Why are there so many fallen women in Victorian literature?
Why are there so many fallen women in Victorian literature? To look at the reasons why there are so many fallen women in Victorian literature it is imperative to look at the history of the time and the social issues surrounding it. The Victorian period lasted for over 60 years and in that time the Victorians saw rapid change, which brought industrial revolution and great social transformation. There was a mass exodus from the country to the towns, which started in the late Georgian period. This brought about great wealth and great poverty, which affected all classes. This mass change of population distribution highlighted many social issues, prostitution being one of the major ones. Even within this context however, police figures demonstrate that prostitution was stable in 19th century England and probably even falling because of the growing urban populations. "Jeffrey Weeks suggested that working class sexuality was increasingly the object of middle class scrutiny and attempts at 'colonisation', which is how he describes systematic campaigns for the 'moralisation' of the poor."i Prostitution and women's rights was an issue forced by Josephine Butler who fought vehemently for the repeal of the contagious disease acts in the 1860's.The role of women and the women's movement was beginning to gain support and speed. Women were beginning to push the boundaries and asserting
Far from the Madding Crowd”- Thomas Hardy
.02.01 English Literature Coursework Essay Danielle Orchard "Far from the Madding Crowd"- Thomas Hardy "But I love you- and as for myself, I am content to be liked." (Gabriel to Bathsheba) "Of love as a spectacle, Bathsheba had a fair knowledge, but of love subjectively she knew nothing." (Hardy on Bathsheba) "Will you- for I love you so. And you said lots of times you would marry me..." (Fanny to Troy) "Promise yourself to me; I deserve it, indeed I do, for I have loved you more than anybody in the world!" (Boldwood to Bathsheba) "He could speak of love and think of dinner." (Hardy on Troy) Discuss what love appears to mean, to each of any three of the above characters, and what effect it has on their lives. What message does Hardy appear to have to his readers? Love, alongside fate and character, is one of the dominant themes in Hardy's novel. Each of the characters has a different reaction to love, and expresses love in different ways. The story is really about how love affects the characters lives and fortunes, and how the experiences that Hardy makes them endure, change their opinions, for better and for worse. Hardy uses the novel to express his own opinions on love, and reveals the good and the bad that can come from feeling it and giving it. The love that Hardy first writes about in relation to Bathsheba, is the love which Bathsheba has for herself.
Do the opening scenes from the film 'Far from the madding Crowd' faithfully and accurately reflect what happens in the novel by Thomas Hardy? Answer the questions with close reference up to chapter 16. 'All saints and all souls'
Do the opening scenes from the film 'Far from the madding Crowd' faithfully and accurately reflect what happens in the novel by Thomas Hardy? Answer the questions with close reference up to chapter 16. 'All saints and all souls' The author of 'Far from the Madding Crow', Thomas Hardy, was born and brought up in Dorset on the 2nd June 1840. As Thomas grew up, so did his love of the countryside. We can see this passion of his reflected in most of his work. Especially in 'Far from the Madding Crowd'. Hardy's father was a master mason and his mother was a domestic servant. Hardy's mother deeply influenced Hardy with her love of books and the countryside. He gained a strong appreciation of music from his father. You can see this in 'Far from the Madding Crowd' because music is used on a lot of the occasions to express people's feelings and emotions to what is going on around them. These occasions include when Oak plays his flute. We see this a couple of times. Such as in the fields and when they are all sat around the table eating lunch and they are all singing while Gabriel plays his flute. Another big part in the film when music is used is in both churches on the day when Frank and Fanny were supposed to be getting married. This is in chapter 16, 'All saints and all souls.' Hardy was deeply in love with the countryside. This can definitely be proved by looking at his work.
'A Visit Of Charity' and 'Old Mrs Chundle' - Both stories have a message or moral that the reader can draw from his reading. What do you think the message of these stories are, and which story in the most effective in getting it across?
Both stories have a message or moral that the reader can draw from his reading. What do you think the message of these stories are, and which story in the most effective in getting it across? Both 'A Visit Of Charity' and 'Old Mrs Chundle' have seemingly similar themes written in a different way. Old Mrs Chundle was written during the 1880's and is about an old woman who lives on her own in a country parish. However, the rather ironically titled A Visit Of Charity is set in 20th century America and concerns the visit of Marian, a campfire girl, to two old ladies living in an old people's home. Despite being set in different times and countries both stories have the same theme: the way we mistreat old people. Both the curate in Old Mrs Chundle and Marian in the Visit of Charity only pay attention to the elderly people in order to gain a reward for their gifts of charity. In Old Mrs Chundle the curate meets Mrs Chundle by chance when he was looking for somewhere to have lunch during a painting expedition. She lives a simple life growing her own food and copes alone despite her age. After the Industrial Revolution many old people found themselves alone in the countryside because the younger people had moved to the cities to find work. People in Mrs Chundle's time were more conscious of their status, as is obvious in the relationship between Mrs Chundle and the
A comparison of the storm scenes in lord of the flies by William Golding and Far from the madding crowd by Thomas Hardy
A comparison of the storm scenes in lord of the flies by William Golding and Far from the madding crowd by Thomas Hardy William Golding was born in Cornwall in the earlier part of last century, his father was a teacher and his mother was an activist for the votes for women movement. He too became a teacher like his father after attending university. During the Second World War he was in the navy and was involved in the d-day landings. This experience during the war showed him how brutal people could be and may have given him the inspiration to write his book. Thomas Hardy lived in Dorset and based most of his books on where he lived . "Far From The Madding Crowd" is set in and around Dorset and is based and is passed on the life of the rural community in the late 19th century. Firstly we must analyse the titles of the two stories. Lord of the flies is another phrase for the devil or Satan, the devil is a symbol of evil. Jack on the island wants to be 'Lord' or the leader and he is portrayed in the book as an evil person; so therefore represent's the lord of evil or the main ringleader on the island. I then think that he represents the devil. Far from the madding crowd is based on Thomas Hardy's area of Dorset. The title represents his time in Dorset and how far away it is from many main cities and towns. It is a telling of the seclusion of the many rural areas in Dorset.
Grace Notes And Tess of the D´Urbervilles - Contrasting Similarity - Society’s Effect on Single Mothers
Grace Notes And Tess of the D´Urbervilles Contrasting Similarity Society's Effect on Single Mothers The two novels proceed as follows, Tess of the D´Urbervilles was subtitled A Pure Woman and published in 1891. It is one of Hardy´s saddest tales of rural troubles. Tess is the daughter of the poor John Durbeyfield who learns from the village parson that his family is related to ancient nobility, being the last in the line of D´Urberville. In trying to make use of this connection, Joan - John's wife - suggests that Tess pursue the son of the local family of D´Urberville. As it turns out the D´Urbervilles have merely taken the name for convenience but, nonetheless, Tess becomes involved with her son Alec who although giving her employment, takes advantage of her and in unpleasant circumstances seduces her. They have a child together who dies early and cannot be baptised because he is illegitimate. The second stage of the novel concerns the family of the Reverend Mr Clare and his son Angel. Angel and Tess marry but when she admits the incident with Alec their relationship is torn apart leading to Angel's departure for South America and Alec's second attempt to ensnare Tess. This leads to murder, escape and superficial impurity on the part of Tess who is finally brought to "Justice". This is an exceptionally bleak novel that offers little relapse from the persistent
'Far from the madding crowd' is set in the late 1860s to the early 1870s in Wessex, a fictional county based heavily on Dorset.
Thomas hardy was born in 1840 in Dorset which is located near Dorchester. Hardy's first important novel was Far from the Madding Crowd in which he successfully adapted to a traditional form to his own purposes, slightly changing it in the process. His novel states the importance of man's connection to, and understanding of, the natural world. The story is set in an agricultural rural community. He viewed the industrial revolution as a major threat to the communities he loved. The main character in this novel is a shepherd who is called Gabriel, this gives off a very pastoral mood in the novel. The plot develops complications when Bathsheba has love for three different men. Gabriel Oak who is the shepphard embodies Hardy's ideal of a life in harmony with the forces of the natural world. Throughout the entire novel there are unusual twists and turns and in the end Bathsheba ultimately marries Gabriel, whom she had turned away so long ago. In the story of all Thomas Hardy's novels, both love and fate play major roles. In the first chapter we are introduced to Gabriel oak. He is a young sheppard. The main incident starts when Gabriel is walking in the countryside and he sees a wagon travelling down the road, and sees this young attractive woman is sitting on top if it. The Waggoner comes to a halt when they reached the gatekeeper and they had to pay a fee of three pence but the
In Chapters 4, 31, 38 and 56, how does Hardy, by showing us two different types of love, Gabriel and Boldwood's, make his own point about Sexual Love?
In Chapters 4, 31, 38 and 56, how does Hardy, by showing us two different types of love, Gabriel and Boldwood's, make his own point about Sexual Love? Hardy makes many points about his opinion on love. He does this in various ways. At times Hardy shows us the love that Gabriel feels and the love that Boldwood feels and leaves the readers to come up with their own conclusion on which type of love is best However sometimes Hardy directly tells the reader his own personal opinion on which love is best. In my essay I am going to study in detail on how Hardy makes his point on the best type of love and about which love is not so good. In chapter 4, when Gabriel is getting ready to go see Bathsheba and ask for her hand in marriage, Hardy describes to the reader about Gabriel's anxious behaviour and this suggests that Gabriel cannot wait to go and see Bathsheba, his eager manner suggests this. An example of this is when Hardy writes and tells the reader precisely about Gabriel's actions, 'However, he continued to watch through the hedge for her regular coming, and thus his sentiments towards her deepened without any corresponding effect being produced upon herself.' This also shows that Gabriel is begging to fall in love with her and this type of love is considered to be good because he is going to her house for her hand in marriage. This shows us the historical and context of the
Explore how Hardy treats the theme of True Love in "Far from the Madding Crowd"
Richard Thompson 10o "All Romances End in Marriage" Explore how Hardy treats the theme of True Love in "Far from the Madding Crowd" In Far from the Madding Crowd, the main theme of the novel is based upon the value of true love. Bathsheba and Gabriel are the most significant characters in the book. The book constantly revolves around Bathsheba and how she changes the lives of three men forever. Her charms, vanity and the way in which she entraps men leaves one man shot and another locked in prison. All the way through the novel she contradicts the role of women in the nineteenth century and she does not follow the same ways of life as the other women. All the way through the novel the reader hopes Gabriel and Bathsheba will be together by the use of fate and allusions and the aspects of true love that Hardy explores. When Gabriel and Bathsheba first meet, he sees a carriage with her sitting on it. Gabriel heads up to the carriage and sees that there is a dispute over the toll. The reader can tell Gabriel seems to be interested in Bathsheba as he watches her carefully in her carriage and observes everything she does. When Bathsheba refuses to pay the gatekeeper Gabriel approaches and gives the keeper the money and makes his first judgement upon Bathsheba which is an important one as lets the reader see how her character changes: "That's a handsome maid.... But she has
English coursework. Analysing 4 short stories
After reading four short stories from the 19th century, we explored how the writers present the female characters in each story, mentioning to what extent the character fit, or challenge, the stereotype of a 19th century woman. In the short story "Mr Lismore and the widow", we meet Wilkie Collins' female character, Mrs Callender, and I could immediately determine one of her main characteristics; her forward attitude. The story begins with Mrs Callender eagerly attending a men's meeting where she doesn't fit in, determined to see a man named Mr Lismore, "I want to see him, and that is all". The way in which she goes only to watch this man, "with such evident interest in Mr Lismore", proves she is very forward, challenging the typical stereotype of a 19th century woman, who was thought to be shy and timid. As the story progresses, we see many examples of this upfront behaviour, "are you married?", "or you may be in love?". When Mrs Callender confidently writes a letter to Mr Lismore and is the one trying to make contact with him, it shows she does not hold back and is clearly the one eager to speak to him, showing a lot of confidence and self-assuredness. Furthermore, later in the story Mrs Callender's actions show she is not only forward and full of confidence, but is sexually (opposite of subservient?), defying the stereotype once again. The way in which Mrs Callender