Earthly Necessities

This lucid and elegantly written book seeks to redefine the economic history of early modern Britain for a new generation of readers. Combining the research of economic historians with the insights provided by recent advances in social and cultural history, Keith Wrightson describes the basic institutions and relationships of economic life, traces the processes of change, and examines how these changes affected men, women, and children at all social levels.

Wrightson reemphasizes the significance of the period as a turning point in British economic development, one that included the creation of an integrated market economy, the expansion of capitalist organization and enterprise, and reconfigurations of economic power. He shows how economic practices and priorities were embedded in social relations and how shifts in attitudes, values, and understandings played an essential part in the emergence of a market society. And he compares and contrasts the distinctive experiences of Scotland and Wales with those of England. Novel in its structure, scope, and emphasis on the lived experience of the period, the book vividly demonstrates the gains and costs of economic change.