TY - JOUR
T1 - Discourses of power and rurality
T2 - Local politics in Somerset in the 20th century
AU - Woods, Michael
N1 - Funding Information:
This paper is based on researchc onductedf or a PhD on local politics in rural areasu ndertakena t the Universityo f Bristol and funded by the ESRC. I am gratefult o Paul Cloke, PeterT aylor and three anonymousr efereesf or their commentso n earlier drafts;a ll opinions, interpretationsa nd mistakes in this paper are, however, purely my own.
PY - 1997/8/1
Y1 - 1997/8/1
N2 - This paper examines the changing nature of the local power structure of a rural county in the UK during the 20th century. In contrast to previous accounts, which have focused on the material factors behind political restructuring, this paper follows recent thinking in political geography in considering the interrelation between 'the cultural' and 'the political'. Using empirical examples from Somerset, the evolution of the local power structure is examined from the perspective of the discourses of power and rurality used to legitimate the leadership position of political elites. Domination of local governance at the start of the century by a landowning elite based on discourses of 'the country gentleman' and 'stewardship' is replaced after the first world war by a broader elite of landowners and fanners united by discourses of 'agriculture' and 'community'. After the second world war the power structure fragments under pressure from new non-agricultural political actors acting within an environmentalist discourse. The paper concludes by discussing the empirically derived model in the context of the concept of 'societalization'.
AB - This paper examines the changing nature of the local power structure of a rural county in the UK during the 20th century. In contrast to previous accounts, which have focused on the material factors behind political restructuring, this paper follows recent thinking in political geography in considering the interrelation between 'the cultural' and 'the political'. Using empirical examples from Somerset, the evolution of the local power structure is examined from the perspective of the discourses of power and rurality used to legitimate the leadership position of political elites. Domination of local governance at the start of the century by a landowning elite based on discourses of 'the country gentleman' and 'stewardship' is replaced after the first world war by a broader elite of landowners and fanners united by discourses of 'agriculture' and 'community'. After the second world war the power structure fragments under pressure from new non-agricultural political actors acting within an environmentalist discourse. The paper concludes by discussing the empirically derived model in the context of the concept of 'societalization'.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0030666795&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/S0962-6298(96)00021-2
DO - 10.1016/S0962-6298(96)00021-2
M3 - Article
SN - 0962-6298
VL - 16
SP - 453
EP - 478
JO - Political Geography
JF - Political Geography
IS - 6
ER -