Week 4 Questions (Davis)

Hall describes 1950s Britain as permeating an “ethos of discontent” (p. 23) in his essay about new Conservatism. I think it would be reasonable to suggest that contemporaneous American life is in a similar but distinct era. What do you think are the most striking similarities and differences? In “The Empire Strikes Back,” Hall chastises Labour’s ineffective response to the Falklands War and Thatcherism broadly. Similarly, it is not difficult to consider this criticism timely and relevant today. How does one go about facilitating an “organic intellectual base” (p. 206)? What would “The Empire Strikes Back” look like if written about our present moment?