Realism In The Victorian Era

The world today consists of children roaming the streets, technology taking over the world, and being able to work wherever you'd like but, could you imagine a life without all these things? Believe it or not there was a time in life where these things were very uncommon to see. This would be known as the victorian era. This time period was between 1837 and 1901. Daily life was very different from now. Health, social classes, and fashion are just three examples of how daily life was different in the victorian era.

Life of the higher class and the lower class greatly contrasts in England during the Victorian era (the 1800s). Charles Dickens, a famous writer living in that time, wrote about the theme of social injustices in his profound writings. In his infamous short story called A Christmas Carol, Dickens illustrated the meaning of a true Christmas spirit. Two of the minor but most important characters are ignorance and want. In relation to the story, ignorance and want symbolize the causes of many social conflicts and the effects that lead to abundant poverty and needs in the world.

In 1837, the start of the Victorian era, Britain began experiencing massive changes in the culture of the nation and in the industrial sector. Cultural works began to move away from rationalism, and became more romanticized and more influenced by mysticism. Privacy became a hallmark of British life as well; the outer walls of citizens’ homes were transformed into a façade by which innumerable mysteries resided behind. This romanticized idea of mystery that seemed to lurk behind the doors of the common, everyday man became a prevalent theme in the works of many writers and artists throughout the time period. Robert Louis Stevenson uses this theme of not knowing the true nature of an individual, as well as the idea of duality, to develop his theme that an evil side lies within every man and that balancing both sides is vital to preservation of ones sanity.

In this essay, I will argue that one of the underlying motives in Charles Dickens' novel A Tale of Two Cities (1859) is the reinforcement of Christian values in 18th century Victorian England. Dickens was very concerned with the accepted social norms of industrialized England, many of which he felt were very inhumane. Christian values were challenged, largely due to the recent publication of Darwin's Origins of a Species, and philosophy along with literature was greatly affected. In 1859, the industrial age was booming, making many entrepreneurs rich. However, the majority of the lower economic class remained impoverished, working in unsafe and horrific environments as underpaid

While there were many advancements in technology and literature in the Victorian Era, there were also many disadvantages; these included child labor, class disparities, and atrocious living conditions. There were incredible novels, artwork, and machinery created during the Victorian Era. However, the people were treated horribly. Children were put to work, and severely abused while they were there. The poor were seen as dirt on the bottom of the upper class’s shoes, and were rarely allowed to advance in society. Citizens lived in squalor, and many became ill because of it. Victorian society will always have a negative connotation because of how the people were treated during that time. Dickens is a major proponent of that connotation. He wrote

The novel’s opening words (Book 1, Chapter 1) “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity. . .” Provided, Dickens conveys the relationship between poverty and aristocracy through the use of parallelism, paradox, and other poetic techniques. In addition to, Dickens's technique functions not only to draw opposites, but to reveal hidden parallels.

Charles Dickens was not only a powerful writer but a voice for the woman, children, and some social classes in his time. But was Charles Dickens writing was enough for the Victorian England public? in this essay, i will give you details and facts about how Charles Dickens attempts to change and help the people of Victorian England through his writing.

1.) England's Victorian era occurred during 1837 through 1901.” the Victorian age was characterized by rapid change and developments in nearly every area, from advances in medical, scientific and technological knowledge to changes in population growth and location. over time, this rapid transformation deeply affected the country’s mood, an age that began with confidence and optimism. the Victorian era was in age of paradox and power. social class was most important during that time.there was the working class with men and women performing labor. the middle class where men worked to clean, and the upper class where money and land was inherited.”

The Victorian Era brought momentous change in industry, in society, in almost every facet of life for the people under the dominion of Great Britain. The Victorians seem to be on a mission to find their selves and make sense of their brave New World. They were living in a time of great transition, "we are of the time of chivalry... we are of the age of steam" (Thackeray, quoted in Henderson and Sharpe, p 1049). This is the world of John Stuart Mill, a man with many ideas considered both a genius and radical in his time; that would be more comfortable in the late 20th century.

What is one of the most important eras of modern civilization? A few different ones may come to mind, but the Victorian era was culturally vital for the modern era. One of its great achievements was an author named Oscar Wilde. One of his greatest works was The Importance of being Earnest, which is still considered one of the greatest works of our time. Queen Victoria also made a huge impact even getting an era named after her. She is the second longest reigning queen, and under her reign, Great Britain prospered.

The Victorian era was between 1837 till 1901. It was a time of the industrial revolution, new inventions and where the country earned the name Great Britain. But with all of these positive events there were many downfalls such as the increase of poverty and disease. Many authors saw this as an opportunity to show the reality of Great Britain , for example Charles Dickens wrote many novels. He talked about differences in classes and that even with all the money in the world your wealth has little to no value if you are not happy and healthy whereas the poor have to work harder and earn their money for family with meagre financial rewards for the work they do. But all of this aside what were the conditions like in Victorian England?

great prosperity in Great Britain's literature. The Victorian Age produced a variety of changes. Political and social reform produced a variety of reading among all classes. The lower-class became more self-conscious, the middle class more powerful and the rich became more vulnerable. The novels of Charles Dickens, the poems of Alfred,

However, the sun can only protect us for so long but as the sun sets,

The Victorian Style is known for being “more.” Composed of various styles before its time including past styles of Europe and Asia, it demonstrated eclecticism which is a mixture of different styles, it incorporated historical influences, and traits and characteristics from foreign countries. Its name roots from Queen Victoria’s name who was in power at the time from 1819 until 1901. This style was influenced by all of the changes happening in the world around it. Simultaneously, as the style emerged so did the Industrial Revolution which was a transition from producing in the home to producing in factories and in larger amounts. It caused both social and economic changes in all of Great Britain because it promoted a faster lifestyle. The influences that people received from the Industrial Revolution directly affected how they wanted to express themselves and how they wanted to be seen which ultimately brought about the Victorian Style and the idea that the more a person had the higher they sat on the social ladder.

The literature of the Victorian period is the synonymy of oppositions. Some of the oppositions introduced by this period are to be considered “vital” as they deal with the major human values. The list of the works known to be the best representations of the Victorian world outlook is very long; nevertheless some works are to be highlighted. Opposition is the core of Stevenson’s “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”. Its outstanding resolution and the struggle of two forces has become the embodiment of duality. Another works to mention is Mrs. Gaskell’s “North and South”. Being based on