VICTORIAN PERIOD

STEP THREE: THE VICTORIAN PERIOD
1. List and describe at least two historical events that occurred during or right before the Victorian Period. (2 paragraphs)
The Victorian Period begin at 1832 and ended at 1901. This period was considered an period of relative political and social stability. The thing that happened during this period was when the First Reform Act of 1832 was established. This Reform Act of 1832 introduced the wide changes to the electoral system of the United Kingdom. This Act was set out to take effectual Measures for correcting diverse Abuses that have long prevailed in the Choice of Members to serve in the Common House of Parliament.
The other historical event that happened during this period was when the Ten Hours Act was passed in 1847. This Act limited the number of hours that women and children can work in factories. This was set out because many children and women were getting hurt on the job. Some were over worked and fell asleep on the job. For example some workers such as kids were carrying coals while others actually took a nap on the job, because they were so tired.
2. After reading about these events, what do you think life was like for normal people during this time? (1 paragraph)
I think during this time people were suffering and in the middle of poverty. For instance people left the rural areas in hope of better jobs and homes in the cities, but it only made things worse in the cities. For example the cities were overcrowded and people were staying ten to twelve in a room, also in slums that had two toilets for every 250 people. Now this in my opinion is something that I think these normal people had to go through also, they probably did not feel safe in their homes anymore. Then again some might had felt like they had to leave also and start over to a place where less people are, that's how I think they're lives were like.
3. The biggest difference between the Victorian Period and the Romantic Period is that the Romantic period consisted of the people fighting to earn their freedom against kings and queens. Also they had different issues, it consisted of people Romantic Poetry and of happiness in people lives. The Victorian Period consisted of death and poverty in the lives of people. People were immigrating a lot and moving to big cities where most people worked in the factories for little pay. Also the poets for this period show sufferance, economics depression, unemployment problems, famine, and other problems that were not what you would have expected.
The thing that caused this change was the growth of the British Empire and the expansion of the Industrial Revolution, and also the political power was extended to the middle and working classes. I think that's what caused the change and how Middle Class Victorians back then prided themselves on the material advances and on their ability to solve human problems. Also I think that many people just probably wanted to explore and break way of their lives. Also some probably felt that it was the best thing to do. For instance they knew that something good was going to come out of it in the end.
4. The things that Victorian poets wanted to express with their work was:
Decorum And Authority- Victorian society regarded seduced or adulterous women as "fallen" and pushed them to the margins of respectability. Victorian decorum also supported powerful ideas about authority. Many Victorians were uneasy about giving strong authority to a central government, mainly it was full of cruelties and hypocrites.
Questions and Doubts- Was filled with voices asking questions and raising doubts. This meant that they thought shallow and complacent. They also asked questions like whether material comfort fully satisfied human needs and wishes. They questioned the cost of exploiting the earth and human beings to achieve such comfort. They protested or mocked codes of decorum and authority.
from trust to Skepticism and Denial- Trust in a transcendental power was also characteristic. they were the immediate heirs of the Romantic idea of a finite natural world surrounded by and interfaced with an infinite, ideal transcendental reality. They made people aware of the connection with the earth and heaven, body and soul, and material ideal with this characteristic.
Revealing Reality, Creating Coherence-Some writers wanted to scare or shame readers into effective moral and political actions that they optimistically believed were possible. While some wanted to show the readers what it is like to live in a pleasurable moment of intense feeling like those caught in lyrics or monologues and novels.
STEP FOUR: VICTORIAN POETRY
Alfred, Lord Tennyson
He wrote the poem called "Ring out, wild bells" from In Memoriam. This poem talks about the strife and bad that people have been through. Alfred wants them to ring out all the bad things and ring in the happiness that was once portrayed before everything went wrong. For example he says, " Ring out the old, ring in the new." This just speaks even more clear to what he wants in life. This altogether is showing that Alfred is revealing reality and creating coherence all at once. He wants the people to believe that change can happen regardless of what type of problem is existing wherever.
When it comes to trust and skepticism and denial, Alfred shows this by letting his readers know the things hat he has been through and others also. He is engaging them within his life and past. For example in the poem he says, " Ring in the love of truth and right,Ring in the common love of good." Then when it comes to Question and doubts Alfred is saying that he wants everyone to understand where he's coming from and wants everything to be original the way they use to be. Also the last one was decorum and authority, he stands up and says his feelings and wants the larger heart to be considered the lager hand. For example he says " Ring in the valiant man and free, The larger heart, the kindlier hand."
Robert Browning
He wrote the poem called "Life in Love" this poem is talking about the deeds of a lover who knows that love is every where. Robert is saying that for as long as they both breathe the same air then it'll be hard for them to love another. He uses the form of decorum and authority by saying she is a certain something and by saying if he pursue one must not. For example he says, " Me the loving and you the loth, While the one eludes, must the other pursue. Then this brings up Questions and doubts to the plate. Robert gets tired of this someone having to do the same thing like him. For example he says, " But what if I fail of my purpose here? It is but to keep the nerves at strain." Here Robert is saying that he wants to live his life not based on failing but of actually doing it.
Then when it comes to trust to skepticism and denial Robert begins to wonder what could make things better for him, so he compares things to his body part and life. For example he says," To dry one's eyes and laugh at a fall,And baffled, get up to begin again,— So the chase takes up one's life, that's all." Then when it comes to the reality part and creating coherence he tend to say that things are to to him and low as the ground. For example he says, " At me so deep in the dust and dark,No sooner the old hope drops to ground," Tats all I think Robert has portrayed with this poem.
Matthew Arnold
He wrote a poem called " Isolation: To Marguerite. " This poem talks about the isolation or the lost of a love that stayed to far apart from one another. This poem undergoes decorum and authority when Matthew says, " Farewell!—and thou, thou lonely heart,Which never yet without remorse." Here he is saying like he knows everything and knows for sure that they'll have to say goodbye eventually. Also saying that his lorn want ever remorse without him, he's letting the readers know that he has the operand and knows whats next.
Then when it comes to questions and doubts, he says, " But thou hast long had place to prove This truth—to prove, and make thine own Thou hast been, shalt be, art, alone." This is saying that Matthew thought about his character being alone but what would that cause and what would it do for them both to be alone and not see each other again. For trust and denial Matthew says in his poem, " The fault was grave! I might have known,What far too soon, alas! I learn'd—" he is saying that he knew what was going on and only wanted the truth to come out. he did not know his alas would be embedded somewhere without his knowledge of knowing. With reality and coherence Robert he made it real to his readers by putting in more illustrations of what his feelings and things would have been like. For example he said, " Of happier men—for they, at least, Have dream'd two human hearts might blend In one, and were through faith released From isolation without end."
Thomas Hardy
He wrote a poem called " Hap." This poem talks about if a vengeful god came down and said somethings other like, " Thou suffering thing,Know that thy sorrow is my ecstasy,that thy love's loss is my hate's profiting!" He said he would not be surprised but only thankful that such thing has happened to him like that. The decorum and authority is when he says, " Crass Casualty obstructs the sun and rain, And dicing Time for gladness casts a moan. . ." For instance he is saying what used to be their wants is now nothing but pain and littleness to them. Plus he's saying that there needs to be some type of authority around or some change.
With questions and doubts Hardy tends to actually say what his doubts are, For example he says, " Thou suffering thing, Know that thy sorrow is my ecstasy,that thy love's loss is my hate's profiting!" So basically he is saying that he hate to loose something that he loves. For trust to skepectism to denial, I think Hardy's portraying this by saying, " Then would I bear it, clench myself, and die, Steeled by the sense of ire unmerited." This means he want do anything to hurt himself if he saw the '' one'' (god) came down and actually said a few words to him. Then when it comes to revealing reality and creating coherence Hardy tells his readers that he have suffered pain and is tired of it, this calls problems. For example he says, " And dicing Time for gladness casts a moan. . .These purblind Doomsters had as readily strown Blisses about my pilgrimage as pain." Now this what he's saying can really make anyone want to do something about it, so he was causing drama.

*Website where all Quotes came from, just put in poets name:
http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/19426