Editing Raymond Williams (section)

=== Adult education and early publications ===
Williams received his BA from Cambridge in 1946, and then served as a tutor in [[adult education]] at [[Oxford University]]'s [[Oxford University Department for Continuing Education|Delegacy for Extra-Mural Studies]] (1946-1961).<ref name="WWW" />{{sfn|Williams|1979|p=12}} Moving to [[Seaford, Sussex]], he gave [[Workers' Educational Association]] evening classes in East Sussex in English literature, drama, and later culture and environment. This allowed Williams to write in the mornings, beginning work on novels and what would become [[cultural studies]].

In 1946, he founded the review ''Politics and Letters'', a journal which he edited with Clifford Collins and [[Wolf Mankowitz]] until 1948. Williams published ''Reading and Criticism'' in 1950; he joined the editorial board of the new journal ''Essays in Criticism''.{{sfn|Smith|2008|p=359}} In 1951, he was [[Conscription in the United Kingdom|recalled]] to the army as [[Territorial Army (United Kingdom)|a reservist]] to fight in the [[Korean War]]. He refused to go, registering as a [[conscientious objector]].<ref name="Inglis1995">{{cite book |first=Fred |last=Inglis |title=Raymond Williams |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Xm3601WsHl0C&pg=PA81 |year=1995 |publisher=[[Psychology Press]] |isbn=978-0-415-08960-9 |pages=81–}}</ref> He expected to be jailed for a month, but the Appeal Tribunal panel, which included a professor of classics, was convinced by his case and discharged him from further military obligations in May 1951.<ref>Smith (2008), p. 330.</ref>

Between 1946 and 1957, he was involved with the film-maker Michael Orrom, whom he had known in Cambridge. They co-wrote ''Preface to Film'', published in 1954, and Williams wrote the script for an experimental film, ''The Legend'', in 1955. This was rejected in July 1956 and he parted company with Orrom shortly afterwards.{{sfn|Smith|2008|pp=368–371}} He wrote a number of novels in this period, but only one, ''Border Country'', would be published.{{sfn|Smith|2008|loc=Chapter 7}}

Inspired by [[T. S. Eliot]]'s 1948 publication ''Notes towards the Definition of Culture'', Williams began exploring the concept of culture. He first outlined his argument that the concept emerged with the [[Industrial Revolution]] in the essay "The Idea of Culture", which resulted in the widely successful book ''[[Culture and Society]]'', published in 1958, in which he coined the term [[structure of feeling]]. This was followed in 1961 by ''[[The Long Revolution]]''. Williams's writings were taken up by the [[New Left]] and received a wide readership. He was also well known as a regular book reviewer for ''[[The Manchester Guardian]]'' newspaper. His years in adult education were an important experience and Williams was always something of an outsider at Cambridge University. Asked to contribute to a book called ''My Cambridge'', he began his essay by saying: "It was not my Cambridge. That was clear from the beginning."<ref>''My Cambridge'', ed. [[Ronald Hayman]], 2nd ed., London: Robson Books, 1986, p. 55.</ref>