Tennyson's Princess - The Woman's Cause Is Man's

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The Woman's Cause Is Man's

Alfred Lord Tennyson, the author of The Princess, 1847, was born as the fourth of twelve children on August 6th, 1809, in Somersby, Lincolnshire to George and Elizabeth Tennyson. In 1827 he began his higher education at Trinity College, Cambridge; where he won university prizes for his poetry and became involved in an undergraduate club, The Apostles, which greatly influenced his life and later works. Tennyson died on October 6, 1892 at the age of 83 years after enjoying a delayed but satisfying and profitable literary career (Everett)

The Princess was the work that turned Tennyson's struggling career around and laid the foundation for his continued success and ultimate acclaim as the Poet and Prophet of the Victorian era. The composition of The Princess was a lengthy process beginning in 1839 and culminating in its publication in 1847. Tennyson's works, in general and The Princess, in particular are representative of the Victorian era and the societal quest for self-identification. During this time period there existed a strong desire to understand and in some cases, remake male/female relations. Many of Tennyson's works deal with this Victorian issue - "The Woman's Cause is Man's" is one example of a literary attempt to define a social issue. The Victorian era also highly prized the value of self-control, which was considered the defining quality of masculinity (Riede). Due to the influences of industrialization during this time period and the residual class distinctions of previous time periods, this work addresses the male/female issue as it relates to middle and upper class men and women and does not attempt to include the issues facing men and women of the working class, which were distinctly different.

"The Woman's Cause is Man's" is an excerpt from the long narrative poem, The Princess. The story is set in a fairy-tale realm and deals with the effort to establish a women's college. Interestingly, the very first British institution of higher education for women, Queen's College in London, was opened the year following the publication of The Princess. The story's heroine, Princess Ida, has sworn never to marry and has dedicated her life to the founding of a women's college. The Prince, on the other hand, is determined to win the Princess and to convince her that her efforts on behalf of feminists are futile.

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