Historical context Flashcards
Victorian’s workhouses
- The Poor law Amendment Act of 1834 allowed the poor to receive assistance only if they went to workhouses
- In theory, they were passed “against poverty”, aiming to punish the most helpless people in society in reality
- Workhouses were made to be miserable : poor would often beg on the streets or die to avoid these places
- Families were split up and prevented from peeking to each other, the poor had to work for food and accommodations
- Children got an education that didn’t include writing or reading so they couldn’t get good jobs further down the line
- It was believed that poverty was caused by laziness, workhouses were made to discourage poverty and make people improve themselves
Capitalism ?
_ It’s an economic system in which people who own the means of production are able to make a lot of money by producing what people need and want
- People who make the goods employ workers on a wage to produce them
- The profit is not shared with the employees
- Some argue this hurts worker , because the business makes more money by selling things than paying workers
- Business owners become rich while workers become poor and exploited
Industrial Revolution ?
- During the Victorian era, Britain became one of the world’s primary economic powers
- Britain became an industrial hub where everything that had been manually done before was converted to involve machinery
- This caused a reduction in men needed for work, which therefore increased poverty levels and crime in cities
- Working machinery was also more dangerous/life threatening for workers
Poverty n?
- The population of towns/cities was growing rapidly
- Due to the Industrial Revolution, people where looking for employment
- Because so many looked for work wages were low
- Living conditions for the poor where appealing
- large houses where turned into flats and landlords who owned them did not care for their condition, often extremely overcrowded and dirty
- Numerous children where homeless and had only access to water
The cause of poverty ?
Widely/ Popularly believed that poverty was caused by laziness, workhouses were made to discourage poverty and make people improve themselves
Who was Thomas Malthus?
He was a respected academic and economist at the time
Thomas Malthus beliefs ( Malthusian theory ) ?
Malthusian Theory: Resources are finite. Therefore since the population is growing so quickly starvation and disease are necessary to achieve population control
Popularity of Thomas Malthus belief ( Malthusian theory ) ?
Popularised by those who benefitted from this belief ( business effort ). It validated / justified their negligence if social duty - allowing them to reps profits
Dickens ideas and social awareness ?
- He criticised economic, social and moral issues in the Victorian era
- He showed compassion for the vulnerable/disadvantaged in English society
- His social awareness of these issues originated form his traumatic childhood where his father was imprisoned for debt
- He was forced to work in a show-blacking factory at 12 —-> leading him to develop a strong social conscience
Dickens intentions with a Christmas Carol ?
- His intentions where to draw readers attention to the poor and highlight the hypocrisy of Victorian society and popular beliefs
- He juxtaposes the Earth and greed of capitalists with the poorer classes to highlight how selfishness and greed can be impactful on others
- His moral message seems to be to care for one another ‘care for our fellow man’
- Scrooge’s transformation throughout the novella show Dickens never thinks it’s too late to change and redeem yourself
- Dickens emphasises themes such as family, friendship and charity bringing about this change
Bowels ?
Victorians believed that your Bowels / stomach portrayed your emotions
Children representing good values ?
- Many Victorians where religious and believed in good as well s good virtuous values
- They believe that children represented innocence and purity
Curtains and possessions of the dead ?
During the era it would have been normal to show respect to the corpse by leaving it stationary ( covered by curtains and in the dark )
Possessions of corpse would be buried with said corpse
Debt during the Victorian era ?
- If you were in debt, you lived in fear of your possessions being taken away at any point in time
- Until your debt was payed off this fear remained
