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| Historians now regard the ] as a time of many contradictions. A plethora of social movements concerned with improving public morals co-existed with a ] that permitted harsh living conditions for many. The apparent contradiction between the widespread cultivation of an outward appearance of dignity and restraint and the prevalence of social phenomena that included ], ], and an ] ] ] were two sides of the same coin: the various social reform movements and high principles arose from attempts to improve the harsh conditions. | Historians now regard the ] as a time of many contradictions. A plethora of social movements concerned with improving public morals co-existed with a ] that permitted harsh living conditions for many. The apparent contradiction between the widespread cultivation of an outward appearance of dignity and restraint and the prevalence of social phenomena that included ], ], and an ] ] ] were two sides of the same coin: the various social reform movements and high principles arose from attempts to improve the harsh conditions. | ||
| == Historical background== | |||
| ]]] | |||
| The term ''Victorian'' has acquired a range of connotations, including that of a particularly strict set of ] standards, often applied ]. This stems from the image of ]—and her husband, ], perhaps even more so—as innocents, unaware of the private habits of many of her respectable subjects; this particularly relates to their ]. This image is mistaken: Victoria's attitude to ] was a consequence her knowledge of the corrosive effect of the loose morals of the ] in earlier reigns upon the public's respect for the nobility and ]. | |||
| Two hundred years earlier the ] ] movement under ] had temporarily overthrown the British monarchy. During ]'s years as a ], the law imposed a strict moral code of ] ] on the people (even abolishing ] as too indulgent of the sensual pleasures). | |||
| When the monarchy was ] a period of loose living and debauchery appeared to be a reaction to the earlier repression. See: ]. The two social forces of puritanism and ] continued to motivate the collective psyche of the ] from the restoration onward. By the time of Victoria the interplay between high cultured morals and low vulgarity was thoroughly embedded in the culture. | |||
| Victorian ] sometimes went so far as to deem it improper to say "leg" in mixed company (the preferred ] if such must be mentioned was "limb").{{Fn|1}} Those going for a dip in the ] at the ] would use a ]. Verbal or written communication of ] or ]s was also often proscribed so people instead used the ]. | |||
| Victoria ascended to the throne in ], only four years after the ] of ] in the ]. The anti-slavery movement had campaigned for years to achieve the ban, succeeding with a partial abolition in ] and the full ban in ]. It had taken so long because the anti-slavery morality was pitted against a powerful capitalist element in the empire which claimed that their businesses would be destroyed if they were not permitted to exploit slave labour. Eventually ] owners in the ] received £20 million in ]. | |||
| ] | |||
| In Victoria's time the British ] patrolled the ], stopping any ships that it suspected of trading ]n slaves to the ] and freeing any slaves found. The British had set up a ] in ]—]—and transported freed slaves there. Freed slaves from ] founded and named the capital of Sierra Leone: ]. Thus, when Victoria became Queen the British occupied a high moral ground as the nation that stood for freedom and decency. Many people living at that time argued that the living conditions of workers in English factories seemed worse than those endured by some slaves. | |||
| In the same way, throughout the Victoran Era, movements for justice, freedom and other strong moral values opposed greed, exploitation and ]. The writings of ] in particular observed and recorded these conditions. ] and ] carried out much of their analysis of ] in and as a reaction to Victorian Britain. | |||
Revision as of 03:45, 3 August 2005
Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Empress of India
Victorian morality is a distillation of the moral views of people living at the time of Queen Victoria (reigned 1837 - 1901) in particular, and to moral climate of Great Britain throughout the 19th century in general. It is not tied to this historical period and can describe any set of values that espouses sexual repression, low tolerance of crime, and a strong social ethic.
Historians now regard the Victorian era as a time of many contradictions. A plethora of social movements concerned with improving public morals co-existed with a class system that permitted harsh living conditions for many. The apparent contradiction between the widespread cultivation of an outward appearance of dignity and restraint and the prevalence of social phenomena that included prostitution, child labour, and an imperialist colonising economy were two sides of the same coin: the various social reform movements and high principles arose from attempts to improve the harsh conditions.