Science as Savior and Destroyer in The Victorian Age

Science as Savior and Destroyer in The Victorian Age

“The Victorian age was first and foremost an age of transition. The England that

had once been a feudal and agricultural society was transformed into an industrial

democracy” (Mitchell, xiv). Just about every aspect of Victorian daily life, from

education to cooking to religion and politics, was changing. “The Victorian age in English

Literature is known for its earnest obedience to a moralistic and highly structured social code of

conduct; however, in the last decade of the 19th century this order began to be questioned” (It is

my Duty). In celebration of industrial achievements the Great Exhibition of 1851 became a

showplace for the world to witness England’s superiority in modern technology. The exhibit

was “seen by some six million visitors; in some periods the daily attendance was well over

100,000” (Mitchell, 8). The new railway system brought the curious visitors from all over the

country. The next few years would see the construction of the subway system, electric

lights, telegraph and telephone, steamships and electric trams. Along with the increasing

reliance on technology, the medical field would also share their discoveries with the

world. The fear of disease would prompt hygienic standards and germ theories. The

wealthy’s obsession with health beliefs and practices are manifested in their fear of

disease. This obsession with health is taken to the extreme in the form of Dr. John Harvey

Kellogg and his belief in “biological living, which included a meatless diet, a ...

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... is my Pleasure.” 19th Century Victorian Monstrosities. Essay Two. http:www.itech.fgcu.edu/faculty.rtotaro/

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