English Literature of the Victorian Period, Diapositivas de Literatura

¡Descarga English Literature of the Victorian Period y más Diapositivas en PDF de Literatura solo en Docsity! THE VICTORIAN PERIOD 1837 - 1901 THE VICTORIAN PERIOD ¡REY O! Victoria had the longest reign in British history. She became queen at the age of 13. She also had a gift for drawing and painting. She maintained a sense of dignity and decorum that restored the average person's high opinion of the monarchy after a series of horrible, ineffective leaders . 1840 -Victoria married a German prince, Albert, who became not king, but Prince —consort. After he died in 1861, she sank into a deep depression. 9 children It was the time exactly comes after the Romantic age THE VICTORIAN PERIOD Characteristics of E At MEET AA] A Revolution The new TON The Revolt THE VICTORIAN PERIOD CHARACTERISTICS SUMMARY MORALITY This shows that slowly the people were losing the free meaning of literature and that is why during this time novel as well as prose was the popular forms. We read the fun and sentiment of Dickens , the social miniatures of Thackeray, or the psychological studies of George Eliot , we find in almost every case a definite purpose to sweep away error and to reveal the underlying truth of human life . Immorality of morality starts during this time . THE REVOLT + During this time the human revolution theory was proved by Darwin o Ñ Cra naw (and mac nat ana nf tha ta rraata faar amimnmnrntha nannla THE VICTORIAN PERIOD CHARACTERISTICS SUMMARY THE NEW EDUCATION The Victorians came up with the idea that all children should go to school . They were the first people to ask whether it was right to allow children to work . INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION + The industrial revolution rapidly gained pace during Victoria's reign because of the power of steam . Victorian engineers developed bigger, faster and more powerful machines that could run whole factories. INTELLECTUAL TIME AND DEVELOPMENT This time of a intellectual development. On the Origin of species of Darwin shook to its foundations scientific thought . Aa a o aso a. rss THE VICTORIAN PERIOD AUR AIN A a INN . Writers of the Victorian period tended to note more explicitty than had writers of previous ages the degree to which theirs was, for good orill, an era of rapid transition and change. + Because the Victorian period lasted so long and because it was a time of such great change, it is hard to characterize in any singular, overarching way. Thus, scholars often refer to three distinct phases within the Victorian period: early (1830-1848); mid (1848-1870); and late (1870-1901). We often also recognize the final decade of the nineteenth century (the 18905) as an important transitional period between the Victorian era and Modernism. THE VICTORIAN PERIOD THE VICTORIAN PERIOD THE EARLY PERIOD (1830-1848): A TIME OF TROUBLES IA A) major non-literary events: first, public railways expanded on an unprecedented scale; and second, the British parliament passed a reform bill in 1832 that (at least to some degree) redistributed voting rights to reflect growing population in newly industrializing centers like Manchester and Liverpool. THE VICTORIAN PERIOD THE EARLY PERIOD (1830-1848): A TIME OF TROUBLES * Working conditions were deplorable for the majority of people, including women and children, who worked in mines and factories. + A group Called the Chartists organized themselves to fight for workers' rights. The organization fell apart by 1848 but their efforts set the stage for real and meaningful reform. THE VICTORIAN PERIOD THE EARLY PERIOD (1830-1848): A TIME OF TROUBLES + One of the most important reforms of the early Victorian period came with the repeal of the Corn Laws in 1846. These laws imposed high tariffts on imported wheat and grains. And while the tariffs meant good profits for England's own agricultural producers, it also meant prohibitively high prices, especially on basic food items like bread, for the vast majority of the population. THE VICTORIAN PERIOD THE EARLY PERIOD (1830-1848): A TIME OF TROUBLES » The literature of this time period often focused on the plight of the poor and the new urban reality of industrial England. Many writers commented on what had emerged as the two Englands: that of the wealthy (by far the minority) and that of the poor (by far the majority). THE VICTORIAN PERIOD ADA A IN E EY) ECONOMIC PROSPERITY, THE GROWTH OF EMPIRE, AND RELIGIOUS CONTROVERSY 3 | + New discoveries in the sciences also led to a new mode of reading the Bible: Higher Criticism approached the Bible not as a divine and infallible text but rather as an historically produced set of documents that reflected the prejudices and limitations of their human writers. ij + Among other scientific works of the time Charles Darwin's The Origin of Species(1859) and The Descent of Man(1871) seemed to challenge all previous thinking about creation and man's special role in the world. As popular readers understood Darwin, man was just one among many creatures who existed as a product of a long evolutionary history. il» The mid-Victorian period would ultimately see often contrary forces—like the | promise of progress yet the emptiness of long-held beliefs—that would come to a head during the final decades of the Victorian era and that would eventually be its a $2 undoing. THE VICTORIAN PERIOD THE LATE PERIOD (1870-1901): DECAY OF VICTORIAN VALUES e For many, the late-Victorian period was merely an extension, at least on the surface, of the affluence of the preceding years. For many others, though, the late-Victorian period became a time to fundamentally question—and challenge—the assumptions and practices that had made such affluence possible. It became a time to hold England to account for the way in which it had generated wealth for so few on the backs of so many, both at home and throughout the empire. Home-rule for Ireland became an increasingly controversial topic of debate. In 1867 a second Reform Bill passed, extending voting rights even further to some working-class citizens. The political writings of authors like Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels empowered the working class to imagine itself in control of the industry that it made possible. THE VICTORIAN PERIOD THE LATE PERIOD (1870-1901): DECAY OF VICTORIAN VALUES (THE NINETIES) F e The final decade of the Victorian period marked a high point, both of English industry and imperial control, and of challenges to that industry and imperialism. + Even while British empire-building continued with great energy in Africa and India, in England many were starting to see the beginning of the end of the era. + Gone was trust in Victorian propriety and morality. Instead, many writers struck a "fin de siécle” (or end-of-century) pose: a weary sophistication with the optimism of forward progress when the limits of that progress seemed all too near in sight. ¡»> With the benefit of hindsight we can see the 1890s as a transitional phase between the optimism and promise of the Victorian period and the Modernist movement, during which artists began to challenge just how genuine that —— GS optimism and promise had been in the first place. THE VICTORIAN PERIOD LITERACY, PUBLICATION, AND READING a As of 1837 roughly half of England's population was literate; that figure continued to grow throughout the Victorian period (due especially to reforms that mandated at least minimal education for everybody). + Because of advances in printing technology, publishers could provide more texts (of various kinds) to more people. + The Victorian period saw enormous growth in periodicals of all kinds. Many famous novelists, like Charles Dickens, for example, published their work | not in book form at first but in serial installments in magazines. THE VICTORIAN PERIOD LITERACY, PUBLICATION, AND READING Fa y 2 The practical reality of publishing in serial form had a direct impact on style, including how plots were paced, organized, and developed. (The experience of reading serialized novels is similar to that of the modern television viewer watching a program that unfolds in a series of hour or half- hour segments.) As literacy proliferated, the reading public became more and more fragmented. Writers thus had to consider how (or if) their writing might appeal to niche audiences rather than to a unified "reading public." THE VICTORIAN PERIOD lar The novel was the dominant form in Victorian literature. Victorian novels seek to represent a large and comprehensive social world, with a variety of classes. Victorian novels are realistic. Major theme is the place of the individual in society, the aspiration of the hero or heroine for love or social position. The protagonist's search for fulfillment is emblematic of the human condition. For the first time, women were major writers: the Brontes. Elizabeth Gaskell, George Eliot. The Victorian novel was a principal form of entertainment. THE VICTORIAN PERIOD "Ta Characteristics of Charles Dickens” novels » The title of novel was extremely important to Dickens. » Dickens's criticized Victorians for considering low class as inadequate. ». Dickens used suspense and mystery. » Dickens used comedy as relief from the serious and unhappy sections of his novel THE VICTORIAN PERIOD William Thackeray was born in Calcutta, India and was also an important writer but one who expressed his age very differently from Dickens and other writers. He is most noted for his satirical work Vanity Fair that portrays the many myriads of English society. + His work is seen almost as a reactionary voice. Characteristics of Thackerays” novels + Thackeray showed the latter is a harsh critique of the material greed of the age and a critique of the contemporary culture of the age. + Thackeray stands in isolation as an outsider to this circle due his skepticism of the changing Victorian society. THE VICTORIAN PERIOD The Bronte Sisters Ernily Charlotte Anne utheria Height nao Ex ro T nant ol Welt Hall ———— ta Charlotte, Emily and Anne Bronte are the most original novelist of this period. The Bronte sisters wrote fiction rather different from that common at the time. Anne, Charlotte and Emily Bronte produced notable works of the period, although these were not immediately appreciated by Victorian critics.. THE VICTORIAN PERIOD THE VICTORIAN NOVEL -— THE BRONTE'S SISTERS The Bronte Sisters Characteristic of the novels of Bronte's siters + They published their work under the male pseudonyms Curer as it was common practice for female that wanted to be taken more seriously. Emily Charlotte Anne + Their novels include some her Henghs ras Expira T nanit ol Wild Hall unconventional themes for this era, such as violence, a deep desire for freedom, feminism and even the supernatural. === THE VICTORIAN PERIOD UA INNATO ACASO George Eliot was really a woman who chose a male pen name for herself. Her stories reflected the reality of life in rural England, depicting the effects urbanization have on small towns, or of the difficulties of local political disputes. CHARACTERISTICS OF ELIOTS” NOVELS She showed her novels of many different characters who lived in the same small town. She showed critical appreciation for its psychological descriptions of the characters and a realistic description of rural life THE VICTORIAN PERIOD Thomas Hardy must be regarded as a key forerunner of the Victorian novelist in literature. + His Tess of the D'Urbervilles is a famous novel, is a simple girl who is preyed upon by an aristocratic menace. He showed here to escape his ideals on the morals and Victorian society. CHARACTERISTICS OF THOMAS HARDYS' NOVELS Hardy used several literary devices and themes to express his ideas stylistically, by foreshadow, symbolism, marriage and different philosopher. " Hardy tragic vision manifested in major novels. Hardv!s conviction that there is a fundamental conflict hetween THE VICTORIAN PERIOD UA INNATO ANO DN NEON AE) + The death of his friend and publisher, Hallam, inspired an outpouring of remarkable poems, including “Ulysses” and the lyrics contained in In Memoriam. + In 1850, Queen Victoria recognized Tennyson's poetic achievements by inviting him to succeed William Wordsworth as poet laureate. + Decades later, he also accepted the rank of baron and, along with it, the title Lord. + Tennyson's poetry reflects many of the Victorians*' concerns, especially their fear that new scientific theories and materialistic values were threatening accepted morality THE VICTORIAN PERIOD THE VICTORIAN NOVEL - ROBERT BROWNING (1812-1889 + Raised the DRAMATIC MONOLOGUE +» Playwright and master of dramatic dialogue poetry wrote “A Death in the Desert”, “My Last Dutchess”, and “A Grammarian's Funeral” + With Robert, one of literature's greatest love affairs. + One of the most prominent poets of the Victorian Era +. Notable Work: How Do | Love Thee? (Sonnet 43) THE VICTORIAN PERIOD eo NN NES Throughout the nineteenth century, drama continued its decline since the Restoration period. Most works of the period lack depth and originality. Two playwrights are exceptions to this trend: Oscar Wild (1856- 1900) and George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950). Oscar Wild's comedies such as The Importance of Being Earnest and Lady Windermere's Fan abound in verbal polish and cynicism. Shaw's plays addressed such social questions as education, marriage, and the class system in a comic vein. His works include Man and Superman, Pygmalion, and St. Joan. THE VICTORIAN PERIOD VICTORIAN DRAMA - GEORGE BERNARD SHAW (1856-1950). He was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1856. In 1876, Shaw, moved to London. With his background in economics and politics, Shaw's socialist viewpoint gave his writing a sense of hope for human improvement. After the turn of the century, Shaw's plays gradually began to achieve production and, eventually, acceptance in England Shaw received the Nobel Prize for literature in 1925. In 1950, Shaw fell off a ladder while trimming a tree on his property outside of London and died a few days later of complications from the injury, at the age of 94. THE VICTORIAN PERIOD THE VICTORIAN NOVEL -— GEORGE BERNARD SHAW (1856-1950). Shaw first worked as an art critic, then music critic, and finally, from 1895 to 1898, as Theatre Critic for the Saturday Review . Founded the Fabian Society, a socialist political organization dedicated to transforming Britain into a socialist state through education. The Fabian society would later be instrumental in founding the London School of Economics and the Labor Party. The outbreak of war in 1914 changed Shaw"'s life. For Shaw, the war represented the bankruptcy of the capitalist system and a tragic waste of young lives, all under the guise of patriotism. He expressed his opinions in a series of newspaper articles which proved to be a disaster for Shaw's public stature: he was treated as an outcast, and there was even talk of his being tried for treason.. THE VICTORIAN PERIOD eo NN NES Throughout the nineteenth century, drama continued its decline since the Restoration period. Most works of the period lack depth and originality. Two playwrights are exceptions to this trend: Oscar Wild (1856- 1900) and George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950). Oscar Wild's comedies such as The Importance of Being Earnest and Lady Windermere's Fan abound in verbal polish and cynicism. Shaw's plays addressed such social questions as education, marriage, and the class system in a comic vein. His works include Man and Superman, Pygmalion, and St. Joan.