| Summary: | This thesis is concerned with the relationship between religion and identity in fishing communities with special emphasis being given to the three communities of Scarborough and Filey on the Yorkshire coast, and Grimsby on the Lincolnshire side of the Humber coast. The study examines the development of these communities, provides a brief overview of their development and outlines the nature of the relationships within these communities between institutionalised and popular religion. The thesis is also concerned to demonstrate that religion acts as an important narrative in a complex matrix of meaning that has had a significant influence on the construction and maintenance of identity in fishing communities. Chapters four to seven therefore explore religion as a range of discourses or narratives that provide us with a way of viewing this matrix of meaning. Chapters five and six in particular offer a contribution to the debate about the role of religion in society.Further analysis of religion (in both its institutionalised and popular forms)acknowledges the close link to social change, and Chapter seven explores some of the implications here by making use of Durkheim’s concept of mechanical and organic solidarities to demonstrate the nature of the changes that took place during thenineteenth century. Chapters four, six and seven also examine the role of ritual and performance, both of which have been shown to play an important part in the daily lives of community members, not least in helping to provide and reinforce a sense of security and stability.While the study is mainly concerned with the period c.1815 - 1914 more recent material has also been drawn upon from an oral history study, which has concentrated on interviewing women in these communities. This extra dimension provides the opportunity to demonstrate that similar attitudes, beliefs and practices have continued to influence the communities up to the present day.The thesis has made use of a wide range of primary and secondary sources, and the comparative study, especially of the three mentioned fishing communities, provides a basis for comparison and contrast of such communities in future research.
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