1
Victorian literature is English literature during the reign
of one thousand eight hundred and thirty seven to one
thousand nine hundred and one. The Nineteenth century is
considered by some to be the Golden Age of English Literature,
especially for British novels. It was in the Victorian era that the
novel became the leading literary genre in English. English
writing from this era reflects the major transformations in most
aspects of English life, from scientific, economic, and
technological advances to changes in class structures and the
role of religion in society. The number of new novels published
each year increased from hundred at the start of the period to
thousand by the end of it. Famous novelists from this period
include Charles Dickens, William Makepeace Thackeray, the
three Brontë sisters, Elizabeth Gaskell, George Eliot, Thomas
Hardy, and Rudyard Kipling.
While the Romantic period was a time of abstract expression
and inward focus, essayists, poets, and novelists during
the Victorian era began to direct their attention toward the
social issues. Writers such as Thomas Carlyle called attention
to the dehumanizing effects of the Industrial Revolution and
what Carlyle called the Mechanical Age. This awareness
inspired the subject matter of other authors, like poet Elizabeth
Barrett Browning and novelists Charles Dickens and Thomas
Hardy. Barrett's works on child labor cemented her success in a
male-dominated world where women writers often had to use
masculine pseudonyms. Dickens employed humor and an
approachable tone while addressing social problems such as
wealth disparity. Hardy used his novels to question religion
and social structures.
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Poetry and theatre were also present during the Victorian
era. Robert Browning and Alfred Tennyson were Victorian
England's most famous poets. With regard to the theatre it was
not until the last decades of any significant works were
produced. Notable playwrights of the time include Gilbert and
Sullivan, George Bernard Shaw, and Oscar Wilde.
Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell born in twenty nine September
one thousand eight hundred and ten and died on twelve
November one thousand eight , often referred to as Gaskell,
was an English novelist, biographer, and short story writer. Her
novels offer a detailed portrait of the lives of many strata
of Victorian society, including the very poor. Her first
novel, Mary Barton, was published Gaskell's The Life of
Charlotte Brontë, was the first biography of Charlotte Brontë.
In this biography, she wrote only of the moral,sophisticated
things in Brontë's life; the rest she omitted, deciding certain,
more salacious aspects were better kept hidden. Among
Gaskell's best known novels are Cranford ,North and
South and Wives and Daughters all of which were adapted for
television by the BBC.
She co-authored with her husband a cycle of
poems, Sketches among the Poor, which was published
in Blackwood's Magazine in January. William
Howitt published Visits to Remarkable Places containing a
contribution entitled Clopton Hall by A Lady, the first work
written and published solely by her. In April , Howitt
published The Rural Life of England, which included a second
work titled Notes on Cheshire Customs. Her notable works
are North and South, My Lady Ludlow ,A Dark Night's
Victorian literature is English literature during the reign
of one thousand eight hundred and thirty seven to one
thousand nine hundred and one. The Nineteenth century is
considered by some to be the Golden Age of English Literature,
especially for British novels. It was in the Victorian era that the
novel became the leading literary genre in English. English
writing from this era reflects the major transformations in most
aspects of English life, from scientific, economic, and
technological advances to changes in class structures and the
role of religion in society. The number of new novels published
each year increased from hundred at the start of the period to
thousand by the end of it. Famous novelists from this period
include Charles Dickens, William Makepeace Thackeray, the
three Brontë sisters, Elizabeth Gaskell, George Eliot, Thomas
Hardy, and Rudyard Kipling.
While the Romantic period was a time of abstract expression
and inward focus, essayists, poets, and novelists during
the Victorian era began to direct their attention toward the
social issues. Writers such as Thomas Carlyle called attention
to the dehumanizing effects of the Industrial Revolution and
what Carlyle called the Mechanical Age. This awareness
inspired the subject matter of other authors, like poet Elizabeth
Barrett Browning and novelists Charles Dickens and Thomas
Hardy. Barrett's works on child labor cemented her success in a
male-dominated world where women writers often had to use
masculine pseudonyms. Dickens employed humor and an
approachable tone while addressing social problems such as
wealth disparity. Hardy used his novels to question religion
and social structures.
, 2
Poetry and theatre were also present during the Victorian
era. Robert Browning and Alfred Tennyson were Victorian
England's most famous poets. With regard to the theatre it was
not until the last decades of any significant works were
produced. Notable playwrights of the time include Gilbert and
Sullivan, George Bernard Shaw, and Oscar Wilde.
Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell born in twenty nine September
one thousand eight hundred and ten and died on twelve
November one thousand eight , often referred to as Gaskell,
was an English novelist, biographer, and short story writer. Her
novels offer a detailed portrait of the lives of many strata
of Victorian society, including the very poor. Her first
novel, Mary Barton, was published Gaskell's The Life of
Charlotte Brontë, was the first biography of Charlotte Brontë.
In this biography, she wrote only of the moral,sophisticated
things in Brontë's life; the rest she omitted, deciding certain,
more salacious aspects were better kept hidden. Among
Gaskell's best known novels are Cranford ,North and
South and Wives and Daughters all of which were adapted for
television by the BBC.
She co-authored with her husband a cycle of
poems, Sketches among the Poor, which was published
in Blackwood's Magazine in January. William
Howitt published Visits to Remarkable Places containing a
contribution entitled Clopton Hall by A Lady, the first work
written and published solely by her. In April , Howitt
published The Rural Life of England, which included a second
work titled Notes on Cheshire Customs. Her notable works
are North and South, My Lady Ludlow ,A Dark Night's
