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The purpose of this course is to consider literature from the 1840s with a view to forming a greater understanding of ‘Victorian Literature’ by looking at a number of texts published from each decade of Victoria’s long reign.

The 1840s was a time of great prosperity for many with the industrial revolution bringing about the growth of many industrial towns and cities resulting in vast numbers of people migrating from rural areas into growing urban spaces. Progress did mean opportunity for many. However this period was also known as the ‘Hungry Forties’ so there was also significant social inequality. We will consider the following texts: Barnaby Rudge (Charles Dickens 1841); The Luck of Barry Lyndon (W M Thackeray, 1844); Sybil (Benjamin Disraeli, 1845); Agnes Grey (Anne Bronté, 1847); Shirley (Charlotte Bronté, 1849). We will consider the social and political context of the texts to be studied and consider the narrative techniques and styles we see in these diverse texts.

In subsequent courses we will study the decades from the 1850s through to 1901. It is of course not compulsory to study each course and learners may choose to dip in and out for the decades they are most interested in.