Beatrice+Webb's+My+Apprenticeship

Beatrice Webb was born Martha Beatrice Potter on January 22nd 1858 in Standish House, Gloucestershire, England. She was the eighth of ten children (nine of them daughters) of Richard Potter (1817-1892) and Lawrencina Heyworth (1821-1882). Her father was a successful businessman and railway director, therefore Beatrice and her siblings were born into substantial wealth. Her father believed that women were superior to men, and he raised his daughters with an intellectual training that surpassed those of typical Victorian women (Davis). Growing up, Beatrice explored the notion of service to humanity and the meaning of life during a time where most young women her age and social class were concerned with marriage (Davis). This initial interest in socialism led a successful career as a sociologist, economist and labour reformer.

Photograph of Beatrice Webb in 1894 by Elliott and Fry (Wikimedia Commons)

She married her husband, Sidney Webb, in 1892, and together they co-authored nearly 40 publications, focusing on social issues such as the cooperative movement, trade unionism, industrial legislation, and local government (80). They also co-founded the London School of Economics and Political Science, as well as the Fabian Society, which is a British socialist organization focused on advancing the principles and practices of socialism. Not only was Beatrice an intelligent and innovative socialist, she was also a skilled diarist. Her 1926 autobiography //My Apprenticeship// is comprised of diary entries that she had been keeping her entire life, and recounts the early stages of her career where she was caring for her ailing father while trying to progress in the work field (80). //My Apprenticeship// is followed by //Our Partnership//, which recounts the political and intellectual partnership she shared with her husband (80). //My Apprenticeship// was published when Webb was 68 years old, at a point in her career where she was very well established and respected as a socialist and social reformer. She, along with her husband, had made contributions to many significant theories and studies regarding politics and the economy, and //My Apprenticeship// provides insight into her personal life and career before her collaboration with her husband.

// My Apprenticeship // illustrates the story of her life before marriage, and highlights the dedication she had to social improvement and humanitarianism. Her knack for self-examination and self-criticism are evident throughout, which showcases her talent and drive for social improvement, but how she consistently doubted her abilities due to the unfortunate circumstances of her father’s illness that prevented her from thoroughly immersing herself in her work (Davis). In //My Apprenticeship//, Webb references poet and social critic Matthew Arnold, stating that she “reads these words as the expression of the ideal life toward which I constantly strive” (81), foreshadowing the theme of //My Apprenticeship//, which is the struggle between personal obligations, and the desire to work and succeed. She feels that caring for her father is the right thing to do as a daughter, yet it is hindering her ability to work, which causes her self-doubt and internal resentment. As evidence of this, she references the famous London Dock Strike of 1889, stating that she “eagerly read every detail of the Strike” and that she has “been depressed by my own powerlessness to suggest any way out of the difficulty” (81).

Beatrice spent several years caring for her father, which eventually led her to shed the mothering figure, and enter into an equal partnership with her husband once her father passed away. She does not appear to be interested in the notion of marriage throughout //My Apprenticeship//, which relates back to her earlier years of dedicating herself to philanthropist efforts and rejecting the idea of marriage (Davis).

She speaks very highly of her husband in //My Apprenticeship//, noting his intelligence and similar political views; however, she speaks of his physical appearance, including his “huge head and tiny body” (84) in a more negative connotation, suggesting her attraction was on a more intellectual level. Throughout her diary entries, she is very open about her intrigue and infatuation with Sidney Webb’s “encyclopedic character of knowledge” (85), stating that the both of them are “second-rate minds”, but yet “combined” (86). Sidney and Beatrice made a successful team, as both had extensive knowledge and experience in the areas of socialism and labour relations (Davis). Their partnership allowed for Beatrice to be the investigator, and Sidney to be the executant (86); She would attend Trade Union meetings and interview officials, and Sidney would “rush through reports and MS. Minutes at the Trade Unions Offices” (86). The partnership of Sidney and Beatrice was not merely a collaborative career between a husband and a wife, but instead a coupling of two people with similar views on how local government, and labour relations can be changed, and what exactly needs to change.

Webb’s emphasis on her partnership with Sidney Webb indicates a shift in her work before and after their marriage. //My Apprenticeship// ends by moving into the sequel, “Our Partnership”, stating “Here ends ‘My Apprenticeship’, and opens ‘Our Partnership’; a working comradeship founded in a common faith and made perfect by marriage; perhaps the most exquisite, certainly the most enduring, of all the varieties of happiness” (86), which signifies the profound influence Sidney Webb had on her personal and professional life. The contrasting titles of //My Apprenticeship// and //Our Partnership// signify a change from an individualized career to a collaborative one, and a shift from a stage of learning to a stage of mastering. Was //My Apprenticeship// written as a way to provide insight into her early career before her collaboration with Sidney Webb, to make up for any faults or criticism she may have received during that time? T.C./Engl387/UVic/Fall2014

Davis, John. “Beatrice Potter”. //Dictionary of National Biography//. Online. 22 September 2014 Leighton, Mary Elizabeth and Lisa Surridge, eds. //The Broadview Anthology of Victorian Prose 1832-1901.// Peterborough, Ontario: Broadview Press, 2012. Print. Webb, Beatrice. “My Apprenticeship.” //The Broadview Anthology of Victorian Prose 1832-1901.// Ed. Mary Elizabeth Leighton and Lisa Surridge. Peterborough, Ontario: Broadview Press, 2012. 80-86. Print.
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