The Sociology of an English Village: Gosforth by W. M. Williams

Author:W. M. Williams [Williams, W. M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Social Science, Sociology, General
ISBN: 9781136259074
Google: KcH7AQAAQBAJ
Barnesnoble:
Goodreads: 14858488
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 1998-01-29T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER VI

FORMAL AND INFORMAL ASSOCIATIONS

GOSFORTH is known for miles around as a parish ‘where there is always something on’, and certainly in comparison with its neighbours it has a very large number of village organizations. There are in all thirty-one of these, varying greatly in size and importance and exhibiting several types of internal structure and membership. Some, such as the Women’s Institute, are confined to one sex; others such as the Mothers’ Union and the British Legion, have special qualifications for membership in addition to that of sex, while several are open to all who wish to join. Similarly, their internal structure may vary from the elaborate system of officials and committees found in the Agricultural Society to the almost informal character of the Men’s Football Club. (For a list of organizations see Appendix VII.)

From what has been written in the previous chapter on class distinction, it is to be expected that village organizations—which imply meetings of comparatively large numbers of people— will reflect the class system to a high degree. As we shall see, they are in fact exceptionally important as determinants of class position, as a means of maintaining individual prestige, and in the opportunities they offer for social advancement.

Unlike many larger communities, Gosforth has no organizations which are confined in their membership to one social class, and there are only two which are limited in their range to no more than three social classes,1 (see Fig. 6). Alternatively there are only two associations which have members in all classes— the Wrestling Academy and the Church. Most of the organizations range over four to six classes, the actual composition of any one organization depending on the prestige value of its central interest to any class. The Football Club, for example, draws its members entirely from the lower classes, since football is a relatively unfamiliar and unpopular game to the upper class. The few members of the upper class who are young enough to play such games belong to a Rugby Union club in a nearby town, because this game has amuchhigher prestige value to them than Association Football. In the same way the School Outing Committee is drawn from the lower classes because it is beneath the dignity of the upper class to join in organized pleasure trips of this kind.

Members of the two widely separated classes, the Lower- Upper and the Lower class, belong to few village associations (see Fig. 6). More than three-quarters of the Lower-Upper class belong to no organization at all (i.e. in the parish) and only three of its members belong to more than one organization. In the Lower class only three adults belong to any of the associations shown in Fig. 6.2 2

This lack of participation arises from very different causes in each of these classes respectively. The Lower-Upper class contains several people like Mr. ‘F’, whose interests are centred outside the parish. Moreover it seems very probable that Lower- Upper class people try to avoid joining associations in which they

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