Grassroots Resistance: School and Livelihood in a North Norwegian Coastal Community Circa 1850-1900

From the historical perspective of educational authorities, 'school resistance' in public education can be seen as an expression of irrationality; as irrational actions taken by people not able to take care of themselves. As the history of women and the history of the average man have largely fallen [...]
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From the historical perspective of educational authorities, 'school resistance' in public education can be seen as an expression of irrationality; as irrational actions taken by people not able to take care of themselves. As the history of women and the history of the average man have largely fallen by the wayside as themes of general historiography, so has the historical perspective of the common people on education. In the manner in which historical accounts are written from "the perspective of the winners," it is likewise fair to claim that the history of public education is written by the fox guarding the henhouse. This book is seen as a way to make amends, pointing to how the common people of a Norwegian coastal community have a say in the history of education. The wealth of source materials quoted in this account makes it fairly obvious that the educational establishment's view of itself and its view of the common people are unmistakable, both explicitly and as sub-text. Whoever wants to sketch out the common people's version of the triumphant march of formal education must try re-establishing them as rational actors in their own world. To ask for a rational basis for school resistance, the book offers the deepest possible insight into this Norwegian coastal world and the conditions that the local people faced there.