The Great Fear: A History of Sexual Attitudes in Britain During the Industrial Age

The Great Fear examines British sexual attitudes and behaviors during the Industrial Revolution, focusing on the period between 1750-1850. The book chronicles societal responses to perceived sexual deviance and moral panic in an era of rapid social change. Louis Crompton draws from court records, medical texts, newspaper accounts, and personal correspondence to document how British culture dealt with matters of sexuality and gender norms. The text covers topics like prostitution, homosexuality, marriage customs, and reproductive practices across different social classes. Historical figures and everyday citizens appear throughout the narrative as Crompton reconstructs the sexual landscape of industrial Britain. Legal cases and social movements illuminate the tension between traditional morality and emerging urban lifestyles. The book reveals how fear of sexual nonconformity reflected deeper anxieties about industrialization and social instability in 18th and 19th century Britain. Through this focused lens of sexuality, broader patterns emerge about class, gender, and power during a transformative period in British history.

This appears to be a relatively obscure academic book with minimal online reader reviews available. No ratings or reviews could be found on Goodreads or Amazon. The book seems to be primarily held by university libraries and cited in academic works rather than reviewed by general readers. The few scholarly reviews that exist discuss Crompton's analysis of Victorian attitudes toward sexuality and his examination of historical court records and medical documents. Without more consumer reviews to draw from, it would be speculative to characterize how "most people" view this work or what readers specifically liked or disliked about it. If additional verified reader reviews become available, this summary could be updated to better reflect general reader sentiment about the book.

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🔖 Author Louis Crompton was one of the pioneering scholars in LGBTQ+ studies, establishing one of the first university courses on gay and lesbian literature at the University of Nebraska in 1970. 📚 The book explores how the emergence of urban industrialization in Britain led to increased anxiety about sexuality, particularly among the middle class who feared moral decay in crowded cities. ⚖️ Published in 1985, the work examines Britain's harsh laws against homosexuality during the Georgian and Victorian eras, when the death penalty could be imposed for same-sex relations. 🏛️ Crompton's research uncovered how the Methodist revival movement of the 18th century significantly influenced British sexual attitudes, promoting stricter moral codes across society. 📝 The book draws extensively from previously unstudied court records and newspaper accounts, providing one of the first comprehensive looks at how sexual behavior was policed and punished in industrial Britain.