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Just got a recommendation from youtube for your channel this week! Can't believe I've watched so much historical content on YT and never seen this channel before ...subbed now
Welcome to the channel! I’m glad you found it. I hope you enjoy the history content here. You can find playlists on the channel page if you find them useful. Thank you.
Quite poetic now, once again. Visiting some of these older ones again.. like brand new, AND 😮.. quite fitting for today. I must admit, too many poor and such are having kids . Why!? And then they do live hard or worse, but are too many..
it sounds like this writer from America has done some physical work in the states in the past before he became a writer. was London dressed up as a steam ship's stoker during his tour of London?
These Victorian videos always make me thankful I live here & now. I have a nice warm house, enough to eat, clean water, medical care. Most of the people in history have not known these luxuries.
"The People Of The Abyss" is one of the saddest books I ever read. Being raised in Wapping during the 70's meant that I saw a lot of the places mentioned in the book and some of them still in the same terrible state they were in when Jack London walked those streets. St George In The East Workhouse in Wapping had changed considerably on the outside since it was built in 1766 having been almost completely demolished save for the large portion sitting next to the dock wall which had once been the male accommodation affording direct access to the docks for the males to work.. It was eventually turned into a hospital that closed in the 1950's before being used as a temporary refugee centre then council furniture store. It was eventually modernized and turned into flats. While it lay derelict before conversion in the 80's I got in and took photographs mostly in black and white and saw for myself how even though it had been used as a hospital, the condition for previous workhouse occupiers must have been awful. The toilets were still the basic "plank across a hole" style and there were toilets on the stairways which cant have been very hygienic OR private. I recovered some flat irons from the mountains of pigeon poo on the upper floor, took photos of scribblings in the ward end cupboards that appeared to be from soldiers and found lots of rent books and accounting books for refugees. The building is now a modern block of flats so I'm glad I got in there and recorded it all before it was renovated.
That is fascinating.. so jealous. I really need to take up 'urban exploring' sometime. You don't by any chance have these photos online somewhere, do you?
@@kimberleysmith818 From a social stand point it is very dangerous to have a large underclass of men that never have a family, for the percentage that would never want a family regardless of their situation it isn’t a problem, but most people are driven by biological instincts to reproduce. If the number of men that want to have a family but can’t for whatever reason grows to high you end up with higher rates of revolution, violence, and unwillingness to work to keep society working (the water flowing, the food arriving in stores, houses being built etc). In short it will end up being a problem for everyone if the percentage gets too big, people that know they are going to be genetic ends not of their own choices are hard to govern because they have little to lose. I would add that this problem can’t be changed by shaming these people, although I doubt anyone knows of any ready solution because a large amount of factors contribute to create this situation and the steps that could be taken would likely be immensely unpopular, but if current trends continue we will likely be seeing issues emerge because of this within our lifetime.
@@wolfengod8277 you've made a good point. China at present has this problem. Men and women are not having children or marrying because they simply cannot afford. Now they have an ageing population and do not know how to correct this problem.
The way he describes men makes me think he may have been a homosexual, to boot. But yes, people who don't want families shouldn't have them, and governments and males should stop coercing women into reproductive labour they don't want to perform.
I've been watching your videos every day for the last few days, everything I eat, the giant soft bed I sleep in, and the space I have that is clean and all mine, make me feel like a princess. I am suddenly so much more grateful for what I have. I have done little more than any of those poor souls of the past except being born into a much better situation.
I think Jack London wasn't contemptible. I think he could see the reality of the situation and that people didn't really have a chance to improve themselves. That they were born into poverty and it was pretty well be impossible to change their level in society. He could see why they drank. If I was in their situation I would be drinking too. Like you said the water was bad and you have covered that in other videos. Great photos and illustrations.
@@curbyourshi1056 Eugenicist, in the way of selective human breeding would not be desirable. What of the autistic people who enhance society? Before you all laugh and spread the usual disgust for us, think about who dragged you Nts out of the Atone Age, gave you computers (Alan Turing, who Nts made commit suicide because of his homosexuality, despite he broke the Enigma code, using an analogue computer. Just something to think about, because I'm pretty grateful to be able to be sitting here, typing this on a modern computer, not being forced to do whatever the Nazis would have in mind for someone like me. Laugh and take the piss all you want over this comment, but I firmly stand by it. Thanks to Alan Turing, who would have been wiped out because of eugenicist ideals for a "pure society". I have freedom, I appreciate that, regardless of what others might think.
@@nicolawatson3051 yes there’s stages g Duh. Theres ABUSE then comes addiction. Sure hope this isn’t more pointing out the damn obvious like the other guy.
Jack London was a prominent Socialist of his time. He had sympathy about the "lower classes" and wrote his book The People of the Abyss to try to shine a light on the conditions under which they struggled. He was also a big drinker which helped contribute to his fairly young death.
This middle class dork interviewing this penniless man had no idea that being penniless might make raising a family impossible 🤦♀️ man, nothing has changed, has it?
This was very enjoyable watching, good work. "Down and Out in Paris andLondon" By Orwell was my favorite book when I was younger. Same subject matter & Era. I subbed to your channel.
I dislike the term working class. Every employed person has to work at what they do high or low. What they mean is low paid exploited manual labour without any security. But to add insult to injury and say they don't have the right to human contact of a family shows how hard and cruel the class system is.
Nothing much has changed we still have the haves and have not just that it's sugar coated in today's world, the zero hour contracts and the minimum wage makes life pretty grim even today, once your rent is paid and all the rest of the bills there is little left for luxuries. Of course no one needs to starve unlike in Victorian times but if you look around any large town or city you can still see the poor unfortunates living in shop doorways or under the arches. The mark of society is still not how you treat the rich but how you treat your poor and that still rings true today.
I was born in 1933, during the Great Depression... My childhood.... included life in an Arizona mining town ...then later lived in California..... As a kid, I knew many peculiar and special things that I took as " natural".. Being cold, hot, hungry, seeing meanness, kindness, happyness, awe, thrills, chills, and wonderment all around me was just plain " natural" ... the way the world was and worked. I knew about sudden death from mine accidents, violence; slower deaths from chronic diseaes...and from epidemics like polio, TB, etc... wakes , masses, candles, protecive saints, and funerals were just part of growing up. I later learned about life in other times and places through reading and passing through...including from hearing stories from adults, and from seeing movies. My special vantage points of seeing my world's largely shaped what I became.... happy and old. Muchismas gracias y carinos on this Our Lady of Guadalupe day....
That’s fantastic. I’m glad you find them so useful for your interest in this period. You may already know this, but I have some playlists on the channel page for long watching/listening should you find they work for you. Thanks again for your support!
@@FactFeast The work house video u did made understand y the women went on the streets. I knew they were bad but after watching that they were a lot worse than I thought. Looking forward to Sunday so I can listen 2 u on my way home from work.
Ironically enough i always end up enjoying a beer or two while im watching your videos of a sunday night after a full weekend of work, i suppose its all things in moderation!
I love your channel. I listen to everytime I can. I.like the fact that I don't have to watch it. I can just listen to it. Don't take this the wrong way but a lot of time I fall asleep listening to it. It.is not boring.
You’re welcome to enjoy the videos in any way that suits your preference. In fact (and you may already know this) there are playlists on the channel page that you can use for long listening/sleeping for this purpose. The ‘Victorians’ playlist is long and growing. Thank you very much for your support!
@@Sheriff_GrimLaw I think it's great more and more women and men are following this line of thinking. Better for everyone if we all go our separate ways.
Great video. The Public House was a way for pitmen could clear their throat from the pit dust. In the days of the spit buckets, I can remember my grandfather spat on the fire, mixture of coal dust and alcohol. Yes, quite true that alcohol was their main recreation, and the women and home was their hardship really. The men would spend all day in the boozer and give the women a little to buy food and rent, very much a Catholic trait of the man being the head of the household. I'm not saying anything negative with Catholics. George Owel picked up on this in his publication Road To Wigan Pier. A lot of working classes didn't appreciate George Owel and was considered antisocial. This may have been his middle class background and didn't trust him in that respect within the actual working classes. George Orwell found the worst places, in the doss house. It would be a great shame for a man in those times to loose his job, and not be able to support is family, they had a benevolent fund among themselves, and their community was very close... so they'd take care of each other in that respect. The doss house was when noone else would take them in. So, for some reason they'd been outcasts from their community.
Not much has changed in London, if you know where to look.. From my own observations, it seems that society has more time for distressed animals than distressed humans.
This was when Queen Victoria was on the throne and we were the richest nation on earth but there was abject poverty among the working class. My Great Grandad was a lighterman in London in the 1850s so was not as poor as most as he did a seven year arrentiship.
For anyone who was wondering what "an half an 'alf" was I believe it is now called a mild and bitter and can be purchased from a public house in Britain that sells draft beer I found this while researching my family history.
When I was 18, 39yrs ago I drank light and bitter but it seemed to be only served in small parts of Suffolk and remember asking for a pint of it in a Yorkshire pub only to be met with a blank stare!
Mild ale is the traditional British ale of different strengths and colours. Bitter ale is a relatively new phenomenon, it is essentially mild ale that is less mature, typically 3 or 4 days old as opposed to mild ale's week or so before going to consumption. It is a result of large brewing conglomerates taking over pubs and breweries in the late 19th century, and wanting a product permanently available. This is also partly the reason for lager becoming popular in England, as compared to traditional ale it is easier and quicker to brew and store. It eas almost unheard of in England at this time. A modern equivalent, but now the preserve of Working Mens Clubs and similair establishments, is " Golden" which is half a lager and half a bitter. Not seen much now but popular in the 90s. The history of ale in England is fascinating in itself.
At least when I was younger we could save some of our wages up so that latter we could get the things that were too pricy to buy all at once . What are the young supposed to do now with zero hours contracts ? Not much has changed over the years when it comes to the value of someone's life.
Yes, its called capitalism. Capitalism evolved in the 17th century. No one ever voted for the capitalist system. Capitalism is not designed for the benefit of the majority. Capitalism is beneficial for the minority.
@@chris.bcfc.keeprighton.5685 Too true, but alas the minority are very adept at 'brianwashing' many of the population into believing that their narrow interests are what really matter to our well being.
Contraception is instrumental in raising the standard of living for women and all of us. Bad family dynamics can carry over into the next generation as well. It's damn hard, if not impossible to change behaviours learned in infancy even if you are aware. London seems to be an adherent of the pseudoscience of physiognomy which was debunked around the turn of the 20th century (Nazi "scientists" notwithstanding). Claims that you could tell a person's character from their appearance were mainstream then. I read Lancelot by Chretien De Troyes (prose translation) some years ago and the thing that stuck in my mind was the incredible mental gymnastics the chief witness to the affair with the queen, Sir Gawain performed to reconcile what he saw with his own eyes and the "fact" that God would not let an innocent knight lose a trial by combat. They ignore that everyone agrees Lancelot is the best knight in the world and just chalk his victories (this happens more than once) up to this "fact". And Gawain goes incrementally mad IMO.
@@eddiesroom1868 It's been used since prehistoric times, actually. There is no date of discovery. There have been several times in history when men have tried to ban them, though, in an effort to control female reproductive powers and force women to have children. It's still happening today, men still want control of things that don't belong to them.
On the plus side I’m descended from people like this and I live very well. On the shoulders of giants…. my great grandparents fled the potato famine. I became a director of a bank. So there is mobility
Poverty is significant limiting influence on health and life choices. If the poor were afforded a good diet and the opportunity of a good education then they may have had better a better chance in life. I have a video coming to the channel later this month on this subject.
I think he is mostly sympathetic, however his privileged upbringing will make him feel contempt. It's hard to understand a lower upbringing when you never had one
This account was also from the beginning of his journey through the East End and there was much more of this different world for him to uncover, which may have influenced.
@@FactFeast this member of the black gang that the American met at the start of his journey through London certainly sounds like a slave to the steam pressure and water gauges to be sure.
i worked heavy construction for 45 yrs it is hard on the body and the pay sucks thats why fewer younger men are doing it i also used alcohol to kill the pain after a hard days slog
I really enjoy listening to most of these video. I really wish the narrator wouldn’t put on such strong accents for the Londoners as it’s very hard to keep up with and understand. Unfortunately had to stop listening to this one which is such a shame as no other channel has access to such amazing historical records 🙁
Maybe you're all too young... but I couldn't help but giggle at the fantabulosa tones the dear, departed Kenneth Williams. Sorry Fact Feast, but it put an unfortunate spin on it for me. Much respect for your work though. Thanks. (Ooh, my word. I wonder if this fella's naff? But I never could resist a good stoker you know).
Jack London sounds like a very snobbish fellow. His depiction of the poor is indicative of the time period. The lack of sympathy and equating poverty with a moral failing is infuriating. The man told him he can't afford to keep a family happy and he still pushed it, blind to the fact that poor families typically do not have rosy picture of domestic bliss with kissing kids and a singing kettle.
I guess this member of the black gang didn't want to hear someone talk about kettles because his job was boiling water in boilers of the steam ships. what did he mean by Kettle up the spout, was he making a reference to his job?
@@eliotreader8220 he means the kettle wouldve been sold or pawned for more money . " up the spout" means something has gone suddenly and is unlikely to come back.
What does an artic penguin understand of the life of a jungle leopard? Jack London, wanted to do something and understand people that were living lives that were hidden and ignored by society at the time. I think it’s unfair to call him snobbish for not understanding fully the lives of those that were so different from his own. In my opinion his should be commended for trying as almost nobody else in that time period was even attempting to.
@@wolfengod8277 .....even though set a little earlier Robert Tressel's "the Ragged Trousered Philanthropists" is in the lexicon of "the social hell of the working classes". ......prior to the instigation of the Labour Party .
Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise. Proverbs 20:1 😕😒Isaiah 5:11 Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink; that continue until night, till wine inflame them!
I have to agree w/this video 100% ... life is hard & why have a family if one cannot afford it; if the parents are poor the children are also poor & w/out help or education they stay poor. Near impossible to raise up from lower to upper; used to be where if an education could be had one could go from lower to lower middle, but no longer in the US. It's a struggle to pay for college even w/full financial aid. To commute one must have a car or stay in the dorm or rent a place near campus; all pricey & more or less unaffordable to the very poor b/c aid will not pay for all of it; coming up w/ the final 20% is near impossible for the poor w/out additional help. That's why so many are getting into debt on student loans that must be paid back. The working poor need all the help they can get for an education or a decent job. How to get it though?
That's a load of horsesh!t. I was raised in a lower class family but had good enough grades to earn a partial academic scholarship and wrote essays to every group I could find to acquire additional funds. I worked full-time and took the max number of classes/credits possible every semester and in the summer. I was able to graduate in 4.5 years with two degrees (Economics and Finance) and a minor in Engineering. I was able to pay off my student loans and buy a house in three years. That was in 2003 and 2006. Not terribly long ago. There is a tremendous amount of financial mobility if you're willing to put in the effort.
It. Ust have been so hard to live & survive back then - the temptation of drinking must have been great for many of them. And nothing was known zbout addiction then and there was no help. God Bless these the souls of all the poor victims. Back then many people blamed the poor for their plight and just looked down on these peoplr. In the late Victorian era there was a movement among the upper class that started a more sympatheticcharitable look at Londons’ victorian poor that over the years evolved into the NHS,council housing & other social safety nets that make the UK a humane place today.
I tried to keep listening through the narrator’s ‘dramatization’ of the drunk’s overly mawkish and bizarre ‘accent,’ but gave it up just shy of 7 minutes. I’ve already read the text which the narrator trashed, so it’s OK....Jack London was a fascinating person, for sure. It would have been so much better with a straight reading of London’s words, in my opinion, and, to me, my opinion is the one that matters, lol!
Your accent did make me laugh. I've lived in Portsmouth all my life and am engaged to a Londoner from Southwick and we both take the p*ss out of each others accents. I sound like a farmer apparently!?!?
Jack London had some nerve. He came from America where most could survive by their bootstraps. In London and other cities the poor were poor because they could be used and tossed away. Sell them cheap and poisonous food, give them unclean water to drink and then when, out of necessity and to get some nourishment call them wastrels and drunkards. His rant about how “they should never marry” and so “not propagate” is nonsensical. Many of the poor fell into poverty when an accident befell the husband and he was let go, or got too old to be able to even pick up nails on the docks so couldn’t work. There were no pensions, no workmen’s compensation, no welfare aside from parishes and even then they were required to go into the poorhouse. Women who wanted to take in washing were given a mangle but with entire streets of women taking in washing, the often had to pawn the mangle… children died (sometimes crushed by the mangles) or were sick time after time after time. And then died. Parents died leaving children to go into the workhouse or industrial school where they were under-fed, over-worked and then turfed out at 15 onto the streets… London only saw what was in front of him and only then from his own life experience and prejudices. And, sadly, that’s what the rest of society saw. What help there was, was predicated on putting out work, usually dangerous, even deadly work. Society could smugly talk about how they were helping “the deserving poor” and not have to worry about the teeming “undeserving” poor. Sometimes, the best thing that happened to someone poor was to steal something and get sent to Australia to penal servitude. If they managed to survive the prison hulks, the voyage over and the prison, they JUST might make something of themselves. Better to take the chance than to simply die in the back streets of London.
How are you doing happy valentine day thank you for your wonderful cultural documentary channel historical events we appreciate your great efforts as foreigners subscribers as overseas students want to increase our cultural level improve our English language as well as always iam gathering key points about topics you mentioned briefly here it’s working class in the 19 century consisted of unskilled laborers who worked in brutal unsanitary conditions they did not have access to clean water and food and education for their children or proper clothing many lived hand to mouth existence working long hours in harsh conditions no electricity or (gas) or ruining water in victorian era people often lived in cramped back to back terraced housing families one room in house poor public health cosequence of industrial revolution the end of century greatly improved by new invention even depression of 1930s things improved for most of people who had job stay safe blessed good luck to you your family friends
The working classes did often live in overcrowded accommodation during the Victorian era. Games and drink was a relief from this and everyday working life. Thank you for watching and your comment.
He was a bit too harsh I think. True, there are people out there that don't add anything to society. But think, even a vast machine has it's tiny parts, and it wouldn't function without them. Jack had the right idea, mingling with different people to try and understand them. But I don't think he could truly empathize with them. Just like that guy who wrote "Life and Labour of the London Poor". Mayhew, he was so caught up in class distinction that he only saw half of the picture.
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way does it say Victorian London? I know this event took place the year after Queen Victoria passed away? but should it be Edwardian England by rights
Just got a recommendation from youtube for your channel this week! Can't believe I've watched so much historical content on YT and never seen this channel before ...subbed now
Welcome to the channel! I’m glad you found it. I hope you enjoy the history content here. You can find playlists on the channel page if you find them useful. Thank you.
Quite poetic now, once again.
Visiting some of these older ones again.. like brand new, AND 😮.. quite fitting for today.
I must admit, too many poor and such are having kids . Why!?
And then they do live hard or worse, but are too many..
it sounds like this writer from America has done some physical work in the states in the past before he became a writer.
was London dressed up as a steam ship's stoker during his tour of London?
These Victorian videos always make me thankful I live here & now. I have a nice warm house, enough to eat, clean water, medical care. Most of the people in history have not known these luxuries.
"The People Of The Abyss" is one of the saddest books I ever read. Being raised in Wapping during the 70's meant that I saw a lot of the places mentioned in the book and some of them still in the same terrible state they were in when Jack London walked those streets. St George In The East Workhouse in Wapping had changed considerably on the outside since it was built in 1766 having been almost completely demolished save for the large portion sitting next to the dock wall which had once been the male accommodation affording direct access to the docks for the males to work.. It was eventually turned into a hospital that closed in the 1950's before being used as a temporary refugee centre then council furniture store. It was eventually modernized and turned into flats. While it lay derelict before conversion in the 80's I got in and took photographs mostly in black and white and saw for myself how even though it had been used as a hospital, the condition for previous workhouse occupiers must have been awful. The toilets were still the basic "plank across a hole" style and there were toilets on the stairways which cant have been very hygienic OR private. I recovered some flat irons from the mountains of pigeon poo on the upper floor, took photos of scribblings in the ward end cupboards that appeared to be from soldiers and found lots of rent books and accounting books for refugees. The building is now a modern block of flats so I'm glad I got in there and recorded it all before it was renovated.
Great post... I can only imagine what stories that building could tell...
That is fascinating.. so jealous. I really need to take up 'urban exploring' sometime. You don't by any chance have these photos online somewhere, do you?
I wish some modern men viewed family like this gentleman. Why have a family if you don't want one? Why have a family if you can't provide for them?
Why should having a family be the privilege of the rich only.
If the bourgeois paid more..they could support their familes.
@@susanbrown2909 why should having children be a right?
@@kimberleysmith818
From a social stand point it is very dangerous to have a large underclass of men that never have a family, for the percentage that would never want a family regardless of their situation it isn’t a problem, but most people are driven by biological instincts to reproduce. If the number of men that want to have a family but can’t for whatever reason grows to high you end up with higher rates of revolution, violence, and unwillingness to work to keep society working (the water flowing, the food arriving in stores, houses being built etc).
In short it will end up being a problem for everyone if the percentage gets too big, people that know they are going to be genetic ends not of their own choices are hard to govern because they have little to lose.
I would add that this problem can’t be changed by shaming these people, although I doubt anyone knows of any ready solution because a large amount of factors contribute to create this situation and the steps that could be taken would likely be immensely unpopular, but if current trends continue we will likely be seeing issues emerge because of this within our lifetime.
@@wolfengod8277 you've made a good point. China at present has this problem. Men and women are not having children or marrying because they simply cannot afford. Now they have an ageing population and do not know how to correct this problem.
The way he describes men makes me think he may have been a homosexual, to boot. But yes, people who don't want families shouldn't have them, and governments and males should stop coercing women into reproductive labour they don't want to perform.
I remember my mum saying that gin was always referred to as "mothers ruin."
Me too
Was gin used in abortions? always heard that was why it was called "mothers ruin"
This is brutal. Makes me so grateful for what I have today.
We are still slaves and relatively poorer.......Your Birth certificate/passport is your bond of slavery
I've been watching your videos every day for the last few days, everything I eat, the giant soft bed I sleep in, and the space I have that is clean and all mine, make me feel like a princess. I am suddenly so much more grateful for what I have. I have done little more than any of those poor souls of the past except being born into a much better situation.
It's nice to know you enjoy watching the videos and find them meaningful. Thank you so much!
Me too!
I think Jack London wasn't contemptible. I think he could see the reality of the situation and that people didn't really have a chance to improve themselves. That they were born into poverty and it was pretty well be impossible to change their level in society. He could see why they drank. If I was in their situation I would be drinking too. Like you said the water was bad and you have covered that in other videos. Great photos and illustrations.
AMEN
Being a eugenecist is either admirable or despicable. You decide.
@@curbyourshi1056 Eugenicist, in the way of selective human breeding would not be desirable. What of the autistic people who enhance society? Before you all laugh and spread the usual disgust for us, think about who dragged you Nts out of the Atone Age, gave you computers (Alan Turing, who Nts made commit suicide because of his homosexuality, despite he broke the Enigma code, using an analogue computer. Just something to think about, because I'm pretty grateful to be able to be sitting here, typing this on a modern computer, not being forced to do whatever the Nazis would have in mind for someone like me. Laugh and take the piss all you want over this comment, but I firmly stand by it. Thanks to Alan Turing, who would have been wiped out because of eugenicist ideals for a "pure society". I have freedom, I appreciate that, regardless of what others might think.
I think he was sarcastic but not without compasion and understanding.
@@curbyourshi1056 You think this account implies he was a eugenicist..?
I've known a few alcoholics and several of them were single men who eschewed wife and family because their only love truly was drink.
Well I am an alcoholic and I can say addictions are that... Addictions.
A few? Wow, what an epidemic!
I wouldn't say it's a love it's a need when it's crossed the line into addiction
Good for them. WAY better men then most who pretend they aren’t raging alcoholics….
Least they were HONEST about it eh? 🤷🏼♀️
@@nicolawatson3051 yes there’s stages g
Duh. Theres ABUSE then comes addiction. Sure hope this isn’t more pointing out the damn obvious like the other guy.
Jack London was a prominent Socialist of his time. He had sympathy about the "lower classes" and wrote his book The People of the Abyss to try to shine a light on the conditions under which they struggled. He was also a big drinker which helped contribute to his fairly young death.
Jack London writes well! FactFeast narrates very well indeed.
Glad you enjoyed the story and narration! Thank you for your comment.
This middle class dork interviewing this penniless man had no idea that being penniless might make raising a family impossible 🤦♀️ man, nothing has changed, has it?
I love the impression that slipped into Kenneth Williams 😂 you’re channel is amazing, please keep up the good work! Always look forward your videos.
That’s great! I’m glad the character made you smile. Thank you for your words of encouragement and support!.
This was very enjoyable watching, good work. "Down and Out in Paris andLondon" By Orwell was my favorite book when I was younger. Same subject matter & Era. I subbed to your channel.
Thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed the video. Welcome to the channel!
Excellent storytelling thank you.
Thanks for listening. Glad you enjoyed it!
I dislike the term working class. Every employed person has to work at what they do high or low. What they mean is low paid exploited manual labour without any security. But to add insult to injury and say they don't have the right to human contact of a family shows how hard and cruel the class system is.
Nothing much has changed we still have the haves and have not just that it's sugar coated in today's world, the zero hour contracts and the minimum wage makes life pretty grim even today, once your rent is paid and all the rest of the bills there is little left for luxuries. Of course no one needs to starve unlike in Victorian times but if you look around any large town or city you can still see the poor unfortunates living in shop doorways or under the arches. The mark of society is still not how you treat the rich but how you treat your poor and that still rings true today.
Why do people have kids
@Ralph Howton Because they’re great. You should try it…unless you’re a poorsy. Then just wallow in your misery.
You have to view it through the eyes of the time.
@@Launchpad_McQuack_Is_A_Chad 🤣
Yeah! I'm first!!! I'm always keeping my eyes out for your uploads!
A bit later today. Thanks for waiting! I hope it was interesting to watch.
It's ok, better luck next time A
I was born in 1933, during the Great Depression... My childhood.... included life in an Arizona mining town ...then later lived in California..... As a kid, I knew many peculiar and special things that I took as " natural".. Being cold, hot, hungry, seeing meanness, kindness, happyness, awe, thrills, chills, and wonderment all around me was just plain " natural" ... the way the world was and worked.
I knew about sudden death from mine accidents, violence; slower deaths from chronic diseaes...and from epidemics like polio, TB, etc... wakes , masses, candles, protecive saints, and funerals were just part of growing up. I later learned about life in other times and places through reading and passing through...including from hearing stories from adults, and from seeing movies.
My special vantage points of seeing my world's largely shaped what I became.... happy and old.
Muchismas gracias y carinos on this Our Lady of Guadalupe day....
Life was so much harder then. Thank you for your interesting comment.
The male character's voice in this episode sounds somewhat like Kenneth Williams "snide" character.
Nailed it 👍🏼😂
Thank you for my Victorian history fix
Great n interesting video keep the good work up.
Hope it keeps you going until next week! Thank you for your comment.
@@FactFeast I go back and watch the older 1s again. I'm in 2 Jack The Ripper and knowing about Victorian history help with the ripper stuff.
That’s fantastic. I’m glad you find them so useful for your interest in this period. You may already know this, but I have some playlists on the channel page for long watching/listening should you find they work for you. Thanks again for your support!
@@FactFeast The work house video u did made understand y the women went on the streets.
I knew they were bad but after watching that they were a lot worse than I thought.
Looking forward to Sunday so I can listen 2 u on my way home from work.
Absolutely adore your channel Sir. Please keep up the hard work, thank you, from Toronto, Canada.
It’s fantastic that you like the channel so much. I really appreciate your support! Thank you.
Great simply great. The acting made me feel like i was right there hanging out with those guys. Thanks
I’m happy you think the characters worked so well. Many thanks for your comment!
The narrative inflections are just the best
The narration had me sniggering. Well done 👏
It’s great that you enjoyed the characters! Thanks for watching.
Ironically enough i always end up enjoying a beer or two while im watching your videos of a sunday night after a full weekend of work, i suppose its all things in moderation!
Was it a half and half? Thanks very much for watching regularly. It’s much appreciated!
Once again, another amazing video! Thank you so much for all your hard work. I always look forward to these. 🙂
It’s nice to know you look forward to new videos on my channel. Thank you for your support and for taking the time to write a comment.
I love your channel. I listen to everytime I can. I.like the fact that I don't have to watch it. I can just listen to it. Don't take this the wrong way but a lot of time I fall asleep listening to it. It.is not boring.
You’re welcome to enjoy the videos in any way that suits your preference. In fact (and you may already know this) there are playlists on the channel page that you can use for long listening/sleeping for this purpose. The ‘Victorians’ playlist is long and growing. Thank you very much for your support!
@@FactFeast yes that is what I use the play lists are great. Really enjoy your channel
I always get excited when I see you have posted a video x
So nice of you to say, thank you. I’m really glad you enjoy them!
I agree with the Brit. A poor man has no need for wife and family. I feel the same nowadays. 😢
I agree with you completely if remove the word 'poor'.
@@Sheriff_GrimLaw I think it's great more and more women and men are following this line of thinking. Better for everyone if we all go our separate ways.
God you guys are sad.
Thank you so much 💕. Perfect timing. Well, it always is 💫❣️👍
That’s great! Thank you TheBox&TheRarebit as always for your valued support.
Another monster was airborne TB.
Great video. The Public House was a way for pitmen could clear their throat from the pit dust. In the days of the spit buckets, I can remember my grandfather spat on the fire, mixture of coal dust and alcohol. Yes, quite true that alcohol was their main recreation, and the women and home was their hardship really. The men would spend all day in the boozer and give the women a little to buy food and rent, very much a Catholic trait of the man being the head of the household. I'm not saying anything negative with Catholics. George Owel picked up on this in his publication Road To Wigan Pier. A lot of working classes didn't appreciate George Owel and was considered antisocial. This may have been his middle class background and didn't trust him in that respect within the actual working classes. George Orwell found the worst places, in the doss house. It would be a great shame for a man in those times to loose his job, and not be able to support is family, they had a benevolent fund among themselves, and their community was very close... so they'd take care of each other in that respect. The doss house was when noone else would take them in. So, for some reason they'd been outcasts from their community.
Very interesting to read about your memories. Thank you for leaving a comment and I’m glad you enjoyed the video.
This reminds me of the tales gran told me. Her husband spent most of his wages from the pit at the pub on payday. S
not sure you know what the word 'hardship' is
Jack London himself ended his days ravaged by alcoholism
Not much has changed in London, if you know where to look..
From my own observations, it seems that society has more time for distressed animals than distressed humans.
This was when Queen Victoria was on the throne and we were the richest nation on earth but there was abject poverty among the working class. My Great Grandad was a lighterman in London in the 1850s so was not as poor as most as he did a seven year arrentiship.
Sigma grind before the name. The man lived for himself.
The parallels w today with the underlying issue of addiction and poverty is wild. So sad. We should do better but really people are the same
For anyone who was wondering what "an half an 'alf" was I believe it is now called a mild and bitter and can be purchased from a public house in Britain that sells draft beer I found this while researching my family history.
50 years ago you could buy it. my grandads genetation drunk half and half.
You can still get half and half in working mens clubs if you wanted.
An half an Alf was a half dram of whiskey/gin and a half pint of beer chasher
When I was 18, 39yrs ago I drank light and bitter but it seemed to be only served in small parts of Suffolk and remember asking for a pint of it in a Yorkshire pub only to be met with a blank stare!
Mild ale is the traditional British ale of different strengths and colours. Bitter ale is a relatively new phenomenon, it is essentially mild ale that is less mature, typically 3 or 4 days old as opposed to mild ale's week or so before going to consumption. It is a result of large brewing conglomerates taking over pubs and breweries in the late 19th century, and wanting a product permanently available. This is also partly the reason for lager becoming popular in England, as compared to traditional ale it is easier and quicker to brew and store. It eas almost unheard of in England at this time.
A modern equivalent, but now the preserve of Working Mens Clubs and similair establishments, is " Golden" which is half a lager and half a bitter. Not seen much now but popular in the 90s.
The history of ale in England is fascinating in itself.
Thanks That Was Another Brilliant Video Stay Safe From Blue
You’re welcome and I really appreciate your support for my channel.
Awesome narration! Thank you!
Glad you enjoyed the presentation! Many thanks for taking the time to leave a comment.
At least when I was younger we could save some of our wages up so that latter we could get the things that were too pricy to buy all at once . What are the young supposed to do now with zero hours contracts ? Not much has changed over the years when it comes to the value of someone's life.
We are as far away from a comfortable life as these were in Victorian times.
Your joking right we have free health care socialist benefits a right to housing. Child benefits and over weight population free schooling
It was the rich that kept the poor poor. Greed, power to exploit.
Still happens!
Yes, its called capitalism. Capitalism evolved in the 17th century. No one ever voted for the capitalist system. Capitalism is not designed for the benefit of the majority. Capitalism is beneficial for the minority.
@@chris.bcfc.keeprighton.5685 Too true, but alas the minority are very adept at 'brianwashing' many of the population into believing that their narrow interests are what really matter to our well being.
He probably wasn't wrong. Those difficult times were probably hard enough without having a family.
You can certainly understand why he thought this way but it doesn’t make it less sad
I like the narration, part Mick Jagger, part Frank Spencer
Beer was safer to drink than water. Everyone drank weak beer. Even kids.
Contraception is instrumental in raising the standard of living for women and all of us. Bad family dynamics can carry over into the next generation as well. It's damn hard, if not impossible to change behaviours learned in infancy even if you are aware.
London seems to be an adherent of the pseudoscience of physiognomy which was debunked around the turn of the 20th century (Nazi "scientists" notwithstanding). Claims that you could tell a person's character from their appearance were mainstream then.
I read Lancelot by Chretien De Troyes (prose translation) some years ago and the thing that stuck in my mind was the incredible mental gymnastics the chief witness to the affair with the queen, Sir Gawain performed to reconcile what he saw with his own eyes and the "fact" that God would not let an innocent knight lose a trial by combat. They ignore that everyone agrees Lancelot is the best knight in the world and just chalk his victories (this happens more than once) up to this "fact". And Gawain goes incrementally mad IMO.
Yeah, when was contraception "discovered"?
@@eddiesroom1868 It's been used since prehistoric times, actually. There is no date of discovery. There have been several times in history when men have tried to ban them, though, in an effort to control female reproductive powers and force women to have children. It's still happening today, men still want control of things that don't belong to them.
Ful and deep appreciation for the Dickensian accents this narrator does. It adds so much to the experience!!
It's really nice to read that you enjoyed the narration and the atmosphere we try try to bring to history. Thank you for your comment!
@@FactFeast I do like a craggy accent, for effect. Lol!
On the plus side I’m descended from people like this and I live very well. On the shoulders of giants…. my great grandparents fled the potato famine. I became a director of a bank. So there is mobility
Poverty is significant limiting influence on health and life choices. If the poor were afforded a good diet and the opportunity of a good education then they may have had better a better chance in life. I have a video coming to the channel later this month on this subject.
Jack's new friend sounds distinctly like Kenneth Williams of Carry On fame😛
Bread on the table?? Haaa Fill my glass , again !!
I think he is mostly sympathetic, however his privileged upbringing will make him feel contempt. It's hard to understand a lower upbringing when you never had one
This account was also from the beginning of his journey through the East End and there was much more of this different world for him to uncover, which may have influenced.
@@FactFeast this member of the black gang that the American met at the start of his journey through London certainly sounds like a slave to the steam pressure and water gauges to be sure.
Jack London did not have a privileged upbringing.
i worked heavy construction for 45 yrs it is hard on the body and the pay sucks thats why fewer younger men are doing it i also used alcohol to kill the pain after a hard days slog
I live like the fireman.... now in 2022.. in the uk..
it would be irresponsible for him to have children he couldn’t afford to take care of
I really enjoy listening to most of these video. I really wish the narrator wouldn’t put on such strong accents for the Londoners as it’s very hard to keep up with and understand. Unfortunately had to stop listening to this one which is such a shame as no other channel has access to such amazing historical records 🙁
Thank you for your comment and feedback. I'm glad you like the channel content.
Thanks FF❤
Maybe you're all too young...
but I couldn't help but giggle at the fantabulosa tones the dear, departed Kenneth Williams. Sorry Fact Feast, but it put an unfortunate spin on it for me.
Much respect for your work though.
Thanks.
(Ooh, my word. I wonder if this fella's naff? But I never could resist a good stoker you know).
I'd love to hear you narrate The People of the Abyss.
So sad, we live better than ever and people rage for more, me first.
Jack London sounds like a very snobbish fellow. His depiction of the poor is indicative of the time period. The lack of sympathy and equating poverty with a moral failing is infuriating.
The man told him he can't afford to keep a family happy and he still pushed it, blind to the fact that poor families typically do not have rosy picture of domestic bliss with kissing kids and a singing kettle.
I guess this member of the black gang didn't want to hear someone talk about kettles because his job was boiling water in boilers of the steam ships. what did he mean by Kettle up the spout, was he making a reference to his job?
@@eliotreader8220 he means the kettle wouldve been sold or pawned for more money . " up the spout" means something has gone suddenly and is unlikely to come back.
What does an artic penguin understand of the life of a jungle leopard?
Jack London, wanted to do something and understand people that were living lives that were hidden and ignored by society at the time. I think it’s unfair to call him snobbish for not understanding fully the lives of those that were so different from his own. In my opinion his should be commended for trying as almost nobody else in that time period was even attempting to.
@@wolfengod8277
.....even though set a little earlier Robert Tressel's "the Ragged Trousered Philanthropists" is in the lexicon of "the social hell of the working classes".
......prior to the instigation of the Labour Party .
Ironic, considering that Jack London wound up an alcoholic, himself.
Guest appearance by Kenneth Williams 😁 4.08
9:54 Methinks Mr London waxes over lyrical about his new found pal.
Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise. Proverbs 20:1 😕😒Isaiah 5:11
Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink; that continue until night, till wine inflame them!
This is great to listen to while drinking...
Toil to live:and live to toil..
I have to agree w/this video 100% ... life is hard & why have a family if one cannot afford it; if the parents are poor the children are also poor & w/out help or education they stay poor. Near impossible to raise up from lower to upper; used to be where if an education could be had one could go from lower to lower middle, but no longer in the US. It's a struggle to pay for college even w/full financial aid. To commute one must have a car or stay in the dorm or rent a place near campus; all pricey & more or less unaffordable to the very poor b/c aid will not pay for all of it; coming up w/ the final 20% is near impossible for the poor w/out additional help. That's why so many are getting into debt on student loans that must be paid back. The working poor need all the help they can get for an education or a decent job. How to get it though?
All good points, Greetings to you and yours Xxx 🙏🏼 ❤️ 🍀 🗺️ 🏴
That's a load of horsesh!t. I was raised in a lower class family but had good enough grades to earn a partial academic scholarship and wrote essays to every group I could find to acquire additional funds. I worked full-time and took the max number of classes/credits possible every semester and in the summer. I was able to graduate in 4.5 years with two degrees (Economics and Finance) and a minor in Engineering. I was able to pay off my student loans and buy a house in three years. That was in 2003 and 2006. Not terribly long ago. There is a tremendous amount of financial mobility if you're willing to put in the effort.
Best in the series
I’m glad you enjoyed this so much! Thank you.
Good job
Thanks for your support!
Luv the voices
That’s great! Thank you and I’m glad you enjoyed the video.
Gin and bare fist boxing rat baiting with terroirs a good weekend for the working men of the Victorian era
It is the what the UK has been returning to, step by step. Since the years of Tatcher.
It. Ust have been so hard to live & survive back then - the temptation of drinking must have been great for many of them.
And nothing was known zbout addiction then and there was no help.
God Bless these the souls of all the poor victims.
Back then many people blamed the poor for their plight and just looked down on these peoplr.
In the late Victorian era there was a movement among the upper class that started a more sympatheticcharitable look at Londons’ victorian poor that over the years evolved into the NHS,council housing & other social safety nets that make the UK a humane place today.
Was the Stoker's name Kenneth Williams?
I tried to keep listening through the narrator’s ‘dramatization’ of the drunk’s overly mawkish and bizarre ‘accent,’ but gave it up just shy of 7 minutes. I’ve already read the text which the narrator trashed, so it’s OK....Jack London was a fascinating person, for sure. It would have been so much better with a straight reading of London’s words, in my opinion, and, to me, my opinion is the one that matters, lol!
The opening statement could well and cover these "modern" times.
Narrator always turns into Dara O Briain when he does the channel plug.
What's Kenneth Williams doing in this sketch 😂
That poor old woman.
Indeed, a sad tale and although it made the newspaper, perhaps not that uncommon then. Thanks for your comment.
I thought I heard a hint of a drunk Kenneth Williams there.
The description of the 22 year old sounds like he may have a crush on him
I knew Mick Jagger was old, but didn't know he was a drunk in the early 1900's
Got respect for jack. Very few do what he did
Your accent did make me laugh. I've lived in Portsmouth all my life and am engaged to a Londoner from Southwick and we both take the p*ss out of each others accents. I sound like a farmer apparently!?!?
Glad you enjoyed the characters! Thanks for taking the time to comment. It’s much appreciated.
The comfort of the rich is dependent on an unending supply of the poor...
Sounds like my life. Interesting. Drink is all you got to look forward to
Sounds like most 22 year olds on a night out in Romford.
Literally, nothing has changed. 🙂
Kingdoms are built on the backs of the working class.
Jack London had some nerve.
He came from America where most could survive by their bootstraps. In London and other cities the poor were poor because they could be used and tossed away. Sell them cheap and poisonous food, give them unclean water to drink and then when, out of necessity and to get some nourishment call them wastrels and drunkards. His rant about how “they should never marry” and so “not propagate” is nonsensical. Many of the poor fell into poverty when an accident befell the husband and he was let go, or got too old to be able to even pick up nails on the docks so couldn’t work. There were no pensions, no workmen’s compensation, no welfare aside from parishes and even then they were required to go into the poorhouse.
Women who wanted to take in washing were given a mangle but with entire streets of women taking in washing, the often had to pawn the mangle… children died (sometimes crushed by the mangles) or were sick time after time after time. And then died.
Parents died leaving children to go into the workhouse or industrial school where they were under-fed, over-worked and then turfed out at 15 onto the streets…
London only saw what was in front of him and only then from his own life experience and prejudices.
And, sadly, that’s what the rest of society saw. What help there was, was predicated on putting out work, usually dangerous, even deadly work. Society could smugly talk about how they were helping “the deserving poor” and not have to worry about the teeming “undeserving” poor.
Sometimes, the best thing that happened to someone poor was to steal something and get sent to Australia to penal servitude. If they managed to survive the prison hulks, the voyage over and the prison, they JUST might make something of themselves. Better to take the chance than to simply die in the back streets of London.
This is almost a novel but we'll prepared and informative chappo sir.
How are you doing happy valentine day thank you for your wonderful cultural documentary channel historical events we appreciate your great efforts as foreigners subscribers as overseas students want to increase our cultural level improve our English language as well as always iam gathering key points about topics you mentioned briefly here it’s working class in the 19 century consisted of unskilled laborers who worked in brutal unsanitary conditions they did not have access to clean water and food and education for their children or proper clothing many lived hand to mouth existence working long hours in harsh conditions no electricity or (gas) or ruining water in victorian era people often lived in cramped back to back terraced housing families one room in house poor public health cosequence of industrial revolution the end of century greatly improved by new invention even depression of 1930s things improved for most of people who had job stay safe blessed good luck to you your family friends
The working classes did often live in overcrowded accommodation during the Victorian era. Games and drink was a relief from this and everyday working life. Thank you for watching and your comment.
The rich found ways of keeping people poor, and distracted.
London was there.
Poor people lived so horribly in V London it’s not surprising they wanted to anesthetize themselves. Or just drink themselves to death.
London: "Ah yes, how about a bit of homoerotic fanservice right about now?"
Half and half? Half lagar, Half light ale?
Drink???????? YES/MORE DRINK, GIRLS,FECK,WATER FECK,IM A HAPPY CAMPER, and what the why the hell is Kenneth Williams speaking on this
He was a bit too harsh I think. True, there are people out there that don't add anything to society. But think, even a vast machine has it's tiny parts, and it wouldn't function without them. Jack had the right idea, mingling with different people to try and understand them. But I don't think he could truly empathize with them. Just like that guy who wrote "Life and Labour of the London Poor". Mayhew, he was so caught up in class distinction that he only saw half of the picture.