In order to be as sexually free as men in the victorian era, women had to avoid motherhood and stand against societys conventions and the. The national archives education service victorian family. Courtship and marriage in victorian england jennifer. The history of lipstick regulation in western seats of power pdf courtship and marriage. Marriage, a history long ago, love was a silly reason for a match. Courtship and marriage in victorian england draws on littleknown conduct books, letterwriting manuals, domestic guidebooks, periodical articles, letters, and novels to. When victoria came to the throne in 1837, two main factors shaped the lives of her female subjects. Cousin marriage, a common practice among preindustrial propertied classes and usually arranged by the families for economic reasons, continued as a marriage pattern among middleclass victorians, for whom individual choice based on romantic love was the appropriate criterion for the selection of a marriage partner. Women, marriage and the law in victorian society history of.
Essay on outline of marriage in the victorian era 895 words. Women, marriage and the law in victorian society history. Courtship engagement planning wedding attire ceremony reception honeymoon a royal wedding. Social life in victorian england british literature wiki. During the victorian era, men and women searched for an ideal relationship based on the expectations of a demanding society. A rather chilling example of what this could mean for a wife can be seen in charlotte brontes novel jane eyre. In the history of the united kingdom, the victorian era was the period of queen victorias reign, from 20 june 1837 until her death on 22 january 1901. Oh, i cannot bear itmy heart will break, said dorothea, starting from her seat, the flood of her. The roles and rules of the marriage model have vastly changed since the victorian era.
England was moving steadily in the direction of becoming europe. As will turns to bid dorothea farewell, she erupts into speech, expressing the vehement feelings her first marriage had smothered. Therefore courting was taken very seriouslyby both sides. Outline of marriage in the victorian era in the victorian era, marriage was not as romanticized or fairytalelike as depicted in many novels of the time. Friendship, desire, and marriage in victorian england represents another important extension of this tradition as it attempts to reinstitutional. In the victorian era women were to get married to a man of the same or a better social status, be good wives, and be a mother to her husbands children. The industrial revolution, the railway age, steam engines were being used in mines, factories and ships.
Ironically, when it comes to love and marriage, we still wrestle with many of the same emotional and social challenges as our 19thcentury predecessors did over 100 years ago. Victorian society focused on womens positions and roles in their homes, managing their families. Feminism, marriage, and the law in victorian england mary. In earlier centuries it was usual for women to work alongside husbands and brothers in the family business, but as the nineteenth century progressed, middleclass men increasingly commuted to their place of work the factory, shop or office and their wives. Marriage, victorian era, gender perspective, the importance of being earnest, oscar wilde 3. Her reign over great britain and ireland set a stricter moral tone for much of european and american. Austen relishes the equally disastrous proposals of mr collins and mr darcy. From marriage and sexuality to education and rights, professor kathryn hughes looks at attitudes towards gender in 19thcentury britain. In those days, courtship was considered to be a tradition and was very popular. As mary shanley shows, victorian feminists argued that justice for women would not follow from public rights alone, but required a fundamental transformation of. We are now all too familiar with the victorian beliefs that women and men were essen tially opposite sexes, and that marriage to a man was the chief end of a womans existence. Negotiations by the end of the season, many relationships had been cemented, with an eye to the future.
Motherhood, socially restricted and defined by womens sexual abilities, was, like marriage, an institution to limit womens roles in society. Mens and womens roles became more sharply defined during the victorian period than arguably at any time in history. Still have brutal factory conditions, low wages, and crowded cities, but the 1830s mark the beginning of political and social reform acts. Professor kathryn sutherland discusses the importance of marriage and its relationship to financial security and social status for women in jane austens novels. Love, courtship, and marriage in the victorian eraavictorian. But the victorian erathe 63year period from 18371901 that marked the reign of englands queen victoriaalso saw a demise of rural life as cities rapidly grew and expanded, long and. Feminism, marriage, and the law in victorian england.
Shift from agrarian society to industrial society creates a middle class neither rich nor poor. The volume puts marriage in conversation with many aspects of culture, from education and anthropology to darwinism and crime. Professor john mullan explores the romantic, social and economic considerations that precede marriage in the novels of jane austen. Marriage, sex and love in traditional and conservative. Victorian family history how can we find out about the life of a victorian child using family sources. Essay on marriage in the victorian age 1814 words bartleby. Why cosmetics work pdf portrait of a lady pdf reading our lips. Marriage, sex and love in traditional and conservative edwardian england. Oh, i cannot bear itmy heart will break, said dorothea, starting from her seat, the. As mary shanley shows, victorian feminists argued that justice for women would not follow from public rights alone, but required a fundamental transformation of the marriage relationship. Outline of marriage in the victorian era 899 words 123. As america has evolved over the centuries, so too has the institution of marriage.
It can be concluded that how marriage is treated in victorian era is based on gender perspectives, social status, and wealth. The dating traditions during the victorian period synonym. Womens rights groups fought for equality and over time made strides in attaining rights and privileges. Bridging the fields of political theory and history, this comprehensive study of victorian reforms in marriage law reshapes our understanding of the feminist movement of that period. By addressing topics such as the etiquette of introductions and home visits. Even so, he remained eminently victorian in the value he accorded intimacy between women, for female amity remains the basis of all the successful marriages in his novel. Marriages for victorian women became contracts which were extremely difficult if not impossible to get out of during the victorian era. As victorian novels often do, it portrays and comments on the social conventions of the period. The progression from victorian marriage to modern marriage was a slow process. But the victorian erathe 63year period from 18371901 that marked the reign of englands queen victoriaalso saw a demise of rural life as. Small towns were beginning to swell into smoky centres of mnaufacturing industry. In colonial times, marriage was largely a matter of property and reproduction. According to feminism, marriage and the law in victorian england, 18501895, about ten private acts for divorce were passed in parliament each year. The status of women in the victorian era was often seen as an illustration of the striking discrepancy between the united kingdoms national power and wealth and what many, then and now, consider its appalling social conditions.
Victorian marriage and the law of matrimonial cruelty. Victorian women and their working roles a thesis in english by kara l. Due to their reproductive system, women were seen by men as emotional and unstable to the point where they were incapable of making rational decisions. It forms a link and transition between the writers of the romantic period and the very different literature of the 20th century. After reading the researched expectations of men and women of the victorian era and relating them to wildes two works, readers can acknowledge the effect the expectations have on these characters. On the contrary, love actually played a very minor role in the majority of matrimonies that took place. Marriage and divorce 19th century style in custodia. The victorian era began with queen victorias coronation in 1837 and ended with her death in 1901. Although it was a peaceful and prosperous time, there were still issues within the social structure. Marriage in the victorian era by jen ziegenfuss in the victorian era, marriage was not as romanticized or fairytalelike as depicted in many novels of the time.
Gender roles in the 19th century the british library. Not up for discussion for people living in the western world in the 21st century, it is hard to imagine the lack of womens rights in the victorian era. Love, courtship, and marriage in the victorian era. Rather, it may be said that its style and characteristics foreshadow the upcoming victorian era. A bit of information i found online about the views on women and marriage during the victorian era the period known as the victorian era in england, from 1837 to 1901, witnessed such polarized gender roles that it can also be analyzed according to the different functions assigned to men and women, more commonly known as the ideology of separate spheres. Many of our modernday marriage traditions come from the victorian erataking honeymoon trips and wearing a white wedding dress, for example. This book examines the popular publications of the victorian period, illuminating the intricacies of courtship and marriage from the differing perspectives of the working, middle, and upper classes. Victorian era courtship rules and marriage facts the victorian period is also regarded as the era of romanticism. The era followed the georgian period and preceded the edwardian period, and its later half overlaps with the first part of the belle epoque era of continental europe. Courtship, love and marriage in jane austens novels the. Barrett submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of master of arts may 20 approved by. The victorian era placed high value on honor, duty, moral seriousness, and sexual propriety.
The marriage proposal itself followed a certain protocol, which mr collins pretends to understand. During the victorian period men and womens roles became more sharply defined than at any time in history. Victorian views on women and marriage rachel pearson. Courtship and marriage in victorian england draws on littleknown conduct books, letterwriting manuals, domestic guidebooks, periodical articles, letters, and novels to reveal what the period equivalents of dating and tying the knot were like in the victorian era. Scholars in the fields of queer studies and feminist theory will quickly recognise the titles nod to eve kosofsky sedgwicks between men. Marriage and women in jane austens pride and prejudice.
Cousin marriage in victorian england nancy fix anderson, 1986. Marriage in the victorian time period was carefully contemplated, as rosenberg addresses that wedding ceremonies were seen as an expression of victorian social values that that the queen wished to renounce, while on the other hand, such occasions were viewed as having national and collective significance rosenberg 98. In earlier centuries it had been usual for women to work alongside husbands. The social classes of this era included the upper class, middle class, and lower class. Love, courtship, and marriage in the victorian era, avictorian. Introduction the importance of being earnest is a satire play written by oscar wilde. Men and women were careful not to lead the other on unnecessarily. Rules about marriage and property in the victorian era basic rules of courtship basic rules of marriage basic rules of divorce you could only divorce if there was proof of adultery ziegenfuss men could claim for a adulterous third party, but women had to have proof of.
Courtship was considered more a career move than a romantic interlude for young men, as all of a womans property reverted to him upon marriage. Victorian wedding traditions essay 931 words 4 pages. During the era symbolized by the reign of british monarch queen victoria, women did not have the right to vote, sue, or own property. Victorian marriage and the law of matrimonial cruelty debates on the nature of marriage in eighteenth and nineteenthcentury england have flourished since the controversial family histories of the 1970s, which posed the familiar transition from traditional patriarchal marriage to a more modem companionate form during the last three centuries. Nov 07, 20 a bit of information i found online about the views on women and marriage during the victorian era the period known as the victorian era in england, from 1837 to 1901, witnessed such polarized gender roles that it can also be analyzed according to the different functions assigned to men and women, more commonly known. Jane austens pride and prejudice is a novel published in 18, but it does not display typical romantic characteristics. The teteatete of a quarter of a century ago has given place to the continual presence of a group.
Courtship and marriage in victorian england by jennifer. The victorian era in britain was dominated by the reign of queen victoria 18371901. Toward the end of george eliotsmiddlemarch18711872, a scene takes place that exemplifies the power of victorian novels to fuse marriage and romance. Her reign over great britain and ireland set a stricter moral tone. Friendship, desire, and marriage in victorian england extensively revises critical interpretations of female relationships during the victorian era. Feminist scholars of the victorian era will be especially interested in the second chapter of marcuss study, in which she conducts close readings of several canonical victorian novels to prove her thesis that female friendship is a central element in the novel of courtship and marriage 80. A family tree is a simple diagram that allows you to show how people are related to one another. Lady mary is embracing the modern world exemplified in julian fellowes downton abbey melina wiese term paper english language and literature studies other publish your bachelors or masters thesis, dissertation, term paper or essay. Cousin marriage in victorian england nancy fix anderson. Queen victoria and her family were the idols of the victorian society, even in the case of courtship. A study on the victorian model of marriage free essays. Intro to victorian literature 1 victorian literature an overview victorian literature is the literature produced during the reign of queen victoria 18371901 and corresponds to the victorian era.