THE VICTORIAN AGE

(1837-1901)

QUEEN VICTORIA

(1819-1901)• Queen Victoria’s reign was the longest

in the history of England. She came to the throne in 1837 and died in 1901.

• Her exemplary way of life and her strict code of behaviour made her beloved, especially by the middle classes, who shared her moral and religious views.

VICTORIAN AGE• Britain became the most powerful

country in the world with the largest empire it had ever existed, ruling a quarter of the world’s population.

• The number of people living in Britain more than doubled, causing a huge demand of food, clothes and housing.

• Factories and machines were built to meet this demand and new towns grew up, changing the landscape and the ways people lived and worked.

• Railways, originally built to transport goods, meant people could travel easily around the country for the first time.

VICTORIAN AGEThe quality of life depended on whether you were rich or poor.

RICH VICTORIANS

• large families• big, comfortable houses• children brought up by their

nanny• children rarely saw their

parents (1-hour visit in the nursery each night)

POOR VICTORIANS

• slums• overcrowded houses• poverty and disease• terrible working conditions• families were separated• children had to work in

mines, factories, mills, and as chimney sweepers

VICTORIAN AGECHILD LABOURCHILDREN (as young as 5) WERE

EMPLOYED FOR 3 SIMPLE REASONS:

1. There were lots of them in orphanages and they could be easily replaced if accidents occurred.

2. They were cheaper than adults.

3. They were small enough to crawl under machinery to tie up broken threads.

VICTORIAN AGETHE VICTORIAN NOVEL

• The omniscient narrator provided a comment on the plot and erected a barrier between right and wrong.

• The setting chosen by most Victorian novelists was the city, which was the main symbol of industrial civilisation and the expression of anonymous lives and lost identities.

• The plot was long and often complicated by subplots.• Retribution and punishment were to be found in the last

chapter, where the whole texture of events, adventures and incidents had to be explained and justified.

VICTORIAN AGEVICTORIAN NOVELISTS

JANE AUSTEN GEORGE ELIOT

EMILY BRONTËCHARLOTTE BRONTË

CHARLES DICKENS