The Victorian Era I

Objective
In this lesson, you will

History of the Victorian Era

_________________ and literature sometimes form a close connection.

Queen Victoria’s Reign

Queen Victoria was self-confident, deeply attached to her family, and very
_________________.

Queen Victoria ______________ the people by representing the moral virtue and
national ________________ of the country. The British public felt proud of Queen
Victoria, their nation's _________________ and acquisitions, and their newfound _________________.

The Industrial Revolution greatly _________________life during Queen Victoria's reign. Victorian thinkers
struggled with the era's central concern: how to ______________ prosperity with justice and charity.

______________ increased dramatically in Britain's population during the Victorian era. At the same time,
literature ______________ more and more stories about people's ______________ lives.

Victorian literature is divided into three main stages, corresponding to stages of Queen Victoria's
reign.

The early Victorian period was a time of unrest and social change.

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Alfred, Lord Tennyson
Just as William Wordsworth is considered the voice of the romantic age, Tennyson is considered the
___________ of the ____________________ age. He was the most celebrated poet of the era and was named
poet laureate of England after Wordsworth died.

Tennyson's poetry expresses the strength of the human ___________ and reflects both the _____________
and ______________ of Victorian-era people.

"Ulysses"
“Ulysses” was published in the collection Poems in 1842. In Victorian tradition, it blends ______________
elements with the ___________ of the times, that is, an age when people believed in the pursuit of
________________ and ________ experience. It also shows Tennyson's mastery of rhetoric and
______________ ______________. The poem centers on the familiar character Ulysses, also known as
______________, the king of Ithaca and the _________ of Homer's Odyssey.

The poem reflects the popular Victorian mentality in which one must ____________ onward in the
face of _________________. Tennyson explores his __________ through the internal dialogue of the
mythical character Ulysses. This work in particular epitomizes (perfectly represents) the stoic tone of the early
Victorian era.

"Ulysses" is written in ___________ verse. It uses __________ pentameter and ______________, strong
words—words you might expect from the king of _________ and rocky Ithaca. The enjambment creates a
_________ to the monologue and reflects Ulysses's _________________________.

Enjambment: a thought that runs from one line, couplet, or

stanza to the next without a pause that marks a sentence or
phrase. Here is an example from "Ulysses" by Lord Tennyson:
Through scudding drifts the rainy Hyades
Vexed the dim sea:

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Tennyson's ability to master classical line _____________ and line __________ was greatly respected during
the Victorian era. The _____________ syllables are marked for you in the first two lines. Also, the
arrangement of ________ lines, run-on lines, and short, powerful words are used for dramatic effect.

"Ulysses" is a ________________ ____________________—a

speech by a _____________ character directly addressing the
audience. The dramatic monologue allows the reader to see into
Ulysses's ________ and share his inner _______________.
Tennyson uses classical _________, intentional line ____________,
and the dramatic monologue to build his characterization of
Ulysses. These techniques emphasize Ulysses's
__________________________, heroism, and his undying longing
for _____________________.

________________ language and ________________ strengthen

the poem's tone of longing and _________________. They also illustrate a __________ from a romantic view
of nature to one that is more _______________ and less idealized. Tennyson blends ________________
descriptions of nature's beauty with _______________ depictions of aging and the effects of inactivity, or
idleness. Note that Tennyson also uses personification to convey this tone.

Ulysses compares ________________ to ____________ from disuse; he believes that activity brings
new life. Tennyson's readers would have recognized this metaphor as an implied image of a warrior's
_____________ that is either polished for use or else left to rust. This reflects the Victorian idea that people
should aspire to reach goals rather than remain idle, or still.

The imagery illustrates how Ulysses's ______________ has grown “___________” with age and
_________________. The simile in the next line creates a mental picture of Ulysses pursuing
_______________ and ___________________ like a sinking star that moves through the sky and past the edge
of the horizon, where we can no longer see it. The image conveys Ulysses's desire to once again depart for the
__________________.

In addition to imagery, the poem is full of powerful lines. Taken out of context, some of these lines have
become _________________. These wise sayings about life ______________ popular Victorian sentiments
about the positive and negative aspects of _________________ society.

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Tennyson's words offered comfort, __________, and __________________. Just like _________________,
Victorians were "Made ___________ by time and fate, but strong in will / To ________________, to seek, to
find, and not to yield." Note: The tone can be considered both sad and contemplative, or reflective.

The Lady of Shalott

"The Lady of Shalott" is a poem about a ______________ banished to an
____________ castle. Because of a __________, she can cannot
look directly at the surrounding land of Camelot.

The Lady of Shalott spends her time ______________ a tapestry that depicts
the beauty of human life. She can only experience this

beauty directly indirectly by looking at its ______________ in the

mirror in front of her loom. When the sight of the handsome Sir Lancelot in
her mirror causes her to turn and look directly at the world, her mirror and loom break into pieces. She boldly
___________ the tower to experience the world directly and is ____________ to death for her choice. She
_____________ down the river, __________ the world for the first time, and dies before arriving at Camelot.

“The Lady of Shalott" explores some of the following themes:

the Victorians' concepts of femininity and the domestic realm

Tennyson's main characters often progress through a series of separate _______________ that lead to a
dramatic _______________ or new understanding. Tennyson colors these moments with symbolism, vivid
images, figurative language, and ____________ rhythm that add depth and strength to the narrative.

symbolism: the use of a concrete object

to represent an abstract idea

Symbolism is an important ____________ of "The Lady of Shalott."

The external and __________________ world of Camelot represents direct experiences of love, beauty,
growth, and change, or life itself.

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The Lady represents the confined ___________ inspired and bound by a curse to create.

The story could represent the _________ of the soul, the _______________ from the protection of childhood
to adulthood, or the transition from ______________ to _______________.

Throughout "The Lady of Shalott," Tennyson crafts his words and images ___________ to reinforce his
message. Imagery develops the _____________ between the _____________ world of the artist and the
external world of _____________.

For example, Tennyson _____________ two different types of images in the poem. After describing the Lady's
dull, monotonous world inside the tower, he adds descriptions of the vital, changing world outside the tower
walls.

Tennyson also uses _____________________ to add linguistic depth to

the poem.

A synecdoche is a figure of speech in which a

part is used to represent the whole or the
whole is used to represent the part.

Synecdoche is a common way to ___________________ fictional

characters. It highlights certain _______________ and adds
_________________ to characterizations. A character may be
consistently described by a ____________ body _______ or feature such as the eyes. In "The Lady of Shalott,"
the helmet and plume are used to __________________ and emphasize Sir Lancelot's high stature as the best
knight in the kingdom.

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 A part is used to refer to the whole:
His parents bought him a new set of wheels.
The busy mother had many mouths to feed.
The whole is used to refer to a part:
The police came too late.
Use your head to figure it out.
part→the whole, which is the __________.
part→the whole, which includes the
____________.
whole→specific parts, which are on-duty police
officers.

whole→a part, which is the ______________.

The general is used to refer to the specific:
No being would believe that story.
We're fresh out of milk, but we do have
goat's milk.
The general→specific, which is a
______________.
The general→specific, which is cow’s milk

The material is used to refer to the thing
made from it:
Those are some nice threads.
Would you like paper or plastic?
The material→things made from it, which are
clothes.
The materials →things made from them, which
are paper or plastic _________________.

Throughout "The Lady of Shalott," symbolism, _______________, and figurative language are held together by
______________. Tennyson uses ________________ and __________ to reinforce meaning, create
_________, and add coherence to the poem.

When the Lady hears Sir Lancelot sing "Tirra lirra," she __________ her tower and seals her doom. Tennyson
emphasizes this turning point by manipulating the verb _____________ in these crucial lines. As the Lady's
experiences _________ from the static (stationary) to the ______________, so too does Tennyson's language.

"The Lady of Shalott" combines a simple but moving _____________ with rich _______________ that can be
interpreted in many ways. The __________ of the poem contributes significantly to its depth of meaning.

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Focus on Language
When reading Tennyson's poems in this lesson, you might have noted several words that were
______________ to you. Often, when you encounter a ______ word or a word used in an _________________
way, you can use _________________ clues to guess or determine its meaning.
context clues: using the surrounding words,
phrases, or sentences to determine a word’s
meaning.

For example, suppose you've read a description of a person's beauty in one sentence, and then the next
sentence includes an _______________ adjective _____________ the word appearance. It would then be
reasonable to _____________ that the meaning of the adjective is "beautiful."

Summary
How did the literature of the Victorian era reflect the events of the time?

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