Victorian literature

To know about Victorian women, you would have to know first what the Victorian Era was, right? Well, the Victorian Era was the name of the reign by Alexandria Victoria, who was better known as Queen Victoria. During her reign as queen, which took place in the United Kingdom for nearly 64 years, it was a time of many changes and improvements within the U.K. These changes included political, scientific, industrial, military, and especially cultural alterations. This all happened between May of…

uncouth; for example, it was absolutely necessary to dress up for dinner. The customs were strict and detailed, and, if not kept, one would be looked down upon. The Victorian era, however, was named after its ruler, Queen Victoria, and lasted from 1837 to 1901. There was much cultural change in the transition from the Georgian to the Victorian era. Social values became less strict, smaller in number, and less important, and more things became acceptable. However, there were similarities, such…

social body of London through its division of people as microcosms who are “almost unconscious” of other’s existence beyond their own. His description of the concentrated populations in his work Master Humphrey’s Clock identifies the atomization of Victorian London and demonstrates the extent of the brutal indifference exhibited by the society. The “worlds” of London and its constituents present the notion of borders that confine and separate these populations from each other. The “well to do”…

Victorian Women and Women in Society Today Today, women are stereotyped everyday all over the world as being the weaker or less significant gender. In addition to the stereotypes, society sees women as fragile, powerless, or insubstantial. Unfortunately, among media or simply walking around in society we overhear statements such as “well you are JUST a girl” or “you need to hurry up and find a good husband to take care of you” because women cannot care for themselves. However, in the Victorian…

“I am afraid you have had very little experience in how to propose... men often propose for practice. I know my brother Gerald does. All my girl-friends tell me so” (24). Wilde criticizes the concept of a proposal by using Gwendolen’s constant irritating responses, satirical tone, and ignorance towards the subject. Individuals dwell with anxiety about making a proposal extravagant and nearly perfect, to the point where they are ignorant to the bigger picture and genuine meaning of a proposal;…

In the “The Awakening” by Kate Chopin, the author centers the novel around Edna Pontellier who goes through a journey of finding freedom in environment with strict gender roles for women in the Victorian era. She proceeds to go on a journey of finding independence in a strict society by breaking the rules that has set up for her. There are several instances throughout the novel where she disobeyed the gender roles for the sake of her own freedom. An instance is when Edna was being defiant…

The Importance of social Class in Wuthering Heights Emily Brontë 's Wuthering Heights takes its reader into the setting of the early nineteenth century in Victorian England. An important aspect of this time period is that it takes place in the onset of the Industrial Revolution. This was a time of great change for England (Kettle). These changes were not limited to newer technology, but also tried to challenge a previous social class structure. For a long time in England, one 's rank in…

story “The Yellow Wallpaper” is a tale of the Gothic tradition. Gilman wrote this story in a somewhat subversive manner, detailing the disturbing and ridiculous nature of medical treatment, specifically the “rest cure” that was popular during the Victorian Era. It could be argued that the narrator is a ghost herself, made that way by the repression of her individuality by her husband and society. The form in which the story is written, the genre in which it belongs to, and the character of the…

Brendon Kenney Dr. Hansen BLS 301 27 April 2015 What does it Matter? In Hard Times, Charles Dickens explores several themes that he believed adversely affected both the individual in particular and society in general in Victorian England. Following what Thomas Carlyle had termed the “Condition of England Question,” Dickens focuses on the physical, mental, and spiritual oppression of the people, both wealthy and poor, as a result of the prevailing philosophy of the era, Utilitarianism.…

The theme of growing up is a big part within Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. One of the ways this is shown is through the loss of self identity and physically growing and shrinking. This is shown whithin chapter two “The Pool of Tears”. Alice is faced with the obstical of being too large from drinking a bottle of liquid, this presents a problem for her as she desperately tries to get into the garden ‘lying down on her side, to look through into the garden with one eye’ (17) This gives the…