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Victorian Literature and Culture Assignment 2

How does the poetry of the Victorian period treat social issues?

The Victorian era was characterized by great progress, with urbanization of the rural areas, development
of the industry and technology
...
Nevertheless, numerous poems from the era portray t
he strong backlash against the rapid advancements and the movement towards modernity from the traditi
onal way of life
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Initially, it is possible to illustrate poetry composed in the Victorian period which critically stresses the role
of progress in Victorian society in bringing about social problems
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To illustrate, Victorian themes of decadence, corrupti
on and a decline in religious values as a result of the move towards modernism is expressed in the poem:
“Dover Beach” by the prominent social critic of the time, Matthew Arnold, where the poet’s sensibility tow
ards the decline of conventional values is emphasized
...
Thereby the mood of the poem h
ere highlights the increasing problems of immorality during
the nineteenth century Victorian period
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Here, the image of the light is referred to as a metaphor to draw the reader’s attention to the idea
of diminishing hope as society’s conventional relegations morality was perceived as declining and gradual
ly being replaced by a modern yet depraved society
...
Notably, Rosset
ti expresses her condemnation of the advancements of society, which undoubtedly attracted sin and mora
l corruption, particularly through the increasing rate of prostitution in the cities
...
To demonstrate, the city is
personified as an immoral woman, as this is implied in: “Foul is she and ill-flavoured” and: “no wine is in h
er cup but filth is there”, where phrases such as “foul”, “ill-flavoured” and: “filthy” illustrate the poet’s use of
negative connotations to describe the city
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This illustrat
es the similar attitudes towards social issues expressed in Arnold’s poems, since both poets condemn the
move towards modernity which is seen as the c
ause of social problems in the Victorian period
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For instance, comparable to the ideas of Arnold and Rossetti, is the poems
of Thomas Hardy, which often criticize the transformation from the traditional, unadulterated agricu

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