This work investigates how the ideological structures of class shaped the social, political, and economic trajectory of Britain between 1880 and 1950. Ross McKibbin, a distinguished historian of modern Britain, synthesizes a wide array of archival evidence and social data to argue that class was not merely an economic category but a pervasive ideological framework. He examines how these assumptions influenced the development of British institutions and the daily lives of the working class during a period of significant national transition.

Historians and sociologists frequently cite this text as a foundational study for understanding the rigidity and influence of class in early twentieth-century Britain. Readers often note the academic density of the prose, which provides a rigorous and comprehensive look at the period's social relations.