Beatrice Webb: biography of this British sociologist and activist.
A review of the life and work of this English sociologist, economist and activist.
Beatrice Webb (1858-1943) was an English economist and sociologist who fought for various social and educational reforms. She also did extensive research on political and economic institutions.
In this article we will look at a brief biography of Beatrice Webb and we will know how was her childhood, what she studied, and the importance and repercussion that her social activism and her works have had.
Beatrice Webb biography: who was this activist and thinker?
Beatrice Webb (1858-1943) was born on January 2, 1858 in Standish House, near Gloucester, situated in the southwest of England.located in the southwest of England. She came into the world at the height of the Industrial Revolution, and was the eighth child of a wealthy Liverpool industrial and railroad entrepreneur named Richard Potter. Her mother was a woman educated in the utilitarian tradition, Lawrencia Heyworth, who died when Beatrice was 24 years old, in 1882.
Beatrice was an influential economist and sociologist. She worked in tandem with her husband, Sidney Webb. Their work extends to more than 100 books and articles. They also produced parliamentary reports (e.g. the "Minority Report"); such reports would be a key building block for the Welfare State in post-World War II Europe.
On the other hand, this English economist had a great faith in cooperativism, formulated social reforms and elaboratedShe formulated social reforms and elaborated a series of proposals that propelled the welfare state. At the end of 1905, Beatrice was appointed a member of the Royal Commission on the Poor and Relief Acts.
Childhood and adolescence
Early in her childhood, Beatrice Webb was not noted for her dedication to her studies. Even her mother thought her intelligence was below average. On the other hand, her childhood and adolescence were marked by the presence of some psychosomatic disorders, depression and neuralgia.depression and neuralgia. These episodes disappeared only to reappear in adulthood.
As a result of these disorders, Beatriz sought help in religion, studying this doctrine, and writing a diary. She also began to take her studies more seriously. However, and largely due to her delicate health, Beatriz never received a "normal" formal education. never received a "normal" formal education, as she was always quite self-taught.. He learned mainly thanks to the great library that his father had, where he read books on philosophy, science and mathematics.
On the other hand, some authors who especially influenced him were Auguste Comte and Herbert Spencer.
Her work in economics
Beatrice, together with her husband set up and tutored the London School of Economics and Political Science. The aim of the school was to educate critical economists, who would bring benefits to the whole country, not just the rich.
This school played an important role in the development and consolidation of Economics as an independent discipline. It is now a public university in London, specializing in the social sciences.
Her work in politics
Both Beatrice Webb and her husband combined their political activity with their intellectual work. It is remarkable the repercussion in the political and economic sphere that Beatrice had, since in addition, also together with Sidney, she was influential in the creation of the British Labor Party.a party that became very powerful. More specifically, the Labour Party came into being thanks to the Fabian Society. This fact helped to lay the foundations of democratic socialism, still present in our days.
Moreover, at the social level, as we have seen, Beatrice Webb was an activist and revolutionary; played an important role in the dismantling of the old Poor Law and in its replacement and in its replacement by the new social insurance systems.
Fabian Society
The Fabian Society was an important British socialist movement, and both Beatrice and Sidney were linked to it, being leaders throughout their lives.both Beatrice and Sidney were leaders throughout their lives.
The Fabians were a group of socialists who believed that socialism would come about through a progressive evolution where the State would gradually play an increasing role in the economy, with the aim of avoiding the abuses of the bourgeois capitalists.
Work
Beatrice Webb's work encompassed different fields, especially economics, but also social sciences, politics, law (or law) and applied sociological research.
Some of Beatrice Webb's most noteworthy works were were:
- Cooperative Movement in Great Britain, 1891.
- Wages of Men and Women: Should they be equal?, 1919.
- My Apprenticeship, 1926.
- Our Partnership, 1948.
Autobiography
The most remarkable facts of Beatrice's life on a professional and personal level are to be found in two autobiographical works two autobiographical works: My Apprenticeship (1926) y Our Partnership (1948).
But her legacy and her story can also be found in her works, some of them already mentioned, and in her publications, many of them developed together with her husband Sidney. Another legacy Beatrice left behind were her diaries, which she wrote practically throughout her life, and which were also published.
The end of her life
Beatrice Webb's last works were: Soviet Communism: a new civilization? (1935) y The Truth about the Soviet Union (1942), which express the great admiration that both Beatrice and Sidney felt for Soviet achievements.
Beatrice Webb died in 1943 in Liphook (Hampshire, England), at the age of 85.. Four years later, in 1947, her husband, Sidney, died. Both were buried in Westminster Abbey.
Bibliographical references:
- Ramos Gorostiza, J. (2003). Beatrice Webb and her influence as an economist. Contributions to Economics.
- Simey, T. (2004). Sidney and Beatrice Webb's contribution to sociology. Sociology of Work, 50: 35-38.
- Webb, B. (1948). Our Partnership. Green and Co., UCM: Bca. Economics and Business.
- Webb, B. (1891). The Co-operative Movement in Great Britain. London: Swan Sonnenschein & Co.
(Updated at Apr 12 / 2024)