The Victorian compromise Flashcards
What was the Victorian Age marked by? and how was it referred to as?
by complexity: it was a time of unprecedented change but also of great contradictions, often referred to as the Victorian Compromise
What type of age was it?
it was an age in which progress? reforms and political stability coexisted with poverty and injustice
What was a popular pastime?
listening to sermons was a popular pastime, yet vices were openly indulged
modernity was praised but there was a revival of Gothic and Classicism in art
How was religion seen as?
Religion played an important role in people’s lives; Evangelicalism encouraged public and political action and created a lot of charities
What did Philanthropy lead to?
to the creation of societies which addressed every kind of poverty and depended especially on the voluntary efforts of middle class women
What did the Victorians believe in?
In God but also in progress and science
How was Freedom seen as?
Freedom was linked with religion as regarded freedom of conscience, with optimism over economic and political progress, and with national identity
What was increasing emphasis placed on?
on education and hygiene was encouraged to improve health care
What concept was shared by middle and working classes?
Respectability to which was linked self restraint, good manners and self help
What virtues was general agreement on?
the virtues of asserting a social status, keeping up appearance an looking after a family
What was respectability in reality?
It was a mixture of morality and hypocrisy, since the unpleasant aspects of society ( dissolution, poverty, social unrest) were hidden under outward respectability
What was emphasis growing on?
on the duty of men to respect and protect women
How were women seen?
seen physically weaker but morally superior ,divine guides and inspires of men
Women controlled the family budget and brought up the children
What was a crucial aspect of respectability?
general attitudes to sex were a crucial aspect of respectability, with an intense concern for female chastity and single mothers were marginalized as “fallen women”
How was sexuality seen as?
Sexuality was generally repressed in both its public and private forms
