Meeting Mrs Beeton

Usually the Christmas wish-list includes at least on recipe book but I really don't have room for very many more and I am certainly not prepared to part with anything to make space so I am trying hard to resist more recipes - surely I must have enough inspiration already? That does not of course mean that there is a moratorium on all books and it certainly doesn't mean a ban on food-related books.
The summer holiday reading so far has been almost entirely food related.
I started with Mrs Beeton  - The Short Life and Long Times of Mrs Beeton by Kathryn Hughes. I'm a great fan of biography and a firm believer in fact being both more interesting an infinitely stranger then fiction. I also have a bit of a fascination with the Victorians. The mid- to late-nineteenth century really saw the beginning of life as we know it, the beginning of the rise and rise of the middle class, and so often sounds like a gas lit version of the late twentieth century. The Beetons - Isabella and  Sam - were first and foremost middle class entrepreneurs, on the look out for new ideas and ways of making money and a name for themselves. The gorgeous irony in Mrs Beeton's case is the contrast between the reality of the young woman and her limited experience and knowledge of household management, let alone cooking (Isabella got most of her material from other sources) and the authority which has been attached to her name. Although of course by now we are used to the idea that credentials or expertise of some sort  are no longer a prerequisite for fame or at least notoriety.

Mrs Beeton is a big read. At 428 pages (plus notes, extensive bibliography and excellent index) even my eyes glazed over from time to time and I would have to concede that it may not hold the attention of anyone only concerned with how the Book of Household Management came in to being. The author has done an enormous amount of research (both exhaustive and no doubt exhausting) and presents a detailed discussion of both Isabella's life and family background as well as that of her husband, Sam, and their social milieu all of which is interesting if at times a little overwhelming.  The final chapter is a brief analysis of what Mrs Beeton has come to stand for and the myths that have been perpetuated relating to both the woman and her book. Kathryn Hughes organises her material well and her writing is clear and entertaining but this is, I think, a book that might appeal more to history tragics than general readers although that said it is worth reading if only for an insight into how we got to where we are today.
The late nineteenth century saw the benefits and burdens of the Industrial Revolution really start to come in to their own bringing the gradual move towards the mechanised household run by a lone woman in charge of mechanised servants. Mrs Beeton advocated prudence, patience and perseverance. Her book was aimed at effective and efficient management of the home, emphasising system, organisation and productivity. Many of the ideals espoused in The Book of Household Management were alive and well when I was young and were certainly still entirely desirable when my mother was a young woman starting a home of her own.  It seems to me that today we undervalue the work and skill involved in efficient household management - the work of planning, shopping, preparing and serving meals, balancing the family's tastes and nutritional needs, the allocation of resources and finances, washing, cleaning, ironing etc. Whether these tasks are undertaken personally, by the lone housewife, or sub-contacted to someone outside the home, somebody is responsible for the management of the household or at least someone should be responsible for the organisation and monitoring of the household activities. Perhaps we need a latter day Mrs Beeton who could again 'elevate domestic duties so that they became something you could be proud of doing well' (Hughes, p.472).
My great grandmother and her sisters, like their mother and aunt before them, were all domestic servants.  Grangran was born in in 1875 and by the time she was 16 she was working as a general servant. When she married in 1898 she was employed as a cook. I wonder if she owned a copy of The Book of Household Management or whether she had learnt enough from her experiences 'in service' not to need a manual.

The Short Life and Long Times of Mrs Beeton
Kathryn Hughes
Harper Perennial, London, 2006
ISBN-13 978-1-84115-374-2