The Victorian Era

Well, this the first actual post/topic and is one of the most important, since we can situate ourselves in history and the contexts in which the authors lived and the novels were written. Let's begin then, shall we?

The Victorian literature was produced during the reign of Queen Victoria who lived between 1837 and 1901. This period later on was called the Victorian Era. Mainly, it was a transition period between the writers of the romantic era and the modern literature of the 20th century.

Queen Victoria in 1887

Queen Victoria is known for her great administration of the United Kingdom. During her reign, the British were gifted with a prolonged prosperity and solid peace. In addition, Queen Victoria, is also responsible for economic, colonial, and industrial consolidation.

During the Victorian Era, people saw the "novel" taking the lead over all the various literary works out there in English Literature. Because of that, more works were influencing more people. Books and novels rapidly gained value and importance, creating a huge reading mass not only in the United Kingdom but in other countries.

Victorian literature is known for its strong sense of morality, prudishness and oppression. Its novels are mostly idealized portraits of difficult lives in which hard work, perseverance, love and luck pervade. Virtue is always rewarded and evil are suitably punished. They tended to show an improving human nature with a central moral lesson at its core. While this formula was the basis for much of earlier Victorian fiction, the situation became more complex as the century progressed. In addition, Victorian literature is also known for its attempts to combine imagination and emotion with the neoclassical ideal of the presence of art in the common person. Some of the best-known authors of this period are Charlotte Brontë (Jane Eyre), Emily Bronte (Wuthering Heights), and Charles Dickens (Great Expectations).
Wikipedia. "Victorian Era" 2011. n. pag. Web. 28/02/2011

Wikipedia. "Victorian Literature" 2011. n. pag. Web. 28/02/2011

eNote. "Victorian Literature" 2011. n. pag. Web. 28/02/2011