all which were key markers of masculinity.

Item Type: Book
Subjects: D History General and Old World
Divisions: Divisions > Division of Arts and Humanities > School of History
Depositing User: M.R.L. Hurst
Date Deposited: 10 Feb 2017 13:19 UTC
Last Modified: 16 Feb 2021 13:43 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/60314 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)

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