Society and Politics in Victorian England

Role of Women in Victorian Society

In Victorian society, women had a subordinate role, in fact, families were controlled by husbands, and women had to obey male authority and were expected to be the “angel of the hearth,” taking care of children and husbands. During the Victorian Age, writers and readers shared the same interests and values, and a lot of people were great readers who borrowed books and periodicals from the circle library. The novel became the most popular type of literature and the main source of entertainment. Many novels were published in monthly parts in periodicals; in this way, writers were in close contact with readers.

Social Responsibility of Novelists

Victorian novelists felt they had a social responsibility to readers and reflected the social changes of the time, describing society as they saw it. They knew about the problems of their time, like poor and child working conditions, but their criticism was not very strong compared to European writers. Didacticism was one of the main goals of Victorian novels because novelists saw literature as a vehicle to correct the vices and problems of the age. Novelists used the omniscient narrator to explain the story and show the differences between right and wrong. In the final chapter, all the events were explained and justified. The plot of Victorian novels was long and often had many subplots, and the most common setting was the town, which represented industrial civilization but also the loneliness of modern life. Victorian writers created realistic characters that readers could relate to. They also explored the inner lives of their characters in more depth.

Main Themes in Victorian Novels

The most important themes in Victorian novels were: the contrast between rich and poor, child and women exploitation, and education. There were social and humanitarian novels, written by the famous During this time, British politics was dominated by the Liberals, led by Gladstone, and the Conservatives, led by Disraeli. Between the age of 1868 and 1880, they alternated as Prime Minister, introducing social and political reforms based on free trade and liberalism and overseeing the greatest expansion of the British Imper. Disraeli improved living conditions in growing cities by introducing the Artisans’ and Labourers’ Dwellings Act to provide homes for the poor, the Public Healt to improve sanitation and running water, and the Factory Act to limit working hours per week. Gladstone wanted to improve education and political participation by introducing the Education Act, which created ‘board schools’ for the poor and made elementary education mandatory, the Trade Union Act, which legalized trade unions, the Ballot Act, which introduced the secret ballot, and the Third Reform Act, which extended voting rights to all males.The Victorians believed that racial differences were both physical and intellectual and that some people were destined to be led by others. They saw it as their duty from God to spread their way of life across the world.