Debating societies [ Clubs & Societies / Associational culture ]
… debate became impossible and societies were outlawed. Despite those chequered fortunes they served as places for self-improvement for many men of limited formal education and provided forums for a broad part of the population, … conjoined they could part ways: they provided political, diplomatic, and literary-cultural debates to those bent on self-improvement and/or proud of their civic capacity; they also offered lighter subjects on fashion or gossip for those … entertainment’ to those who could not afford higher forms, such as a night at the theatre. They could be places of self-improvement for men with little formal learning. They served as schools for rhetoric and clearing houses for news …
Advertisement | Clubs | Debate | Eloquence | Gender | Middling sort | North America | Politics | Public sphere
Encyclopedia