In What Way Is Sherlock Holmes The Embodiment Of Victorian Ideas Of Progress? “I had no keener pleasure than following Holmes in his professional investigations, and in admiring the rapid deductions, as swift as intuitions, and yet always founded on a logical basis, with which he unravelled the problems which were submitted to him.” The Victorians valued ‘professional’ scientists that were able to make ‘rapid deductions’ to solve mysteries and to research new medical cures. The Victorian
Profound Duplicity Exhibited by Jekyll as a Reflection of the Victorian Way of Life Robert Louis Stevenson was a famous author during the Victorian era. He was born in 1850 and as a young child had many nightmares which he brought to life in his books. His nanny also influenced his stories with her strong Calvinist beliefs . He wrote many well known stories including a horror novella called 'The strange case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.' Simplistically, this fictional story shows how two
Timeless Message of Equality in Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest satirizes Victorian society. The witty epigrams of his characters provide light comedy masking the underlying theme of criticism of the Victorian way of life. Wilde's effective use of humour diffuses the tense theme of his work. In a Victorian society that emphasized progress, it was precarious for artists like Oscar Wilde to express an imperfect interpretation of life in nineteenth-century
October 16, 1854, in the mid era of the Victorian period—which was when Queen Victoria ruled. Queen Victoria reigned from 1837 to 1901.While she ruined Britain, the nation rise than never before, and no one thought that she was capable of doing that. “The Victorian era was both good and bad due to the rise and fall of the empires and many pointless wars were fought. During that time, culture and technology improved greatly” (Anne Shepherd, “Overview of the Victorian Era”). During this time period of English
Victorian England, as depicted in Bram Stoker’s Dracula was a much different time then the world that we live in today, this much should be obvious. The biggest difference, perhaps, is the one that is seen through the gender roles expressed in the novel. In Victorian England women were expected to maintain their chastity, at least until marriage or they would be shunned from society, or looked down upon. Once married they had “womanly duties” that were expected of them, duties that depended on them
Yinka Shonibare’s five-part image narration Diary of a Victorian Dandy exhibited in the London Underground invites public transit users to partake in the daily lifestyle of a black Victorian dandy. The irony inherent in the presence of a black dandy as the work’s centerpiece dismisses the functionality of British restrictions set in the Victorian Era by delving into the notions of race and social class. Specifically, by emphasizing the black dandy’s superiority over his white counterparts and introducing
Victorian Era Research Paper Monet Lambert In every society and community, everyone had a role to play which made their life work and made the economy go around. Although these roles were not pre-set, a person’s life can influence where in the community they fit. This is also true from criminals. Criminals weren’t just born to break the law, no one would chose to lead a life of a criminal, but instead, most were pushed to a certain point to take steps against the law. A life as a criminal
2014 Biography Robert Browning was born on May 7th, 1812 in Camberwell, London, England. He is the son of Robert and Sara Anna Wiedmen Browning. Despite growing up in a middle class family he is considered to be one of the major two poets of the Victorian era. He attended boarding school from the age of eight until he was sixteen. He then enrolled at the University of London in 1828. However he withdrew from the university after a few months because he believed he did not belong there. As a result
Prostitution in the Victorian Era There were many prostitutes during the Victorian era. Most were lower-class women, with the exception of the mistresses kept by upper-class men. According to Victorian standards, respectable women did not consider sexual intercourse pleasurable. It was their duty to be intimate with their husbands. Having affairs was disgraceful (Waters). Prostitutes, on the other hand, were sexually intimate with men because they enjoyed sex. Men enjoyed prostitutes because
The Victorian Period (1833-1901) brought about the expansion of Britain’s booming economy. In Britain, around the beginning of the Victorian Period, the consequence of industrialism brought much unrest across the land. The factories were notorious for their horrible working conditions, and the common workers’ housing was atrocious. Victorians were struggling with religious, philosophical, and social ramifications (854-856). The complex background to what was happening in Britain at the time led
Robert Louis Stevenson’s ‘The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’ affirms that texts are a reflection of their contexts. Stevenson displays the implicit values of Victorian society through the characters, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. Stevenson, inspired by the double life Deacon Brodie led – a Scottish cabinet-maker and Edinburgh city councillor – addresses the elements of good and evil in every person’s nature. Jekyll, like his prototype, is enamoured by the separation of these elements into two different
Domestic Violence in Victorian England “Wife beating” was a prominent occurrence in Victorian times. It is socially acceptable and may be seen as a characteristic of the lower classes, but “wife beating” is prevalent in all classes. In William Montagu’s social investigation Round London: Down East and Up West, he tells of women in the hospital: “Sometimes as many as twelve or fourteen women may be seen seated in the receiving-room, waiting for their bruised and bleeding faces and bodies to be
However, by knowing the historical background of when Bronte developed her novel, readers are able to understand Jane Eyre on a deeper level. The Victorian era was a time of change, and what authors like Charlotte Bronte did was help increase the change by shedding light into problems in Victorian society. Jane Eyre touches on many of the issues in Victorian society like feminist issues, class struggles, and the relationship between Britain and its colonies. Not only can readers see how much society
Society in The Speckled Band by Conan Doyle I feel that 'The Speckled Band' reflects much about Victorian society. The Victorians had a real sense of work and duty in their lives. This is shown in the attitude of Sherlock Holmes and his friend Watson. In their devotion to their task of solving this crime Watson says about Holmes "He did rather for the love of his art than for the acquirement of wealth." Sherlock Holmes underlines his sense of duty to his profession and intellectual
In the play, Wilde uses Algernon’s relationship with food to criticize the repression of desires during the Victorian era. Food also played a large role in Victorian society as a symbol of status and repression of urges. Upper-class Victorians were careful not to eat too much to show their self-restraint (“Victorian”). Similarly, eating plays a large role in the book and could symbolize “appetites and emotions that it is not respectable or polite to air openly” (Laws). Algernon’s chief vice appears
The Importance of Being Earnest, uses comedy and farce to display a light hearted approach to the hugely powerful upper class of Victorian society and add a playful edge to their actions. Although it could also be seen as a comedic shell for the true nature of Wilde’s comment upon the society in which it is set, exposing the flaws and inconsistencies that the upper class was built upon. It will be necessary to consider whether Wilde is purposely commenting on the dysfunction of the society in which
lighter looks. According to The Victorian Web online site, "Satinwood was in vogue and a light finish for mahogany was fashionable." Yet with the invention of the coiled spring in 1828 by Samuel Pratt of London, "easy chairs and settees began to put on weight" (Victorian Web). The new cushioned furniture of the 1830's foreshadows the over-the-top richness of the middle part of the century's design. Soon, the rich, dark colors and fabrics now characteristic of the Victorian era became popular. The middle
Victorian Elements in “Porphyria’s Lover” The Victorian period was in 1830-1901, this period was named after Queen Victoria; England’s longest reigning monarch. Britain was the most powerful nation in the world. This period was known for a rather stern morality. A huge changed happened in England; factories were polluting the air, cities were bursting at the seams, feminism was shaking up society, and Darwin’s theory of evolution was assaulting long established religious beliefs. The Victorians were
Victorian Gothic Literature: Scientific vs. Medieval Thinking Creatures of the night have always held a fascination and horror for people in all cultures. The English fascination with sensational and gothic literature came to a peak, after slacking slightly following the Romantic period, in the late Victorian period with such works as Dracula, The Strange Adventures of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and The Picture of Dorian Gray. The literate populace avidly devoured this type of literature. While
women during the Victorian Era. In the excerpt “Cassandra” by Florence Nightingale, Nightingale directs the passage toward the tragic condition in which women lived in the nineteenth century. In the excerpt, the character “Cassandra” is compared to those women of Ancient Greek. In comparing the ancient Greek prophet in which was forbidden to say what she wished to an audience of disbelief, just as Cassandra struggled to be heard during the Victorian Era. (Shaddock) The Victorian period in England