Presentazione Rilassante

tHE VICTORIAN AGE

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queen victoria

Queen Victoria came to the throne in 1837 at the age of just 18. She reigned for 64 years and gave her name to an age of economic and scientific progress. She stayed apart from politics and provided stability. She married Prince Albert, with whom she had nine children.

age of reform

The 1830 had seen the beginning of an "age of reform". Some of the most important ones are: - The First Reform Act (1832); - The Factory Act (1833); - The Poor Law Amendment Act (1834).

Workhouses

Life in the workhouse had hard work and a strict diet. The poor had to wear uniforms and their families were split. The idea behind them was that awareness of their life conditions would inspire the poor to try and improve their condition.

chartism

In 1838 a group of working-class radicals drew up a People's Charter demanding for universal manhood suffrage, a secret ballot and other reforms to the electoral system. The Chartist movement failed. Their influence was felt later in 1867. The Second Reform Act was freed part of the urban male working class in England.

The Great Exhibition

In 1851 a Great Exhibition, organized by Prince Albert, showed the world Britain's industrial and economic power. It was housed at the Crystal Palace, a huge structure of glass and steel designed by Sir Joseph Paxton. Also, the building of the London Underground began in 1860.

foreign policy

In the mid-19th century, England was involved in the two Opium wars against China, which saw England as a winner . When Russia became too powerful against the weak Turkish Empire, the Crimean War was fought (1853-1856). It was the first conflict reported in newspapers by journalists “ on the ground”

domestic policy

When Prince Albert died in 1861, Queen Victoria withdrew from society.There was a regrouping of the parties, which were: - the Liberal Party; - the Conservative Party.

Disraeli provided a house for the poor .He also made important reforms such as: -the Public Health Act (1875) -The Factory Act (1878)

Gladstone was Prime Minister four times , starting in 1868. He made important reforms which include : -The Education Act of 1870 -He legalized trade unions in 1871. -He introduced the secret ballot in 1872. -In 1884 the Third Reform Act extended the right to vote to all male heads of families .

the anglo-boer wars

During the Victorian era there were some wars, including: The Anglo Boer Wars; in the 1870s in South Africa Britain controlled Cape Colony and Natal, while the Boers governed Trasanvaal and Organge Free State. Britain took over the first one in 1877 and Boers rebelled . The Boer Wars ended in 1902 with a British victory.

the victorian compromise

The Victorian age was marked with complexity. It was a time of great contradictions.In this period progress, reforms and political stability coexisted with poverty and injustice. People in this age gave more importance to self-care , personal hygene and education, but in the same time they wanted to hide poverty and social unrest.

the end of an era

The Victorian Age came to an end with the death of Queen Victoria in 1901.She was a symbol of decorum, stability and continuity. The Queen was buried beside her beloved husband at Windsor Castle

LITERATUre DURING THE VICTORIAN AGE

During the Victorian Age for the first time there was a communion of interests between writers and their readers. Most of the novelists of the time were women, forced to use a pseudonym to publish their work, like George Elliot.

charles dickens

Charles Dickens was a timeless comic genius and social novelist.He was born in Portsmouth in 1812. His childhood has not been easy: his father and most of his family were imprisoned because of debts. Charles was forced to work in a blacking factory. He suffered from loneliness and hardship, but he used his sad experiences as a material for his works.

major works

He began his carrer as a journalist.His first novel is Pickwick Papers.Little Dorrit, Oliver Twist and David Copperfield are his most important novels and they talked about the expoitation of children and the cruely of the workhouses. Bleak House, Hard Times and Great Expectations, instead, focused on educations and harships of the workhouses

This story is set in London. London life is shown on three different levels: - the parochial world of the workhouse; - the criminal world ; -the world of the middle class.

oliver twist

The main aims of the novel are:- to attackthe cruelty of institutions and of individuals; - talk about crime; - put childhood as a main theme; - talk about poverty.

hARD TIMES

COKETOWNUnlike all the other novels by Dickens, Hard Times is not set in London , but take place in the fictional city of Coketown.

STRUCTUREHard Times is divided into three sections: - Book the First, 'Sowing' introduces us to the seeds planted by the Gradgrind educations; -Book the second, ' Reaping' reveals the harvesting of these seeds; -Book the Third, 'Garnering' means to collect something with some difficulty.

robert louis stevenson

Robert Louis Stevenson was one of the most important authors in Mid-Victorian Period. He was born in Edinburgh on 13 November 1850 into a family of engineers.His poor health forced him to spend much of his time at home and he developed a love of reading. His father wanted him to become an engineer , but since this wasn’t his future he took a degree in law to satisfy his father.

major works

His most famous works was : Treasure Island , Kidnapped and The Black Arrow , which were “boys novels” and are tales of historical adventure. His masterpiece,The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is a far more complex tale.

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

BY ASIA LANCIA

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