Moralising Poverty

This book breaks new ground in the discussion of the moral dimension of poverty and its implications for the treatment of the poor in mature welfare states, drawing upon the diverse political, social and symbolic constructions of deservedness and otherness. It takes a new look at the issue of poverty from the perspective of public policy, media and public opinion and examines in a topical manner the various ways in which they all contribute to the production of stereotyped representations of poverty and to the construction of boundaries between ‘insiders’ and ‘outsiders’ in our society.