The Victorian Age

The official, or textbook, dates of the period correspond to the long reign of Queen Victoria. As we shall see, however, the trends moving England, and indeed all Europe, start somewhat before this time and, finally, come to a, horrid, halt with the First World War (1914). 

Dates / General Character / Effects

1832 - 48/ Developing industrialization/ Social unrest

1848 - 70/ Developed industrialization / Prosperity

1870 - 1901/ Increasing complexity; move toward modernity/ Decay of Victorian values

There are four points to note: steam-power, the Reform Bills, the Corn laws, and the Chartist movement. I will deal with each only briefly.

1. Steam-power

The idea of steam as a source of power is very old; in fact, the first rudimentary steam engines being produced as scientific novelties by the Greek Hero of Alexandria, c. 1st century AD. It was not, however, until the 17th century that the combination of social forces (i.e., advances in technology, on the one hand, and the demands of expanding business, on the other) were adequate to bring about the production of a practical steam engine. To review this entire topic is far beyond the scope of this lecture; I would, however, like to mention the following highlights.

1765 James Watts radically improves the design of the existing steam engine, thus constructing the first practical version. From this date forward the improvements are astonishingly rapid.

1803 Richard Trevithick designs the first crude steam locomotive (see picture at top of page). It is, however, impractical for commercial manufacture.

1811 The American Robert Fulton designs and builds the first practical steam boat, the "New Orleans".

1812 John Blenkinsop completely redesigns Trevithick's locomotive, making it practical.

Thus, by 1812, with steam as the power-source, the essential machinery of Industrialization - production by the engine, transportation of people and goods via train and boat - is in place.

2. The Reform Bills

The Reform Bills of the Victorian Age represent key steps in the slow process toward the modern political structure of Great Britain. As mentioned, most generally, the notable political development of the times is the shift of power from the monarchy, which will gradually move into its present wholly symbolic position,to the parliament. In connection with this, we have the reform of the voting districts and the first extensions of voting rights; in other words, the three Reform Bills.

1832 First, a reorganization of "voting-district-power": a shift of power from the small boroughs, controlled by the small aristocracy and the landed gentry, to the large industrial towns (thus eliminating the "rotten boroughs" and more accurately reflecting population concentrations). Second, extension of the right to vote to all native-born men owning at least 10 pounds worth of property (the "property qualification"). This first Reform Bill was, thus, essentially, of benefit to the industrial capitalists and the middle-class, both of which were rapidly expanding. 

1867 and 1884 Without entering upon the (tedious) details of the situation, these two bills further extend voting rights to Englishmen, respectively, in industrial towns, and then in agricultural areas.

It is not until 1918 that Britain has its first form of "universal suffrage" with the passing of the "Representation of the People" act: all property qualifications are removed and all native-born men over 21 and women over 30 are granted voting privileges.

3. The Corn Laws

A series of legislative acts regulating the import of grain (actually dating back to 1100). During Victorian times the Corn Laws were designed to prohibit grain imports when domestic grain prices reached a certain (unusually high) level, thus cutting off any competition from cheaper foreign sources. The two dates of importance are 1795, when England experienced a very bad harvest, and 1845, the year of the infamous "potato famine" in Ireland.

We thus see three factors, in conjunction, as being responsible for much of the unrest in early Victorian times:

1. The beginning stage of industrialization is one of transition: as the old economic system begins to shrink and the new one come into being there is an inevitable period of unemployment.

2. The poor harvests of 1795 and 1845 put the, already shrinking, old agricultural system under even greater stress.

3. The English government, in what amounts to a stopgap measure, felt forced to prop up the weak domestic agricultural economy with the Corn Laws.

Unemployment + high-priced basic foods = social unrest.

4. The Chartist Movement 1838 - 1850

Was a largely working-class movement aimed at parliamentary reform; named after their 1838 document "The People's Charter". Six points are contained in the Charter.

1. Universal (male) suffrage

2. Vote by ballot (as opposed to some form of representation)

3. Annually elected parliaments

4. Payment of members of parliament (making it a full-time, paid position)

5. Abolition of the "property qualification"

6. Equal electoral districts

The Chartist Movement, through a combination of poor leadership and improving economic conditions, eventually died out; it is, however, important as a clear statement of trends of the times. Between 1860 and 1914, all the above points, with the exception of #3, would be adopted into law.

The dominant form of the Romantic period , at least as far as English is concerned, was, as we saw, poetry; by Victorian times the novel has become central (a position it retains to this day). The topic of the Victorian novel is more suitable for a semester-long course than as a fragment of a lecture; and so, once more, I am forced to produce one of my, by now justly famous, "bare outlines".

I divide my writers, in good Victorian fashion, by gender.

Charles Dickens 1812 - 70

In short, the first master of the modern novel; expands the form and scope of the genre far beyond what it was (in fact, it could almost be argued that the sole non-Dickensian additions are the Modernistic/Joycean innovations). From the date of his first important publication ("Sketches by Boz", 1836) right up to present times Dickens has not only had an immense popularity but also a popularity that basically has cut across all levels of society. It is perhaps this combination of the popular and the profound that is the secret to the enduring appeal of Dickens (the same comment might be applied, though with more emphasis on the profound, to Shakespeare).

As Dickens has so much good work it is rather difficult to pick a "best". I think, however, that it would be generally agreed the a, if not the, classic representation of the Dickensian style is found in "Great Expectations" (1860); whereas the more somber, complex Dickens is at his best is "Bleak House" (1854). Finally, if for no other reason than it is not widely known, I must highly recommend the short story "The Signalman" .

William M. Thackeray 1811 - 63

In output, appeal, and (by his own admission) talent, not equal to Dickens, Thackeray is nonetheless a great writer; his main work being, of course, "Vanity Fair" (1848). In a sense, it is a pity that Thackeray was a contemporary of Dickens in that the inevitable (and numerous) comparisons, most often in favor of Dickens, have resulted in something of an underestimation of Thackeray's stature. Read but several pages of Vanity Fair, however, and the urbanely cynical, wonderfully descriptive quality of Thackeray's writing is immediately apparent.

The Ladies

Mary Shelley 1797 - 1851

Frankenstein (1818), a classic in the gothic novel genre, is Shelley's main work. Written in a form of the epistolary-novel, the book records the (unnatural) creation of a man, the humanistic (i.e., the works of Goethe, Plutarch, and Paradise Lost) education he is given, and his subsequent violent disillusionment. Though now often cited as the source of a certain type of science-fiction writing, Shelley's original concept, evidently, was a dsytopic version of Rousseau's Noble Savage: 1) the essence of the creature, as of humanity, is good, 2) the creature is given an education indicative of what humanity can be, 3) modern society, with science as its helpmate, is, however, fundamentally evil, 4) thus, the creature is driven mad, commits horrid acts of violence, finally destroying itself. The Latin-tag "corruptio optimii pessima" ( the corruption of the best is worst of all) fits this novel's theme.

Charlotte Bronte 1816 - 55

Eldest of the talented Bronte sisters, Charlotte's key work is Jane Eyre (1847). My only comment on this interesting work concerns the description it often receives in literature textbooks: while always, and correctly, noting the active character of the female protagonist (actually a general feature in the work of the Bronte sisters), the basic classification of the novel, which is gothic, is often omitted. What we have, then, is a gothic novel with an active female protagonist - and not the other, or some other, way round.

Emily Bronte 1818 - 48

Acknowledged as the greatest of the Bronte sisters, Emily's Wuthering Heights (1847), and also several of her poems (most notable "Last Lines), are works of a very high order.

When first published, Wuthering Heights, due to its violent and morose nature, was met with general incomprehension (remember, this was Victorian England), and soon the book was ignored. Modern critics, however, have praised the "original handling of Gothic and Romantic elements inherited from lesser works" (Oxford Companion to English Literature), and the depth of the descriptive skill.

Anne Bronte 1820 - 49

Although perhaps least known of the Bronte sisters, her two novels, "Agnes Grey" (1847) and "The Tenant of Wildfell Hall" (1848), are both fine productions.

There are two points I would like to make regarding these novels. First, although both are of the general Romantic style, neither is Gothic; thus, we have a departure from the form used so well by her sisters. Second, these two novels form something of a contrast: the Romanticism of Agnes Grey is of so mild a type that we are almost tempted to call it a novel-of-manners, whereas the violent mood of The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, placed within the context of a tragic love story, make it something of a contradiction (if not to the modern reader, certainly to the Victorian, who promptly ignored this production with that other oddity, Wuthering Heights).

Finally, I would like to mention that Anne Bronte's general writing style, something not much mentioned, certainly deserves praise for its combination of simplicity and vivid description (while Charlotte and Emily are doubtlessly vivid, I do not think , at points, their styles natural). The opening paragraphs from each of the main works may illustrate something of my point.

(Agnes Grey)

ALL true histories contain instruction; though, in some, the treasure may be hard to find, and when found, so trivial in quantity, that the dry, shrivelled kernel scarcely compensates for the trouble of cracking the nut. Whether this be the case with my history or not, I am hardly competent to judge. I sometimes think it might prove useful to some, and entertaining to others; but the world may judge for itself. Shielded by my own obscurity, and by the lapse of years, and a few fictitious names, I do not fear to venture; and will candidly lay before the public what I would not disclose to the most intimate friend.

(Jane Eyre)

THERE was no possibility of taking a walk that day. We had been wandering, indeed, in the leafless shrubbery an hour in the morning; but since dinner (Mrs. Reed, when there was no company, dined early) the cold winter wind had brought with it clouds so sombre, and a rain so penetrating, that further outdoor exercise was now out of the question.

(Wuthering Heights)

I have just returned from a visit to my landlord--the solitary neighbour that I shall be troubled with. This is certainly a beautiful country! In all England, I do not believe that I could have fixed on a situation so completely removed from the stir of society. A perfect misanthropist's heaven: and Mr Heathcliff and I are such a suitable pair to divide the desolation between us. A capital fellow! He little imagined how my heart warmed towards him when I beheld his black eyes withdraw so suspiciously under their brows, as I rode up, and when his fingers sheltered themselves, with a jealous resolution, still farther in his waistcoat, as I announced my name.

Jane Austen 1775 - 1817

If you remember nothing else of the Victorian period, you must remember Dickens and Austen: dear Boz, one might say, was the "universal" literary genius of his times, producing striking portraits of all levels of society ; Miss Austen, however, was the supreme artificer of the particular "period-piece" : the novel-of-manners.

In brief, the novel-of-manners concerns itself with the courting/love relationships, and particularly love-triangles, of upper-class society. On the surface, we have an idealized portrayal of this strata of society; at a deeper level (in the best cases, at least) we find an examination of various moral questions (e.g., regarding loyalty to family and friends, marital fidelity, economic gain versus personal honesty, etc.).

Miss Austen's style might be compared to a delicate patterning of fine brush work, with occasional subtle lines of humorous or ironic tint sparkling here and there. In this, as well as in general theme, she does not see fit to vary: Jane Austen finds no reason to wander beyond the boundaries of her own specially-created universe. As Valdimir Nabokov comments in his "Lectures on Literature" (1980), Jane Austen's works are not "violently vivid masterpieces", as, for example, Flaubert's "Madame Bovary", or Tolstoy's "Anna Karenina" ; her works, rather, are reserved in style and theme, expressing themselves in a quiet, subdued manner.

Many, if not all, critics rate "Mansfield Park" (1814) as her best work.

Elizabeth Gaskell 1810 - 65

Mary Barton (1848) is notable in at least two respects: 1) the entire cast of the novel is working-class; this was an innovation, and 2) we have here a clear example of the type of class-conflict (i.e., workers versus management) that was brewing at that time. Thus, cast and theme, though not what I would call realistic, are certainly moving in that direction.

George Eliot (Mary Ann Evans) 1819 - 1890

With "Mill on the Floss" (1860) and "Middlemarch" (1872) we again have (here largely) working-class casts; the difference now is that the setting is rural (the subtitle of the latter work is, "A Study in Provincial Life"). Thus, as Gaskell in "Mary Barton" gives us her analysis of the changing social conditions of the newly industrialized towns, here Eliot explores the transformations of countryside life.

Literature is long, the semester is short (to paraphrase badly). Thus, I have not the time to say anything of consequence regarding Victorian poetry. The entire period is sometimes called "The Age of Tennyson", and, indeed, Lord Alfred was influential. His main work, in my humble estimation, is "Ulysses"; in fact, I would rate it as fine a production as anything else in all English poetry. Other poets of note are Robert and Elizabeth Browning, and Matthew Arnold.