Class Act: The Cultural and Political Life of Ewan MacColl

摘要

Ben Harker's biography takes the reader on a chronological and cultural journey, from the birth of James ("Jimmy") Miller in Salford, England, on January 23, 1915, through his years of struggle to found a working-class theater; his reincarnation as Scottish folksinger-songwriter Ewan MacColl; his long-time personal and creative partnership with Peggy Seeger; their work on the Radio Ballads; founding of the Singer's Club in London; and continuing creative achievements in the face of adverse cultural and political trends, until MacColl's death in 1989. MacColl's overall project, Harker notes, was beset by a series of intersecting tensions: his ambiguous connection to Scottish identity; progressive vs. reactionary aspects of commitment to tradition; the particularistic nature of national culture vs. the universal aspirations of socialism; opposition to commercialization vs. the need to "go where the people are"; and so on.