From today's point of view, the Victorian era seems to have been a paradoxical period in British
history. On the one hand it is a time of revolutionary inventions, rapid industrialisation and further
expansion of the Empire. On the other hand it is also a time, when a huge number of people lived in
poorest conditions and crime and prostitution were daily fare. What is commonly understood by the
term 'Victorian values' today – decency, chastity, diligence, godliness –, was not a common place
neither in the working class nor in high society. One may say that the strong notion of morality,
which was embodied most profoundly by the institution of marriage, was in fact systematically
trespassed by all social classes. Hypocrisy was considered to be the worst vice by Victorians and yet
it seems to have been prevalent by the end of the 19th century. It is also the late period of the
Victorian era that saw comedies mocking the rigid and yet inconsequent morality. Most prominent
plays are those by Oscar Wilde, but before we look closer at the way he satirised the Victorian
society, it is first helpful to examine some of the characteristics of that society, which play an
important role in his works.
The first aspect worth mentioning is the fact that Victorian England was a class society with strictly
defined roles of each class. The time is marked not only by the obvious dominance of the
aristocracy that became even richer due to industrial development (e.g. coal mines), but also by the
formation of a middle-class striving for profit and more power, which eventually led to so-called
Reform Act. On the other hand, however, there was a vast majority of poor workers, which caused
tremendous social problems and became also an important topic of English literature. [...]
Inhaltsverzeichnis
- Victorian Values as Reflected in the Writings of Oscar Wilde
- Victorian England as a Class Society
- Woman's Role and the Institution of Marriage
- Homosexuality as Vice and Crime
- Wilde's Subversion of Victorian Values
- Class Society
- Woman's Position and the Ideal of Marriage
- Wilde's Allusions to Homosexuality
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte
Der Text untersucht die Reflexion viktorianischer Werte in den Schriften von Oscar Wilde. Er beleuchtet verschiedene Aspekte der viktorianischen Gesellschaft, die in Wildes Werken eine Rolle spielen, insbesondere die Klassengesellschaft, die Rolle der Frau und die Institution der Ehe sowie die Frage der Homosexualität. Der Text analysiert, wie Wilde viktorianische Werte in seinen Werken subvertiert und eine satirische Kritik an den gesellschaftlichen Normen der Zeit übt.
- Die Klassengesellschaft im viktorianischen England
- Die Rolle der Frau und die Institution der Ehe
- Homosexualität als gesellschaftliches Tabu
- Wildes Subversion viktorianischer Werte
- Die Rolle der Homosexualität in Wildes Werken
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel
- Victorian Values as Reflected in the Writings of Oscar Wilde: Der erste Teil des Textes stellt die viktorianische Gesellschaft als eine Klassengesellschaft vor, in der die Aristokratie dominiert und die Rolle der Frau durch eine strenge Moral und die Institution der Ehe geprägt ist. Zudem wird die Kriminalisierung von Homosexualität im viktorianischen England dargestellt.
- Wilde's Subversion of Victorian Values: Der zweite Teil analysiert, wie Oscar Wilde viktorianische Werte in seinen Werken subvertiert und parodiert. Besonderes Augenmerk liegt auf der satirischen Darstellung der Klassengesellschaft und der Institution der Ehe.
- Wilde's Allusions to Homosexuality: Der dritte Teil befasst sich mit den Anspielungen auf Homosexualität in Wildes Werken und beleuchtet die Auswirkungen der gesellschaftlichen Repression auf den Autor selbst.
Schlüsselwörter
Viktorianische Werte, Oscar Wilde, Klassengesellschaft, Rolle der Frau, Institution der Ehe, Homosexualität, Subversion, Satire, Gesellschaftskritik, viktorianische Moral, Klassensystem, Reform Act, Mary Wollstonecraft, 'Vindication of Rights of Women', Eric M. Sigsworth, 'In Search of Victorian Values', Contagious Diseases Acts, Josephine Butler, Buggery Act, Criminal Law Amendment Act, 'The Woman's World', 'The Importance of Being Earnest', 'Lady Windermere's Fan', 'The Picture of Dorian Gray', 'De Profundis'
- Quote paper
- M.A. Adam Galamaga (Author), 2012, Victorian Values as Reflected in the Writings of Oscar Wilde, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/208347
