Weighing in at 914 pages, Simon Heffer’s The Age of Decadence certainly qualifies as a Big Fat Book (a book with 500+ pages). I’ve always been interested in the growth of the British Empire and Heffer’s tome presents the time period in glorious detail.
One of the characters that I admire in the 1880-1914 years is Oscar Wilde. He was wild and crazy and talented. “On his first visit to America in 1982 (when he is alleged to have said he had nothing to declare except his genius)…” (p. 22). Wilde pops up in various chapters to interject levity…or to be persecuted.
Simon Heffer doesn’t spare the Royal Family. He skewers Albert Edward mercilessly. “By 1890 the Prince, then nearly forty, was an accomplished adulterer and glutton, the former hobby noted by his circle (and his wife) but never publicly remarked upon, and the latter earning him the nickname ‘Tum-tum’.” (p. 87)
Along with fascinating stories of the great people of that age, Heffer engages in some cultural anthropology, too. “One of the great evils of working-class life–as well as one of its main recreations–was drink. Karl Marx said that drink was the curse of the working classes: Wilde that work was curse of the drinking classes.” (p. 173)
The Age of Decadence is the best book of history that I’ve read about these critical years in British and World History. I highly recommend it! Are you a fan of History? GRADE: A
Table of Contents
Introduction xi
Prologue: Swagger 1
Part I The World of the Late Victorians
1 The Decline of the Pallisers 39
2 The Rise of the Pooters 118
3 The Workers’ Struggle 169
Part II Coming Storms
4 Imperial Tensions 213
5 Ireland 270
6 The Death of God 336
7 The Civilising Mission 363
8 Protecting Women 392
Part III Public Debates, Public Doubts
9 The Future 419
10 Nostalgia 442
11 Imperial Consequences 474
12 Art and Life 497
13 The Uses of Literacy 534
Part IV Strife
14 Men and Power 561
15 Dukes and Dreadnoughts 596
16 The Great Unrest 651
17 Votes for Women 707
18 Rebellion 769
Envoi: One Afternoon of Heat 825
Bibliography 827
Notes 839
Index 863
Picture Acknowledgements 899
I love English & European history, but my knowledge of the history of the Americas or Asia is rather lacking—I have the basic overview not any deep-dive detail. When I was growing up and going to school in the England of the 1960s, it was all about the kings & princes—which is how I know that Edward was actually near sixty rather than forty in 1900 (he was born in 1841). You’d think Hefner’s editor would have caught that.
Deb beat me to it. assuming you meant 1890, he would have been approaching 50, not 40.
Of course, as a history major I am very interested in history, particularly British and American. I am interested in our post-Civil War Gilded Age (roughly the same period as the beginning of this book), as well as the Edwardian Era, partly because I don’t know as much about that period as some other eras.
Looks like the author got Third Runner Up in the George Kelley Lookalike Contest!
I do draw the line at 914 pages, no matter how interesting.
Jeff, the difference between Simon Heffer and me is I smile more in photos. THE AGE OF DECADENCE requires a big commitment of time to read it, but I found the result worthwhile.
Deb, the 1880-1914 timespan in Britain is a period I didn’t know that much about. Now I know a lot more. And, I’m always impressed with your editorial skills!
Well, of course George is a lot better looking.
I’m a fan of history but, unfortunately, not a fan of 900 page books. I’d love to have the patience and time to read something like this, but appealing as it sounds I know it’s not gonna happen. I do, however, applaud you for doing it.
Michael, I’ll take a bow and appreciate the applause! I’m not reading 900-page books that often any more. But THE AGE OF DECADENCE garnered excellent reviews and I had the time to read it while on a brief visit to Ohio to see Diane’s sister.
I’m with Michael. I have the Sylvia Plath one now at 1000 pages (Red Venus) and I am eyeing it rather than reading it. I can barely hold it.
Patti, I’ve been dealing with a lot of big, unwieldy books lately, too! I’m considering buy the ebook version of The Thinking Machine: Fifty Novelettes & Short Stories by Jacques Futrelle because it is so hard to handle.
Not a fan of much of history as a whole itself, of course, though a fan of many of the more heroic figures over the centuries. No one purely noble, but some (Emma Goldman, Noam Chomsky, Martin Luther King, Jr., Patsy Mink) are part of my personal pantheon. I certainly will read histories, and, like yourself, will attempt to share a bit of history on occasion on my blog or via other platforms.
Todd, like you I’m more inclined to read about historical figures rather than books like THE AGE OF DECADENCE which surveys a chunk of Time. But, from time to time, I’m willing to tackle such projects…usually during the Summer when I seem to have more free time than other months of the year.
Oh, I read histories as well as biography…it’s that admiring history as a whole is to admire a lot of viciousness and injustice, among other unsavory things (the haircuts alone). It might bend toward justice, but it does tend to take its sweet time doing so, with no end of the dead and maimed, and not solely human victims, along the way.
Todd, your comment could encapsulate the present catastrophe in Afghanistan.
Definitely a fan of history, not at all a fan of books that break the 500 page barrier. I prefer 400 or less, even when it comes to fascinating history books or amazing works of fiction.
Carl, like you a prefer less hefty History books, but THE AGE OF DECADENCE covers a critical period in British history that I didn’t know that much about. I enjoyed reading it, but the downside is that I could have read THREE regular size books in the time it took me to read THE AGE OF DECADENCE.
My husband does like to read about history and is currently reading volume one of Peter Ackroyd’s history of England (FOUNDATION). Me not so much but I do plan to read the 2nd volume in that series (TUDOR). I have read some nonfiction history, but usually with much less pages.
Tracy, I have that Peter Ackroyd series! I’ve read other books by Ackroyd and enjoyed them, too.
)00 pages?
No, thanks – I haven’t read that much about German history in that ages though of course that would be more relevant for me.
When we were taught about the beginning of the 20th Century at school we all went:
How crazy were those kings and queens, emperors and empresses – all over Europe and trying to subjugate the rest of the world.
And the structure of these societies …
Like the competition between the UK and Germany – who could build the bigger fleet, general Schlieffen having the idea to attack France via the neutral country of Belgium, making detailed plans for this and so on.
But the Brits weren’t much better, their colonialism and especially how they destroyed the Irish and let them starve – horrible!
Wolf, you’re right about the negative aspects of colonialism. The Irish suffered from the Potato Famine, the British economic policies related to it, and later foreign policy decisions. The problems still exist.