Concetti Chiave
- The Victorian family was patriarchal, emphasizing good manners, social improvement, and respectability, with distinct roles for men and women.
- Education became a cornerstone, with the 1870 Education Act providing primary education nationwide, significantly impacting cultural development.
- As literacy spread, there was a surge in demand for books, with novels becoming a popular entertainment form for the middle class.
- Women’s roles evolved as they gained access to education and new professional opportunities by the end of the century.
- The Victorian Era is divided into two phases: an optimistic period up to the 1870s, followed by a more complex and diverse late-century phase.
What was the Victorian Family like?
The family was ruled by the father and became the focus of Victorian middle class society and the value of the period: good manners, social and economic improvement, a sense of duty and respectability towards society.
The upper and middle classes sent male children to expansive schools and to college to become the future ruling class.
Upper and middle-class girls were guarded by their parents till marriage and were educated at home by a governess. They read novels and learn singing and playing the piano as they role in life was to marry, have children and become the figured described in The Angel in the House (Patmore).
Impact of Literacy
The spread of literacy had a strong impact on the cultural development of the age and culminated in the Education Act (1870) which provided primary education all over the country.
By the end of the century women’s position changed: there were school and colleges for women and they had new right to enter professions.
The spread of education caused a request of books. Some families had their own libraries and every member of the family read novels, included the servants. So novels became a favourite form of entertainment for the middle class.
The literacy caused the spread of newspapers, magazines and reviews. They were a form of entertainment and moral teaching for political, social, literary and philosophical.
Fictions were published as shot stories or serialised novels.
Division of the Victorian Era
Victorian Age can be divided into two periods:
1. Up to the 1870s: faith in progress and an optimistic outlook on life;
2. Last decades of the century: Some intellectuals still think that it's not possible to understand the very values of the Victorian Age because of the many differences it had.
Domande da interrogazione
- How did the Victorian family structure reflect the values of the era?
- What role did literacy play in the cultural development of the Victorian era?
The Victorian family was patriarchal, with the father as the head, embodying the era's values of good manners, social and economic improvement, duty, and respectability. Boys were educated to join the ruling class, while girls were prepared for marriage and domestic roles, reflecting societal expectations.
Literacy significantly impacted cultural development, leading to the Education Act of 1870, which provided primary education nationwide. This increased demand for books and led to the popularity of novels as entertainment. Literacy also spurred the growth of newspapers and magazines, serving as both entertainment and moral instruction.
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