MORALISTIC ASPECT IN VICTORIAN ERA

Introduction to Victorian Era

Victorian Era is regarded as the compilation of years (1837-1901) ruled by Queen Victoria (“Victoria (R. 1837-1901)”). Literature—whether poetry, novels, drama, etc.—produced during this time frame reflected principles characteristic of the era. Therefore, Victorian literature portrayed conflicting views of industrialization and science, heavy utilization of sensory devices, realism, morality, idealization of women, sexual propriety, mixed views of religion and church, and frequent discussion and interest in Medieval legends. The aforementioned facets were characteristic of Victorian poets, especially Matthew Arnold, Lord Tennyson, and Robert Browning.

Victorian poets were moralists. This means that their works manifested the Victorian Moral Code. The Victorian Moral Code highlighted a rigid family structure, sexual propriety, intolerance of criminal ventures, and generosity plus charity to the impoverished. Since morality was a huge concern for the people of the Victorian Era, writers wrote extensively on the topic. While some poets underlined the significance of charity and sexual restriction, other poets expounded on inner conflicts that arose due to the shift from an agricultural economy to an industrial one. Conclusively, every Victorian poet reflected his/her sense of higher moral values in their works.

Matthew Arnold was, perhaps, the most enthusiastic supporter of morality. This is manifested in his poem “Dover Beach”. The major moral themes included in this poem are fidelity and loss of religious faith. Upon reading the poem, readers understand that the speaker and his lover are spending their honeymoon at Dover Beach. All is calm and serene in the beginning. The lover asks his beloved to partake the view of the waves as they crash onto the shore and back towards the sea. The speaker relates the harsh sound of these crashing waves to human suffering and requests his lover to be loyal to him as their love is the only means of surviving the dark world.

Arnold emphasizes sexual propriety and fidelity as the only other person mentioned in the poem is his wife—not lover or mistress.
Ah, love, let us be true / To one another! (Arnold)
In the above line, the poet’s intention is quite clear. He proclaims that the two lovers must be true to each other. This means ideas of adultery or divorce are prohibited. The love must be passionate and pure so that they can overcome hardships and suffering. Consequently, the couple’s mutual love and compassion are ‘true’ and pure because they have followed the moral conduct of the Victorian code. He is only expressing love to his legitimate partner and it is for this reason that they will survive suffering and misery. Had the love not been true or pure, perhaps the lovers would have been vanquished or consumed by the darkness of the world.

Arnold also depicts the loss of religious faith by using the extended metaphor of the sea. While he looks out at the sea, he notices the waves crashing onto the shore and then retreating to the sea. The cacophonous waves remind him of Sophocles’ satisfaction of human suffering at the hands of the gods. Perhaps, Sophocles had heard the same din of the waves which inspired him to write Greek tragedies displaying mortal’s suffering and misery.

“The Sea of Faith / Was once, too, at the full” (Arnold).
Here the sea is a metaphor for faith or (in the current context) Christianity. Arnold announces that scientific advancements have triggered people to interrogate religion and its principles. This sensational line explores the struggle between religion and science by contrasting the depth of the sea (which symbolizes faith) and the magnitude of land (which symbolizes science and technology). People were once very pious and religious; they were devout Christians, believing firmly in the Gospel.

With the advent of technology and Charles Darwin’s Theory of Evolution, people started challenging the religious views, even going so far as to reject them. Before Christian churches upheld immense importance in society but during Queen Victoria’s reign, people started leaving the right path, going towards materialism and prosperity instead. Through this poem, Arnold wishes to reform his readers. He wants them to uphold faith and believe in the Christian principles again. Similarly, he emphasizes the importance of legitimate relationships and true love. In conclusion, sexual propriety, fidelity, and reversion to religion are the underlying moral themes in Matthew Arnold’s “Dover Beach”.

Tennyson’s “The Lady of Shalott”, like many of his other works, represent an intense and thoughtful engagement with Victorian moral values of tradition, faith, patriotic spirits, and sexual restraints. Sexual propriety is the major underlying theme. It illustrates the story of a beautiful maiden who is forced to weave tapestries lest a curse falls upon her. She enjoys the activities of Camelot via mirror reflections and works continuously on her weaving. However, one day, the reflection of Sir Lancelot comes upon her mirror and she stops to gaze down at him, thus welcoming the curse. The weather drastically shifts from calm sunshine to harsh rain and winds. She floats in a boat until the curse has done its work and she is dead.

The theme of sexual constraint is apparent from the first few lines. Since she is a beautiful woman, she must have limited contact with the outside world. Therefore, she stays inside the gray tower and weaves. However, she grows dissatisfied with this life and the alleged curse as depicted in the following lines.

“Came two young lovers lately wed;/’I am half sick of shadows,’ said// The Lady of Shalott” (Tennyson).
Intimacy is something that the Lady of Shalott cannot have as she is confined and isolated due to the curse. Seeing the joyful couple stimulates frustration in the Lady of Shalott.
“She left the web, she left the loom” (Tennyson).
However, Lancelot’s charm is inescapable; she decides to forsake the precautions and glimpses down at him directly. Just as:
Out flew the web and floated wide;
The mirror crack’d from side to side;
‘The curse is come upon me,’ cried
The Lady of Shalott. (Tennyson)
Here, she gives into seduction and invokes the curse. Therefore, Tennyson reminds his readers that women should be pure and virginal. They must not be seduced or attracted by men and guard their chastity. If one does so, they will meet the same fate as the Lady of Shallot.