From Anger to Apathy: The British Experience Since 1975

by Mark Garnett

In 1975, a Labor government with a wafer-thin majority was struggling in vain against rampant inflation. Trade union officials seemed more powerful than the politicians who had been elected through the democratic process, while Londoners considered themselves to be on the front line of a terrorist campaign which originated in Northern Ireland. Behind all this lay a fear of a devastating nuclear war that could break out at any time whether or not a majority of British people agreed with the cause of conflict. More than 30 years later, it is easy to see why commentators thought that Britain was becoming “ungovernable” in the mid-1970s. Yet evidence suggests that the British people were happier in those days than they have been in the early years of the 21st century, as well as much more inclined to cast votes in general elections. During the 1980s Britain was certainly affected by the “Thatcherite,” consumerist ethos. But on closer inspection, it turns out that Britons are just as “angry” today as they were in 1975, if not more so. In this groundbreaking book, Mark Garnett charts the changes in British politics, society, and culture since 1975. This volume breaks with the traditional approach to history by addressing the reaction to change through themes like lust, greed, fear, and charity, while at the same time retaining a sense of chronological progression.

Genres: Politics, History, Nonfiction

432 pages, Hardcover

First published October 4, 2007

Reviews

[Elizabeth Barnard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this. It was clear and easy to read, and took me through the last few years in a way that I haven't studied academically. I'm not sure I completely agree that the public's feelings were so chronological, but it was certainly interesting. I had an understanding of the basic political events since 1975, and this really helped in understanding it (I'm not sure I would've fully appreciated it without that).
My only criticism of this would be that it does get a bit repetitive towards the middle, but in a book of only about 400 pages, it didn't put me off finishing it.

[James Webster · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the way in which no-one, Left, Right or Centre, gets away without coruscating criticism. They were (and are) all crap and Mark Garnett seems prepared to say so. A worrying outline of the parlous state of our civic life.

[Robin Newbold · Rating 2 out of 5]

I studied economic and social history at university and therefore Mark Garnett's From Anger to Apathy appealed to me. It is basically the story of British politics from the mid-1970s to the early 2000s. However, it is rather dry and academic despite the fireworks of the period.

The writing never sparkles and despite a kicking Garnett - who is apparently a Tory - gives the Blair government the writer never provides a cohesive argument regarding his hook that the country went from angry in the 1970s to apahtetic in the noughties.

The book simply never gets going and is rather a lame trawl through a period that was ripe to chronicle, from the three-day week to the controversial Labour government that took the country to the disastrous war in Iraq via the miners' strike that blighted the Thatcher years of the 1980s. It is like sitting through a particularly dull history lecture.

[Ipswichblade · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting take on how the British people have turned from very angry people in the seventies to the more acceptance of life now. Some interesting views not always ones I agreed with but that is what makes it a good read