The Victorian Age: 1830 to 1901 11

• The Victorian Age spanned from 1830 to 1901.

Historical Overview

• The British Empire was a global power, marked by colonial expansion, worldwide trade, and wars.
• The Early Victorian period (1830-1848) was characterized by troubles and uncertainty.
• The Mid-Victorian era (1848-1870) saw prosperity and optimism due to inventions and political reforms.
• The Late Victorian period (1870-1901) experienced decay and melancholy.
• Queen Victoria’s death in 1901 led to a sense of loss, paving the way for modernism.

Victorian Society

• The economy shifted from rural to urban due to industrialization and scientific advancements.
• Significant social problems arose, including child labor and poverty.
• Class struggles and reforms, such as voting rights, education, and feminism, were prominent.
• There was a stark contrast between progress and poverty, creating "Two Nations" of rich and poor.
• Unions and riots, along with movements like the Chartists and Suffragettes, aimed for reforms.
• Key values included earnestness, moral responsibility, and domesticity, but double moral standards existed.
• Alienation, influenced by Marxism, and a loss of faith were notable societal issues.

Victorian Literature

• Literacy became nearly universal by 1901.
• Books became more prevalent but remained expensive, leading to the rise of libraries and magazine serialization.
• Periodicals, newspapers, and reviews grew, fostering literary criticism and short fiction through serialization.
• The novel was the primary Victorian genre, often published as "three-deckers" meant to both delight and instruct.
• Poetry and theatre maintained popularity.
• Non-fiction writing was also common.

The Realist Novel

• The Realist novel dominated the late 19th century, often serialized.
• Realist novels aimed to depict a broad, contemporary social world with diverse classes, settings, characters, and plotlines.
• They explored the relationship between the individual and society, opportunity, and class mobility.
• Realism sought the illusion of objectivity but was shaped by the writer, making it diverse and instructive.

Alfred Tennyson – "The Charge of the Light Brigade" (1854)

• Tennyson was criticized by contemporaries and held ambivalent views on progress, while serving as poet laureate.
• "The Charge of the Light Brigade" was written as newspaper verse in response to an article.
• The poem’s rhythm imitates the sound of horses’ hooves, using dactyls and trochees to create a "falling" rhythm.
• The poem portrays soldiers as heroes, emphasizing honor and nobility.
• Repetition, including the repeated word "forward," is a key element.

Henry James – "Daisy Miller: A Study" (1878)

• James's "The Art of Fiction" emphasized "show not tell."

• James moved from New York to England.

• James wrote in a style of psychological realism

• "Daisy Miller: A Study" explores the relationships between Daisy, Winterbourne, and Giovanelli

• Daisy seeks attention.

• Winterbourne may want marriage, sex, or attention from Daisy.

Key Aspects of Daisy Miller: A Study

• A limited point of view is key, using narrative perspective, focalization, and point of view.
• The narrator can enter Winterbourne’s mind but withholds crucial information about him.
• Winterbourne is the focalizer, with the story told in third person through his eyes.
• The story highlights a clash of values between Europe and the USA, old and young, and Victorian and modern ideals.
• Mrs. Costello and Mrs. Walker represent old values.
• Winterbourne is conflicted and represents the in-between.
• Daisy Miller and Mr. Giovanelli represent new values.
• The novel explores the concept of the ‘New (American) Woman,’ touching on feminism, sexism, and double standards.
• Although Daisy is portrayed unflatteringly, she defies male dominance.
• The question of epistemology arises: What do we truly know about Daisy and Winterbourne?

Characteristics of (Late) Realism

• Late Realism creates an illusion of reality with limited narrative perspective, leaving Daisy’s thoughts unknown.
• It has an ethical dimension, contrasting old and new values, with a serious tone that differs from Oscar Wilde’s comedic irony.
• Late Realism is instructive dimension, aiming to teach certain values.
• There is a blend of theatricality/melodrama and scientific method, as seen in the "A study" subtitle.
• Experiments with storytelling and form are present, showing early modern complexity and ambiguity.

Oscar Wilde – "The Importance of Being Earnest"

• This play reflects the late Victorian era, marked by decay and melancholy.
• Wilde pushed boundaries regarding what could be said and done, living as a married man with children while being openly gay.
• Wilde was an adherent to Aestheticism and decadence

Aestheticism

• Aestheticism states that the artist is the creator of beautiful things.

• Aestheticism states that there is no such ting as a moral or immoral book

• Aestheticism states that no artist has ethical symapthies

• Aestheticism states that all art is quite useless

• "The Importance of Being Earnest" first staged in 1895

• Productions ceased when Wilde was imprisoned.

• The play can be considered a farce or literary comedy, exemplifying art for art’s sake.

Farce

• Farce is designed to provoke laughter through the antics of stock characters

• Farce is social satire: comedy to address social ills

• Situational irony: e.g. Lane: ‘I didn’t think it polite to listen, sir’

• Irony of reversal: e.g. Algernon: ‘Divorces are made in Heaven’

• Undercutting comparisons: e.g. Algernon: : ‘And, speaking of the science of Life, have you got the cucumber sandwiches cut for Lady Bracknell?’

• Overstatement: Jack: ‘Do you mean to say you have had my cigarette case all this time? I wish to goodness you had let me know. I have been writing frantic letters to Scotland Yard about it. I was very nearly offering a large reward.’

• Dramatic irony: Cecily: ‘You, I see from your card, are Uncle Jack’s brother, my cousin Ernest, my wicked cousin Ernest.’

• Incongruity between literal and figurative: Jack: ‘I have lost both my parents.’

• Reversal of meaning: Algernon: ‘I am afraid Aunt Augusta won’t quite approve of you being here. My dear fellow, the way you flirt with Gwendolen is perfectly disgraceful. It is almost as bad as the way Gwendolen flirts with you.’

• Act 3 contains a plot typical of melodrama, which was popular in theatre at the time.

• A melodrama often contained a poor orphan child who would be reclaimed as heir to great fortune

• Wildean epigram: Outrageous statement followed by an even more outrageous explanation that is also true.

• The play exposes and criticizes the decadence and hypocrisy of the high class, but it also thrives on hypocrisy and celebrates it.