{"product_id":"2026100012650-secondhand-the-public-school-phenomenon","title":"The Public School Phenomenon","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eCondition remarks:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBook: Good\u003cbr\u003eJacket: No dust jacket\u003cbr\u003ePages: Yellowed\u003cbr\u003eCondition remarks: Condition as shown in image\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFew institutions have shaped the British character — and by extension the British Empire — quite so profoundly as the public school, and Jonathan Gathorne-Hardy's The Public School Phenomenon presents a sweeping, authoritative chronicle of this uniquely English creation. From the medieval grammar schools of the thirteenth century to the post-war reforms of the twentieth, the book traces the evolution of institutions like Eton, Harrow, and Winchester, unravelling how they forged the ruling class, codified notions of masculinity, and exported their peculiar customs to the farthest reaches of the globe.\n\nGathorne-Hardy writes with a rare combination of scholarly rigour and mordant wit, dissecting the brutalities of fagging, the cult of team sports, and the complex sexual cultures that flourished behind ancient stone walls. His analysis argues, compellingly, that the public school system was not merely an educational experiment but a social engineering project of extraordinary ambition and consequence. A landmark work of cultural history, The Public School Phenomenon leaves the reader wondering whether Britain's great institutions were engines of excellence or elaborate machines for the preservation of privilege.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Secondhand Stock","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50948326719707,"sku":"2026100012650-SECONDHAND","price":10.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0523\/7646\/9701\/files\/9ea0e497-03b8-4294-92c7-dbbae10eddb3.png?v=1793104763","url":"https:\/\/bookgrocer.com\/products\/2026100012650-secondhand-the-public-school-phenomenon","provider":"Book Grocer","version":"1.0","type":"link"}