The Victorian Age

   The Victorian era was a period of dramatic change that brought England to its highest point of development as a world power.   The Victorian period formally begins in 1837 (the year Victoria became Queen) and ends in 1901 (the year of her death).  1830 is usually considered the end of the Romantic period in Britain, and thus makes a convenient starting date for Victorianism. During the 19th century, the British empire extensively expanded its colonial presence in many parts of Africa, in India, in the middle-east and in other parts of Asia.  This process has had many long-term effects, including the increased use of the English language outside of Europe. The period saw the rise of a highly idealized notion of what is “English” or what constitutes an “Englishman.” Many colonists and politicians saw it as their political duty to “help” or “civilize” native populations in colonized regions. Thus they have a model which provides a set of standards and codes of conduct. Later Victorian writing saw the seeds of rebellion against such idealized notions and stereotypical codes of conduct.

   Literacy increased significantly in the period, and publishers could bring out more material more cheaply than ever before.  The most significant development in publishing was the growth of the periodical. By the end of Victoria’s reign, women could take degrees at twelve universities.  Hundreds of thousands of working-class women labored at factory jobs under appalling conditions, and many were driven into prostitution.

  The Victorian era lasted roughly twice as long as the Romantic period. Romantic period saw a wide variety of distinguishing characteristics, it is logical that much longer Victorian period includes even more variety.

REFERENCES: https://www.wwnorton.com/college/english/nael/victorian/review/summary.htm

The Rime Of Ancient Mariner

  Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” is about a man on a voyage by ship, who in one impulsive and heinous act, changes the course of his life and death. 

  The Mariner faces an inner struggle over the crime he has committed, and must understand his actions and perform his penance.  He must also learn to abandon his negative views and openly accept all of Gods’ creatures.  The voyage now becomes a journey of learning important lessons in accountability, acceptance, forgiveness, and repentance. After the Mariner kills the Albatross, it is hung around his neck so he can understand the seriousness of his act. The ship and its crew face difficulties as it comes to a halt on the sea.  The Mariner is angry at his fate instead of remorseful for his crime, and he curses the sea and the creatures in it. Mariner alone and frightened. Later ,the Mariner has begun to broaden his views and acknowledge the spiritual wonder and joys of the universe.  He has learned to release his negative views, and by doing so, has set free the spirits of his dead shipmates. While he may experience a brief period of serenity after each story telling, the guilt inevitably returns and he must go through the cycle again.  Lessons have been learned, but the Mariner will pay the price of his sin for eternity.

 REFERENCES: http://www.shmoop.com/rime-of-ancient-mariner/summary.html

Romantic Period

  English Romantic poets had a strong connection with medievalism and mythology.No other period in English literature displays more variety in style, theme, and content than the Romantic Movement of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Furthermore, no period has been the topic of so much disagreement and confusion over its defining principles and aesthetics.As a term to cover the most distinctive writers who flourished in the last years of the 18th century and the first decades of the 19th, “Romantic” is indispensable but also a little misleading: there was no self-styled “Romantic movement” at the time, and the great writers of the period did not call themselves Romantics. In England, Romanticism had its greatest influence from the end of the eighteenth century up through about 1870.

  Romanticism is concerned with the individual more than with society. The individual consciousness and especially the individual imagination are especially fascinating for the Romantics. “Melancholy” was quite the buzzword for the Romantic poets, and altered states of consciousness were often sought after in order to enhance one’s creative potential. Thanks largely to the Industrial Revolution, English society was undergoing the most severe paradigm shifts it had seen in living memory. The concentration on the individual mind gradually shifted from an optimistic brand of spiritualism into a more modern, cynical study of the underside of humanity.

REFERENCES:

http://global.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/188217/English-literature/12976/The-Romantic-period

http://www.online-literature.com/periods/romanticism.php

Quotation from Robinson Crusoe

  “O drug!” said I aloud, “what art thou good for? Thou art not worth to me, no, not the taking off of the ground; one of those knives is worth all this heap; I have no manner of use for thee; e’en remain where thou art and go to the bottom as a creature whose life is not worth saving.” However, upon second thoughts, I took it away. . . .

  Actually this term is ‘’drug’’ used for the ‘’money’’ here.  At the beginning it is not clear, but we understand the meaning. Robinson was alone in island. He finds money while he is wandering  island for guns , foods. He finds money. At first he doesn’t care he thinks that ‘’money is useless here’’but later he takes money .  In my opinion Robinson thinks that ‘’money can save his life for the next days ‘’ so he takes the money.