Characteristics of Victorian Period
Social changes
The economic depressions of the 1830s and 1840s led to unrest and demand for reforms in the political system. The working class Chartist demand equal electoral districts and right to vote. Reforms Bill, beginning in 1832 helped correct the situation. there were outcries against child labour and other industrial problems, and socialism became a political force.
Religious challenges
The Established (Angelican) church was under fire for several sides. The Oxford Movement questioned its theological legitimacy. The higher Critics, a group of scholars who studied the Bible textually, challenge the authority of Scriptures.
Scientific Challenges
Another threat or orthodox religion was scientific inquiry, such as Darwin theory of evolution and geologists' assertion that the earth is milleniums older than the Bible suggests.
The novel
The Victorian's supreme literary achievement is the novel, which was avidly read, with no distinction being made between "popular fiction" and "literature".
Poetry
The most important early Victorian Poets were the close flowers of philosophy and the style of romantic poets. All believed that one of the functions of the poetry was to improve morals of their readers.
Prose
The essays and longer prose works of Victorian such as Carlyle, Newman, Mill and Ruskin had one primary aim: to lead their reader "superior viewpoints" and improve their taste in literature and art.
Drama
Though the Victorian loved drama, their taste for melodrama and sentimentalism kept the dramatists from reaching heights of the poets and prose writers. Only Oscar Wilde's satiric comedies of manners are still frequently performed.
Society's morals
Victorian essayists were primarily concerned with criticism of society's morals, priorities and tastes. Carlyle emphasized the overall decline of his age.
Social changes
The economic depressions of the 1830s and 1840s led to unrest and demand for reforms in the political system. The working class Chartist demand equal electoral districts and right to vote. Reforms Bill, beginning in 1832 helped correct the situation. there were outcries against child labour and other industrial problems, and socialism became a political force.
Religious challenges
The Established (Angelican) church was under fire for several sides. The Oxford Movement questioned its theological legitimacy. The higher Critics, a group of scholars who studied the Bible textually, challenge the authority of Scriptures.
Scientific Challenges
Another threat or orthodox religion was scientific inquiry, such as Darwin theory of evolution and geologists' assertion that the earth is milleniums older than the Bible suggests.
The novel
The Victorian's supreme literary achievement is the novel, which was avidly read, with no distinction being made between "popular fiction" and "literature".
Poetry
The most important early Victorian Poets were the close flowers of philosophy and the style of romantic poets. All believed that one of the functions of the poetry was to improve morals of their readers.
Prose
The essays and longer prose works of Victorian such as Carlyle, Newman, Mill and Ruskin had one primary aim: to lead their reader "superior viewpoints" and improve their taste in literature and art.
Drama
Though the Victorian loved drama, their taste for melodrama and sentimentalism kept the dramatists from reaching heights of the poets and prose writers. Only Oscar Wilde's satiric comedies of manners are still frequently performed.
Society's morals
Victorian essayists were primarily concerned with criticism of society's morals, priorities and tastes. Carlyle emphasized the overall decline of his age.
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