Social Calls In The Victorian Era

Elizabethan fashion influenced the modern day fashion world in many aspects. In Elizabethan times, fashion was often used to show status in society, and was very important to women. Fashion today can be compared to the same aspects. Women wear different brands or types of clothing to show status or capital. Although women don’t wear as many layers of dress clothing, women often are

In the book Fever 1793, Laurie Halse Anderson gives readers insight into the social class divisions of late 18th century America and their everyday role in society. In the beginning of the novel, Mattie and her mother discuss the death of Polly, the coffeehouse serving girl, when Mother says, “The girl was a servant, not a friend” (Anderson 16). The quote shows that Mother did not consider Polly to be Mattie’s friend, unlike Mattie, because Polly was a servant and of a different social class than the Cooks. This is similar to American society in the late 1700s, as people were expected to not socialize with people of other social classes and to make friends within their own social class. Anderson’s choice of displaying Mother’s disapproval of Mattie and Polly’s friendship showed that Mother conformed with society’s “rules” and expected her daughter to do the same.

Have you ever wondered what people in the Elizabethan Era wore? Fashion was just as important in those days as it is to some people today. What people were wearing mattered to others, and even the government. During the Elizabethan Era clothing, accessories, and cosmetics were all a part of daily life.

In the southern colonies silk stockings were worn and jewelry was added. Wigs were also worn. (John F. Warner -pg. 42)

The corset was of course associated with high society and was an important signifier of social class. For example in the grand balls that often featured in Victorian novels, a restrictive corset was part of the essential uniform – Becky Sharpe in Vanity Fair for example. It also became associated with the ‘dandy’ aesthetic of the late Nineteenth Century (Oscar Wilde being an example) when it was worn by men.

Depending on their job, wealth, and other factors, clothing people wore may have varied. But it was not uncommon for women to wear dresses(Some more high end than others ) or cotton print shirts and skirts. It was common to see a man in a bit more casual clothes rather than suits almost all around like previous decades.

The young Victoria is a drama film based on the early life and reign of Queen Victoria. In the movie, women wore peculiar dresses akin to the dresses worn of the Victorian Era. They wore corsets, puffy sleeves, and crinolines during the the Victorian era. For example, throughout the movie, Victoria is seen wearing dresses with puffy sleeves and wearing corsets underneath them. Additionally, in the movie, men wore coats, vests, and hats which were considered suitable to wear at the time. Not only that, the movie describes the accomplishments of Queen Victoria during her reign. Thus, this movie connects to the Victorian era because it shows some customs followed during this period and even describes Queen Victoria's contributions.

ln our western culture today, society is not as strict about manners or proper etiquette. This is

This was due to the idea that males and females must always look classy. In aiming for classiness, the designers did not care at all about comfort. The females usually wore extensive, elegant, and detailed, focused gowns in which showed minimum skin. They would layer a stupendous amount of garments to seem publicly acceptable. The males wore tight but sophisticated clothing that included high socks and a blazer like a cardigan so that they always appeared professional and quite spiffy.

People were expected to adapt to society and always practice the use of etiquette. Nineteenth century etiquette was comprised of a carefully structured group of social expectations that were incredibly hard to defy. In fact, no social expectations were easily defied then; those who attempted to combat them were often outcasted from society. People were held to an impossibly high standard, meaning that often more was expected of them than they were able to suffice. Though the idea that someone should always sit up straight, speak politely, and use their manners may seem ridiculous to the majority of those in the 21st century, this idea was one that was promoted extensively at the time. More was expected from individuals engaging in society than mere existence. Entire books were published (American Etiquette and Rules of Politeness) to set examples for how the normal people of society were expected to behave. People of lower classes were not to speak to those of the upper class without permission, and even after permission was granted it was crucial that the sentence spoken by the lower class individual be kept short so as not to waste the time of the “better” individual. A woman was not to be left alone with a man; if she were, her reputation would be tarnished, and the man would likely become subject to mockery. Burping in public was the equivalent to social suicide. As previously stated, these

This excerpt tells shows a clear explanation of class divisions, each person in the household representing a class. The Master/Mistress represents the higher class, The Lady’s Maid represents the middle class, and the Housemaid represents the lower class. Beeton describes the master and mistress as “sensible” and “kind”, and claims how greatly they depend on their servants in various areas of their everyday lives, but how they also provide them with clothing and treating them fairly. She describes the lady’s maid as doing almost everything for the mistress, and includes how they must have good taste, a good sense of fashion, and must be clean. She also explains that the lady’s maid should know when it is appropriate to speak and when it is

At the end of the 18th century there was one of the most significant events in the history of dress. Men gave up their right to all the bright, more elaborate, and more varied forms of clothing. They left all that to the women. Men abandoned their claim to be considered beautiful. They, instead, aimed at being useful in society.

Both Lady Bracknell and Gwendolyn are wearing large dresses with tight waists, hats, and they are carrying umbrellas. The dresses contained ruffles and the hats had feathers in them, which were common traits among Victorian styled clothing. Second, marriage was another significant part of this time period. Women were often married into families of wealth and this event was very important to the

The Victorian Period was a great influence to the authors who composed novels at that time where distinctions between social classes as well as between men and women were strongly marked. During this period, it was precisely a woman who ruled. Alexandrina Victoria who was born on May 24, 1819 became Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from June 20, 1837 until her death on January 22, 1901. Victoria’s reign was one of the longest of a female in history. At only the age of 18, after her uncle William Henry IV died, she began a span of 63 years of reign. In spite of her independence and power, Victoria fell into a deep depression when her husband died in 1861 and ever since she wore black every day for the rest of her

The Victorian period started in 1837 through 1901 under Queen Victoria’s reign. The period got divided into three stages: Early, middle and late Victorians periods. During, the early Victorian era took the throne. Under the middle years, the industrialization of the country began and everything stay steady. On the last few years, a lot of problems rise up with Ireland and the English colonies. In her 63 years of ruling lots of cultural, political and economic changes arise. The country became highly industrialized and expanded its land to some parts of the middle west of the World. However, under the period, many diseases were developed such as typhus and cholera because of the food distribution and hunger. Social changes such as women’s vote and rights were proclaimed. New science and technological theories were promoted such as Darwin’s Evolution Theory and Charles Lyell’s Theory of Uniformitarianism. Other social and economic changes