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Bessie Wallis (b. 1904)

Bessie Wallis (b. 1904) Habits, Culture & Beliefs

‘A gradual reduction in working hours and a higher level of disposable income for many people throughout the twentieth century created the …

Bessie Wallis (B.1904) Home & Family

‘I realise now we were one of the luckier families’ (1, J) When it comes to family relationships Bessie withholds little …

Bessie Wallis (b. 1904)

Bessie Wallis (b.1904) Biographical entry

2:794 WALLIS, Bessie, ‘Yesterday’, TS, pp.31 (c.12,000 words). Extract published in J. Burnett (ed.), Destiny Obscure: Autobiographies of childhood, education and family …

Bessie Wallis (b. 1904): Education and Schooling

Bessie lived in an area that valued strength over intellect. You didn’t need to pass the curriculum to work in the mines, …

Bessie Wallis (b. 1904) Life and Labour part 2

“I didn’t mind going out to work. It was just that girls were so inferior to boys. They were the breadwinners and …

Bessie Wallis (b. 1904) Class matters

“Class was dreadfully important then. It often puzzled me.” Bessie Wallis’s family was working class. She makes no effort to hide this …

Bessie Wallis (b. 1904)- Purpose and Audience

‘Most working-class autobiographies begin not with a family lineage or a birthdate but rather with an apology for their authors’ ordinariness’ (Gagnier, …

Bessie Wallis (b. 1904): Home and Family

“The family had closed ranks. At last we were a tribe united against all else.” Bessie Wallis’s account of her younger years …

Bessie Wallis (b. 1904) War and Memory

Bessie does not dedicate a lot of time in her memoir to the first World War, however what she does include is …