The Victorian Age

The Victorian Age was named after the era under Queen Victoria of England. This was to describe the pride the country felt during her reign. Victoria stood for "England and Empire, but also for Duty, Family, and especially, Propriety" (453). Like the early French revolution, a big change was to occur. The Industrial Revolution brought on change to new inventions, technological advances, as well as a period of reform. A big invention was the railroad. This brought on trade as well as transportation of materials and even people. This helped society in "rising incomes, the greater availability of goods, the perception of surplus production" (454). This helped create a larger middle working class with work in warehouses and factories. Even the culture of fashion and design changed. There was a large rise in publications to entertain the public with "magazines, newspapers, novels, poetry, histories, travel narratives, sporting news, scandal sheets, and penny cyclopedias" (466). With this change there also was an overwhelming question of faith, and different sects broke out from the Church of England.
Women's role in society was still unseen in the working and education scenes. The "Woman Question" became a big debate to advocate women's rights. This passage describes what women were seen as " the ideal Victorian woman was supposed to be domestic and pure, selflessly motivated by the desire to serve others rather than fulfill her own needs" (462).