Essay on Victorian Era Ideologies

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.

The Victorian Era is a remarkable time in history with the blooming industries, growing population, and a major turnaround in the fashion world. This era was named after Queen Victoria who ruled United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from June 1837 until she passed away 64 years later in January 1901.When Victoria received the crown, popular respect was strikingly low. The lack of respect for the position she had just come into did not diminish her confidence. Instead she won the hearts of Britain with her modesty, grace, straightforwardness, and her want to be informed on the political matters at hand even though she had no input. She changed Britain into a flourishing country. She also impacted how women interacted

The roles of Mr. and Mrs. Bennet in Jane Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice are contrasted between a father who cares about what’s inside of people and a mother who only worries about vanity and appearance. Mr. and Mrs. Bennet’s parental guidance is unique to their personalities. Because of their two opposing personas, Mr. and Mrs. Bennet’s ideas of marriage are contradictory for their daughters; Mr. Bennet believes in a loving respectful marriage whereas Mrs. Bennet values a marriage which concerns wealth and social status. Their aspirations for Lydia, Jane, Mary, Kitty and Elizabeth mirror their conflicting ideologies. Mr. Bennet seems to have a quiet deep love

In the novel Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen there are many dynamic relationships between the characters . Perhaps the most interesting relationship, however, is the one between Elizabeth Bennet and her father, Mr. Bennet. Elizabeth, because of her strong relationship with her father grows up to be a woman who is decisive in her actions. In the breakfast scene immediately after Mrs. Bennet convinces her eldest, Jane, to go the Bingley's, it is found out that Jane does indeed become stuck there, but at the cost of a horrible cold and Lizzy announces her decision to walk to the estate to tend to her.(Austen. 17) The discourse in the setting is very revealing of Lizzy's head strong personality. Also, it shows a good example of the relationship between Lizzy and her father.

The Victorian era refers to the time period in which Queen Victoria reigned in England. It is often known for having strict rules stating what is proper and what is off color. “The term Victorian morality is often used to describe the values of the period, which includes sexual proprietary, hard work, honesty, thrift, sense of duty and responsibility towards the less well off” (“Victorian Era Morality”). This standard worked well for the

The novel Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen depicts the endeavours of two sisters finding lovers in the late 18th century. Austen’s novel takes place during the turning of the 19th century in Regency England, an age in which societal status is of the utmost importance and each individual is ranked based on their family name, wealth, and education. This common ideal of the time period is detrimental to the livelihood of the sisters and the probability of them marrying the men that they truly love. The novel portrays this common prejudice among the social classes, specifically when Mrs Bennet insists that her daughter marry a man in order to keep their estate, Mr. Darcy’s initial dismissal of Elizabeth due to her class, and Miss Bingley's manipulation of her brother in order to maintain their families’ immaculate reputation.

The families of Elizabeth and Charlotte play a very important part in their lives, and in the prospect of their future companions. Elizabeth’s family are more prone to exposing themselves and being ridiculous , and it is partly down to her family that Mr. Darcy is so adamant on Mr. Bingley not marrying her sister Jane. However, unlike her family, Elizabeth is socially graceful, sensitive and conscious of her appearance in the eyes of others. This leads to her acute awareness of the social failing of some members of her family, particularly her mother and youngest sister.

The Victorian Era is marked by Queen Victoria’s reign in England from 1837-1901 (Eras of Elegance). It is known for its attention to high morals, modesty, and proper decorum, which was inspired by the Queen and her husband, Prince Albert. Importance was placed on civic consciousness and social responsibility, including equality towards all. Science, technology and Christianity thrived. Humanitarian and religious organizations, such as the Salvation Army, reflected the Victorian concern for the poor and needy. The Church was wealthy and powerful. Only the rich could afford education, so most were left uneducated, unable to think critically. The people believed the word of the Bible and that was all that mattered. However,

As the novel ends, Jane Austen contradicts the class dilemma by allowing Darcy to marry Elizabeth and Bingley to marry Jane. If one is rich, then they can marry whom they love, but if one is poor, it is up to chance. Georgiana, Charlotte, and the Bennet sisters are all given different circumstances in social class, gender, and birthright, but find ways to manage. By letting Darcy and Elizabeth marry despite their differences, Austen advocates that true love is a power that even society cannot influence.

The main character is a young middle-class woman of marriageable age (20 turning 21) called Elizabeth (Lizzy), who is one of five daughters, all of whom are brought up to believe that “a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife”.  The second half of this opening sentence of the novel reveals that the “universal truth” that it proclaims is nothing more than a social assumption.  When claiming that a single man "must be in want of a wife", Jane Austen reveals that the reverse in also true; a single woman may be in desperate want of a husband.  However, being the second daughter in the family, Lizzy is unable to marry in a “respectable” way until her elder sister, Jane, has already done so.  She is repelled by the attention of the pompous minister, Mr. Collins; by contrast, she attracted to the youthful, but dangerous, cavalry officer Mr. Wickham.  Although mostly a peripheral character to begin with, Mr. Darcy is the best friend of the rich young man, Mr. Bingley, who Jane falls in love with.  When their relationship fails to develop as hoped, Darcy is blamed by Lizzy for turning Bingley against her sister.  Despite his reservations, which she interprets as arrogance, Darcy is attracted to Lizzy, but she cannot see him as anyone other than “the man who has been the means of ruining, perhaps forever, the happiness of a most beloved sister.”  Shocked by her refusal of his offer of

Jane’s and Bingley’s relationship also depicts the idiom “the course of true love never did run smooth.” Jane Bennet and Charles Bingley meet and fall in love at a dance in Meryton. Their mutual attraction is evident to everyone, especially Mr. Darcy and Mr. Bingley’s sisters who disapprove of Jane’s social disadvantage. Jane and Mr. Bingley are considered the potential couple that will eventually marry. Elizabeth is happy and wants her sister to be happily married; therefore, she is happy at the thought of a marriage between Bingley and Jane. In the eyes of Elizabeth, this is would be the marriage of true affection. However, as the idiom indicates, one of the obstacles that makes the road to love for Jane and Bingley not smooth is the interference by his family. Bingley’s sisters try to convince Bingley not to marry Jane. If he is to marry, he should marry for money, connections, and pride (Schaefer 17). These are the same sentiments voiced by Darcy who is also concerned with social status. When Elizabeth joins Jane to keep her company at Netherfield, the Bingley sisters deride them for their country girls’ customs, lifestyle, and relations. Darcy optimistically indicates that these relations, “must very materially lessen their chance of marrying men of any consideration in the world” (Austen 37). The Bingley sisters try everything to prevent the relationship as they also interfere with the relationship

The importance of social class is introduced in Volume the First of Pride and Prejudice through the treatment and expectations of Elizabeth. Mrs.Bennet is the first character to express the importance of social class when she talks about the marriage of her daughters. While talking to Mr.Bennet she refers to Mr.Bingley as “a fine thing for our girls” because of his wealth (Austen 6). Mrs.Bennet’s obsession with marrying her daughters to someone of wealth shows her obsession with social class and social climbing. It also shows the importance of finding good husbands for her daughters..At the assembly, Mr.Darcy’s prejudices towards the lower classes are exposed through what he says about Elizabeth. He does not view Elizabeth as good enough for him and calls her “tolerable, but not handsome enough” (13). Elizabeth’s annoyance with Mr.Darcy is caused by her

Marriage is an issue in society; however, the characters do not care about their social class and they struggle to find their true love. For instance, throughout the novel, Elizabeth and Mr. Bingley displace their ideals and class in order to be together. Last but not least, some particular places in Pride and Prejudice express a displacement of character’s moral as well. Pemberley, which is a geographic symbol of the novel, makes Elizabeth see Mr. Darcy’s true character through his home. Elizabeth learns that Mr. Darcy is a kind master to his servants and is solicitous for the well-being of his little sister. He keeps his estate well-maintained and is obviously a dutiful and responsible guardian of his familial property. It is undeniable that her displacement from Longbourn to Pemberley marks not only a rise in her social position, but an advance in her moral growth as

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,

Victorianism is the cultural influence orchestrated by the reign of Queen Victoria from the year 1837 to the year 1901. The dominant notions of these times were moralizing, prudish, repressed and old fashion, as opposed to traditional. The above elements of culture traversed across the English society to other parts of America, influencing how people dressed and celebrated. The central ideas of Victorianism emerged during the period of early Victorianism. Significant developments during this period included science, economics, and social lifestyle. In terms of politics, there was the introduction of democracy and parliamentary system of governance. This was also the time that the Anglicanism, through the Church of England stroke a balance with other Catholic communities. The dominant social values during the period of Victorianism were patriarchal families and well-defined roles of mothers and fathers.