Victorian morality

Satire is a humorous way to criticize people’s thoughtless behavior, and it is generally everywhere (1). From literary works to late-night comedy shows, satire is very unavoidable. An exceptional example of satire is The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. Twain is a satirist which means that his works contain numerous uses of satire. Because Twain is a satirist and used many different satirical devices, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a superlative example of a satirical…

Introduction: Pride and Prejudice is a romance novel by Jane Austin, first published in 1813., The story charts the emotional development of the protagonist, Elizabeth Bennet, who learns the error of making hasty judgments and comes to appreciate the difference between the superficial and the essential. The comedy of the writing lies in the depiction of manners, education, marriage, and money in the British Regency. Since its publication, many scholars have done numerous researches on this…

Introduction: Set in the 1890's in New York City, Edith Wharton's novel, The House of Mirth demonstrates the characters', specifically the women's' desire to gain freedom, safety and independence in New York city where "the rich got much richer, and the poor got much poorer". As Wharton herself said "Decidedly, I’m a better landscape gardener than novelist," therefore using the imagery of houses to not only illustrate the themes of freedom, safety and independence, but also to give the reader a…

which helps reveal the what we value. This is showcased in the novel, Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, when the author uses the protagonist, Jane Eyre, to showcase a theme of sacrifice and sometimes lack thereof regarding one’s moral principles in a Victorian society. Throughout the novel, Jane deliberately sacrifices her safety, stability, and emotional gratification, which highlights her character’s values and inner beliefs as she grows from a young child to a mature adult. Jane’s experiences in…

Since its inception in the late eighteenth century, the Gothic movement has been fascinated with female bodies. This is especially true of Gothic poems of the Victorian Era, such as Robert Browning’s dramatic monologue Porphyria’s Lover (first published as Porphyria, 1836) and Christina Rossetti’s disturbing children’s fable Goblin Market (composed 1859, published 1862). Each poem demonstrates that, due to societal attitudes, a woman’s body has the potential to be dangerous to her, while also…

The essay will begin looking at the medieval period to start and how childhood did not exist during this era including the gender barriers used and how childhood then progressed into the Victorian era where historians and scholars believed this was where childhood had started, then looking into how childhood is seen in today’s societies. The concept of childhood in relation to medieval society shows us that “child” is a word that was used in common speech such as today’s generation using the…

In Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest, Wilde uses satire to ridicule the strict expectations of marriage and the Victorian aristocracy. He breaks from what is socially acceptable by creating extravagant situations and including eccentric characters. With its outlandish scenarios, “Wilde now uses, as plot, a purely farcical intrigue” (135 Roditi). The play involves changing of identity, misunderstanding lovers, and unexpected surprises. Each act leads to the events of the next act…

Robert Browning and Christina Rossetti illustrate women’s oppression by men in Victorian society within their poems, “My Last Duchess” and “Goblin Market.” The Duchess, Laura, and Lizzie all act against the expectations set for them with varying ramifications. The poets use different narrative perspectives and careful word choice in order to depict the subjugation of these women, their rebellion against it, and the punishment they face for rebelling, calling public attention to the mistreatment…

mode could also be seen as a written dialogue between two characters. In particular, it can be detailed further that the mode is that of a Victorian novel. This can be seen by the social cues in the dialogue. For example, the formality of the way the characters addresses each other as “Miss Eyre” and “Mr Rochester”, this was an essential part of polite Victorian society. Furthermore there is the over flourish of words in the discourse which was common during this period. For example, when Mr…

In “The True and Real Thing”, Susan Ostrov Weisser, an English professor at Adelphi University, compares modern- and Victorian-era definitions of love focusing especially on the expectation and perspective of women’s love. Most people assume that through feminist movements, 21st century women are treated with more respect as equals and do not need to prove themselves compared to the 1940s and 1950s. Weisser critiques this idea by stating that even though women’s identity is not entirely framed…