‘The labour aristocracy’ and ‘incorporation’: Notes on some terms in the social history of the working class

Historical discussion on the character of the working class in the later nineteenth century continues to flourish, not least in the pages of Social History. An unqualified merit of the topic has been its drawing together of sociological and political arguments. Indeed, it would not be too much to say that it also encourages in historiography reflection on the philosophical side of the discipline which is more often suppressed than utilized. The character of the explanations advanced, and their political resonance, are thus part and parcel of the historical issues themselves. But the question remains as to which concepts and assumptions better facilitate historical understanding. The purpose of these notes is to argue that a rather confusing cluster of notions current in the literature ought to be more sharply clarified and assessed. I have in mind that extended family of terms: hegemony, embourgeoisement, incorporation and social control. Related to these are ideas of respectability, affluence, deference and the like. But my starting point, and in some ways the main concern, is the marxist theory of the labour aristocracy. First, the theory is recognized to be a strong candidate for the explanation of working-class 'incorporation' in the years afer I 850. Second, terms such as 'embourgeoisement' are drafted in to suggest either an alternative account, or to point up the inconsistencies in the marxist work. For example, Musson (1976), in his critique of Foster (1974), accuses the latter of subscribing to the embourgeoisement thesis. And Piva (I974) notes the 'irony' that marxist historians champion the labour aristocracy theory, while marxist sociologists are the loudest opponents of embourgeoisement. Such reasoning presupposes that there is a theory of embourgeoisement worth the name, and that the labour aristocracy thesis utilizes it in some way. However, further reflection is warranted if we consider that Foster has also been accused of advocating a 'social control' model of analysis. And some versions of the labour aristocracy thesis employ concepts of 'hegemony' in order to fight clear of just those consequences that a social control model seems to entail. A generous