Literature 1: The 19th Century

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Literature 1: 
The 19th Century 

The Literature Reader

The following weeks focus on 19th centure literature, a period also known as Victorian.

Overlap between some of the movements we have already studied (Gothic and Romantic)

Literature Test

At the end of this period:
    - A literature test about all the background information, 
       the questions, and the assignments  
    - SE grade!

Seperate test for Reading (not PTA)

1. Take a guess: How many people lived in London around 1800?

A

500.000

B

750.000

C

1.000.000

D

1.250.000

2. Take a guess: How many people lived in London a century later, around 1900?

A

3.6 million

B

4.9 million

C

5.4 million

D

6.7 million

3. Take a guess: Which of the following did not exist yet in the 19th century?

A

Telephones

B

Radios

C

Telegraphs

D

Cameras

4. Take a guess: What was an important Revolution during the 19th century?

A

January revolution

B

Industrial revolution

C

French revolution

D

Russian Revolution

5. Take a guess: How many people lived in the entire British Empire (Great Britain + all of the colonies) in 1900?

A

200 million

B

300 million

C

400 million

D

500 million

6. Take a guess: The first Gothic Novel (ghost story book) was written in what year?

A

1509

B

1623

C

1764

D

1834

The 19th Century

- Queen Victoria reigned 1837 - 1901 (63 years!)

- Growing British Empire 

         - New aditions Egypt, Singapore and Burma  
- Huge transition during Industrial Revolution

         - Steam engines, machines, etc. 
         - People move from countryside to cities 
         

The 19th Century

Population numbers during the 19th century

-1800: 1 million people live in London

         - 1900: 6.7 million people live in London

         - British Empire: 400 million people worldwide 

After 

Changes in the 19th century

- Life expectancy increased

- Class divisions changed

- Creation of a new group, Middle Class

1. doctors 

2. lawyers

3. teachers

4. engineers

Changes in the 19th century

• A time of great change: Napoleon marching through Europe, many wars on independence (e.g. South American countries, USA), colonies, industrial revolution…

Some important achievements for human civilisation:

• The Battle of Trafalgar: the victory saved Britain from being invaded by the French > established naval dominance > foundation of the power of the British Empire.

• The abolition of slavery: end to slavery in the British Isles (not the colonies!) > anti-slavery sentiment spread across the world.

• The Battle of Waterloo: Napoleon’s final defeat.

End of classes

- France: Poorer people became dissatisfied which led to the French Revolution.

This marked the beginning of the end of the classes in Europe.

Changes in the 19th century

- New inventions such as: Cameras, telegraphs and telephones

- Child labour

• Factory workers just like their parents

• crawling under machines

• cleaning chimneys

• working in shipyards 

7. What was not an effect of the Industrial Revolution?

A

Increased Child Labour

B

New Middle Class: engineers, doctors

C

People lived longer

D

More people working on farms

8. What was the title of the first Gothic novel?

A

The Castle of Orlando

B

The Castle of Otranto

C

The Castle of Othello

D

The Castle of Orcano

9. Before the Romantic Period came ...?

A

The Age of Treason

B

The Middle Ages

C

The Age of Light

D

The Age of Reason

10. Which group was not a part of the new Middle Class?

A

Doctors

B

Soldiers

C

Engineers

D

Laywers

What did the critics think about the Gothic novel genre?

A

They loved it

B

They thought it needed a more realistic setting

C

They thought the books were rubbish

D

They were indifferent about the genre

After 

Check the reader: 

- Next class:
Dickens and social problems of his time