Introduction:
When thinking of the Victorian Period, royalty, lavish lifestyles, and elaborate living often come to mind, but this was not all that true. Historically the Victorian Period is defined by the Monarchy of Queen Victoria reign from the 18th century till early 19th. She was a constitutional monarch; this meant that the Monarchy had very little power and who was expected to remain above party politics. However, during this same period, other completely different lifestyles and conditions were occurring. For instance, many of the English people lived in poverty. In fact, Charles Dickens, one of the most outstanding writers of this period, described how it was to live during the Victorian Period. The Victorian society went through massive
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His early works of satire harken back to the previous century, but many critics note the advance of a more conventionally Victorian strain in his later works. In particular, Vanity Fair which established Thackeray's fame permanently. The novel opens at Miss Pinkerton's Academy for young women, where we are introduced to Amelia and Becky, the novel's protagonists. Amelia and Becky are friends, but they are nothing alike. Amelia is innocent and comes from a wealthy family. Becky Sharp, on the other hand, is devious and is from an poor family. Becky passes a little over a week at Amelia's home. She spends her time persuading Amelia's brother Jos, an overheavy, vain tax collector. Becky nearly succeeds in arranging the marriage, until George, Amelia's love interest, steps in and persuades Jos he has acted like a fool. Jos, humiliated, leaves home and Becky, furious with George, moves on to her job. The Crawleys are a rather dreadful bunch, nothing like what Becky suspected. They are all scheming for the inheritance of Aunt Matilda, who is sick. Becky once again ingratiates herself with the family and earns the affections of Sir Pitt and Rawdon, who both ask her for marriage. She admits to Sir Pitt that she agreed to marry Rawdon in secret, and everyone in the family is mad when they hear this news. Meanwhile, Amelia craves George, who disrespects her while he is in the military. Dobbin, who is George's closest friend and who is also secretly in love with Amelia, supplicates him to treat her kindly. George eventually agrees to marry Amelia, but just as his father anticipated, the Sedleys come to financial ruin because of Mr. Sedley's poor business choices. George's father disowns him in response to Dobbin's struggles to get him to accept the marriage. The Duke of Wellington has declared war on Napoleon's army; since all the men are in the military, everyone goes to Belgium to get
In America, the late 19th Century was known as the Victorian Era. It was a time when pro-private upper class culture dominated the nation, a time of liberation from the burden of the past and a time when the development of science and technology flourished. The Victorians believed that the advancement in science and technology served as a mean for protection, and could bring in an abundant of wealth and power, something they desired. The middle-class admired those from the upper-class, as they imitated the lives of the wealthy families. It was a period of competition and the survival of the fitness for the Victorians. While these neighbors, friends and families competed against each other for wealth, there was competition between workers and machineries in the cities, as labor was gradually being replaced by modern technology.
Victorian rich life out to be less than what it seems. I think it was
The Victorian Era started when Queen Victorian inherited the throne in 1837 and lasted till 1901. Over those years, England underwent “technological, commercial, and social developments that fundamentally changed English life, replacing the world into which Victoria was born with one that looks much more familiar to the twenty-first-century eye.” (Nelson 1). According to Houghton “never before had men thought of their own time as an era of change from the past to the future.”(1). England was in the period of transition, the change from the Middle Ages to the modern period. The old doctrines and institutions were attacked and modified and a new order was proposed. The Victorians had to live between two words,
The Victorian Age in England was a time when crime was rampant, people were starving, and life was generally difficult. In these times, there were really only two social classes, the upper class, and the lower class. Everyone in the lower class had troubles, but children had it the hardest. While most everyone had a difficult life, it was worst for children; forcing them towards crime and leading them into the arms of prison.
In Victorian society, the beliefs of the people were generally strict. They had a low tolerance for crime, good social ethics, and believed in sexual repression. Any criminal who was publicly found guilty of a crime was punished harshly and looked down upon (Chesterton 3). Upper class citizens prided themselves on looking and acting like royalty. The upper classes held parties often, dressed in only the best, and spent most of their time with other members of the same class (Wagner 5-8). Though they shared these beliefs publicly, crime, poverty, and prostitution were rampant for the majority of the era (Gorman 325-326). The upper class focused on impressing other upper class members; so much that the lower classes lived in terrible conditions. They forced children to work, and men often showed little sexual restraint in their private lives. This is represented by one of the main carvings on the Westminster Palace. The Palace is decorated in and out with carvings of countless people and animals. After the building burnt down in 1834, a competition was held for a design of a new palace. Charles Barry would win (Foley, Mark). He was a well known architect in the t...
The thing that shocks me the most about victorian morality is that men and women were required to have very good etiquette. This is very abstract to me because today men and women do not necessarily have the standards they did back then. This is important because when we read the book it is necessary that we remember people had much higher standards. One thing revealing about victorian morality is the aspect of religion. Religion played a huge part in morality. People were considered immoral when they were not participating in church or not active in their religion. This is significant especially when reading a book during a different time to have the mindset of religion. Even though in these days religion is a choice and morality is not based off religion you have to remember in the past it was an extravagant part of society during those times. Finally the thing strangest of them to me was the sexual morality part of their society. Prostitution was considered immoral. Now obviously people still consider it immoral today but the thing that catches you off guard is that 3% of the population of london had to do with the prostitution business. This is very odd that this scenario
Families during the Victorian era tended to be large, and it was evident during this time that families could not survive if the children did not work. There was an immense “increase in population” during this period, by the end of the century most lived in cities rather than the country (Bristow 5). Due to economic conditions at this time only a...
One Victorian sentiment was that a civilized individual could be determined by her/his appearance. This notion was readily adopted by the upper classes and, among other things, helped shape their views of the lower classes, who certainly appeared inferior to them. In regards to social mobility, members of the upper classes may have (through personal tragedy or loss) often moved to a lower-class status, but rarely did one see an individual move up from the abysmal lower class. Although poverty could be found almost anywhere in Victorian London (one could walk along a street of an affluent neighborhood, turn the corner, and find oneself in an area of depravity and decay), most upper-class Londoners, who tended to dwell in the West End, associated the East End with the lower class.
Victorian literature is a representation of society at the time. These Victorian authors have expressed their concerns with the dangers of the restrictions of society and the effect it has on women. Both “The Yellow Wallpaper and Wuthering Heights show the repression of women, the dependency on men, but also the resistance to a patriarchal society and its norms.
Throughout this era, fashion evolved and was made simpler in design and creation. Clothing was extravagant and had many characteristics to each piece to show who you were. The wealthier people had the more indulgent fabrics, while the destitute had more common fabrics and had to make their own clothes. Victorians indulged themselves in their fashion sense. It is prominent to realize that during this period the industrial revolution was taking place and helped in the process of their clothes advancing. Fashion in this era had a lot of influence from many sources to create a unique twist on what they wore in Victorian, England. From their preferences to the rules of society it changed quite a bit throughout this
...s against his will and marries Amelia, he disinherits him. A very distressing event is when John Osborne takes out the family Bible and erases George´s name from the fly leaf. He has no feelings for his off-spring, and places money concerns above sentiments. He shows no mercy for his son or for Amelia, whom he disdains. He does not give a thought to her or what she suffers when widowed, and he offers to take care of her son without realizing how painful it is for Amelia to part from the boy. John Osborne is never reconciled to his son before he dies. But in his will he expresses at last that George is his beloved son, and he leaves some money for Amelia. His way of life has been in line with his fellow creatures in Vanity Fair, and his kindest deeds are sadly left to the last moment.
The Victorian Era started in 1837, the year Queen Victoria was crowned. The Industrial Revolution also started in this era. Cities started to form and become heavily populated. In the novel, Great Expectations, Charles Dickens had the main character, Pip, live in two different life styles in the Victorian Era. Pip lived with both the poor and the rich population. Both life styles are very different and placing Pip in both societies helped to show that, while the wealthy people benefited from the industrial revolution, the poor people often paid the price.
...ied about his intentions during the entire novel, no one truly knows him. Frank’s uncle, Mr. Churchill is inferior to his wife in regards of control. Throughout the novel the reader hears more about his wife than they hear about him. Their relationship represents complete switch of the traditional idea of man being superior to woman. The Knightleys however, John and Isabella, are purely conventional and are ideal couple for Nineteenth Century society’s times. Mr. Elton does not represent true gentility while Mr. Weston too gentle. Although all of these characters have their flaws, Austen finds her perfect figure in George Knightley. His infallible nature is unrealistic, yet it gives society the ultimate gentleman to aspire for. Austen’s Emma is more than a comedic novel of manners but also a quintessential piece that fits perfectly into the lives of today’s society.
The Victorian Era in English history was a period of rapid change. One would be hard-pressed to find an aspect of English life in the 19th century that wasn’t subject to some turmoil. Industrialization was transforming the citizens into a working class population and as a result, it was creating new urban societies centered on the factories. Great Britain enjoyed a time of peace and prosperity at home and thus was extending its global reach in an era of New Imperialism. Even in the home, the long held beliefs were coming into conflict.
Corey, Melinda, and George Ochoa. The Encyclopedia of the Victorian World: A Reader's Companion to the People, Places, Events, and Everyday Life of the Victorian Era. New York: Henry Holt and, 1996. Print.