The 19th century is from 1801 to 1900. The 19th century was called the Victorian period because Queen Victoria ruled the United Kingdom. Industrialization spread even more than the 18th century. The empire of Britain was expanding more than ever, literature flourished also. There was poverty, bad health conditions of people living in London specifically because of industrialization. In this portfolio I will be discussing the major themes in the 19th century.

I hope you will enjoy reading my portfolio. 

1- Queen Elizabeth ( from 16th to 17th century ) during the Renaissance. 

2- Queen Victoria in the 19th century. 

They all did great changes and gave opportunities for all people. For example, opening the door for people from all different classes to be educated in Elizabeth time, which led to the increase of the middle class. There was more educational reformation as well as liberty especially during Victorian time. Liberty was a very outstanding thing that happened. Both of them made huge political, social, and educational reformations.

In 1811-1816 textile workers in the Midlands and the north of England broke machines, fearing they would cause unemployment. The wreckers were called Luddites and if caught they were likely to be hanged.

In 1822 a Tory government was formed which introduced some reforms. At that time you could be hanged for over 200 offence. 

In 1825-1828 the death penalty was abolished for more than 180 crimes.

Peel also formed the first modern police force in London in 1829. The police were called 'bobbies' or 'peelers' after him.

However the working class were excluded from the reforms. 

From 1838 a working class protest movement called the Chartists was formed. (They were named after their People's Charter). 

The Chartists had several demands. They wanted all men to have the vote. Furthermore at that time you had to own a certain amount of property to become an MP. Chartists wanted the property qualification abolished.

During the Napoleonic Wars 1799-1815 Britain could not import large amounts of grain from Europe. That all changed in 1815. British landowners feared that cheap foreign grain would be imported so they passed the Corn Laws.

It is an example of how Queen Victoria supported poor people. Why Corn? Because corn is the basic crop for poor people to eat. It was a major crop in England. Corn law at least maintained and provided the basic human needs for the poor. It is a sort of social support for the poor. 

Started to connect all parts of England and Europe. Making traveling easier, cheaper than before. Before it was through ships or horses. The first passenger railway opened in 1825 between Stockton and Darlington. In 1830 a line was opened between Manchester and Liverpool. William Huskisson MP for Liverpool was killed but nothing could stop the growth of the railways. By 1848 there were 5,000 miles of railways in Britain and the network continued to expand rapidly in the later 19th century.

People coming from rural agricultural villages were shocked with the bad working and health conditions in factories as they workers had no rights at all. 

Factory law was the beginning of these rights to improve working conditions.
Introducing holidays, working hours, minimum wage, age limit for workers so that no child has to work, and the number of workers in one factory to avoid crowdedness. All these healthy conditions, health insurances, as well as contracts. 

Predominant at the start of the 19th century, by the end of the Victorian era the Church of England was increasingly only one part of a vibrant and often competitive religious culture, with non-Anglican Protestant denominations enjoying a new prominence. The period also saw the greatest burst of church building since the Middle Ages.

- 19th century gas street lights made going out at night much easier and safer.

- For the first time ordinary people could have pictures of their loved ones to remember them by if they lived far away.

- The idea that a person’s voice could travel through a wire was considered something akin to witchcraft when it was first proposed, but by the time Alexander Graham Bell patented his “electric telegraph” in March of 1876, it was not only a reality, but was to forever change the country. Now it was possible for people to interrupt other people’s meals or get them out of the bathtub from the comfort of their own parlor. 

- Typewriters are electromechanical or mechanical equipment that produce characters by pressing ink upon paper. It was invented by Johann Gutenberg. Johann helped convert the printing press into simple equipment for personal usage.

It means that benefiting the majority, the many, is the most important thing; regardless if it was wrong or right or if it is going to negatively impact some people.
This was an excuse for the rich people, that it doesn’t matter if you some workers lost their lives cause they’re living in bad health conditions, as long as whatever they’re working on will be in the benefit of the majority. It believes that it is okay to kill or use the poor. 

It is the opposite. Each individual is important in his/her self. Even if it’s a poor person, a women, or a child or anyone they might be. They must be protected and taken care of, as every and each soul counts in the society.

Ideas, A. O. (Director). (2013, March 13). Collectivism and Individualism[Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdPyrKVFMpA

During the late 18th century, Sunday schools held at church or chapel became widely popular, receiving much charitable backing from the middle classes. They provided children from poor families with another opportunity to receive some basic learning, usually the ability to read.

In the 19th century the Church of England sponsored most formal education until the government established free, compulsory education towards the end of that century. University College London was established as the first secular college in England, open to students of all religions (or none), followed by King's College London; the two institutions formed the University of London. Durham University was also established in the early nineteenth century. Towards the end of the century, the "redbrick" universities, new public universities, were founded.

In the 19th century the philosophies of the Enlightenment began to have a dramatic effect, the landmark works of earlier philosophers such as Immanuel Kant and Jean-Jacques Rousseau influences the 19th century generation of thinkers. In the late 18th century a movement known as Romanticism began; it inspires music, literature, and philosophy. The early 19th century is dominated by Hegel and German Idealism. Napoleon brought political turmoil to Europe, and the old monarchies are slowly crumbling.

The leading Victorian art critics included John Ruskin (1819-1900) and Walter Pater (1839-94). Ruskin taught aesthetics at Oxford from 1870. He also attempted to relate man to the machine age and to reinstate the artist and craftsman. He greatly admired Gothic art as well as Italian Renaissance art, and wrote "The Seven Lamps of Architecture". He was a friend and champion of the pre-Raphaelites. Ruskin's influence was considerable in the United States. One of his disciples was William Morris, a poet and interior designer full of social ideas who was to play a major role in English art. Another important Victorian art critic was Walter Pater, who wrote a number of essays on Leonardo da Vinci (1869), Sandro Botticelli (1870), Michelangelo (1871) and Giorgione (1877). His book - Studies in the History of the Renaissance (1873) - which included the first three essays, included his inspired commentary on the Mona Lisa (1504), arguably the most famous piece of writing on any painting by a British art critic.

Literary realism is the trend, beginning with mid nineteenth-century French literature and extending to late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century authors, toward depictions of contemporary life and society as it was, or is. In the spirit of general "realism," realist authors opted for depictions of everyday and banal activities and experiences, instead of a romanticized or similarly stylized presentation.

Jane Austen is an English novelist, feminist who rebelled against the social norms related to women of that era in terms of oppressing them and inequality in English society. Women did not receive equal rights in terms of education, marriage. They had limited economic and legal rights. She focused on middle class and aristocratic women in her novels. She is well known of her novel: Pride and Prejudice. 

Jane Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice portrays the middle class and how most of this class are trying to catch up with the upper class. The concept of drawing room appears in the novel. It is a symbol and an example of how the family life is at that time women would play music and talk about fashion and men. There’s also the smoking room for men to talk about work politics. This is a typical life of middle class family portrayed in Jane novels. From that time onward, the thinking was that give women education but they also need to be civilized in different manners the way they dress, the way they play music. To be civilized is to be cultured in music. These are added qualities for women to be married and be in good position in the future, education alone is not enough. 

people lived in very comfortable houses in the 19th century. (Although their servants lived in cramped quarters, often in the attic). For the first time furniture was mass-produced. That meant it was cheaper but unfortunately standards of design fell. To us middle class Victorian homes would seem overcrowded with furniture, ornaments and nick-knacks. However only a small minority could afford this comfortable lifestyle.

In the early 19th century housing for the poor was dreadful. Often they lived in 'back-to-backs'. These were houses of three (or sometimes only two) rooms, one of top of the other. The houses were literally back-to-back. The back of one house joined onto the back of another and they only had windows on one side. The bottom room was used as a living room cum kitchen. The two rooms upstairs were used as bedrooms. The worst homes were cellar dwellings. These were one-room cellars. They were damp and poorly ventilated. The poorest people slept on piles of straw because they could not afford beds. Fortunately in the 1840s local councils passed by-laws banning cellar dwellings. They also banned any new back to backs. The old ones were gradually demolished and replaced over the following decades.

Higher class: nobility class lived and enjoyed a life of luxuries. These women spent most of their time attending tea parties and balls. They were expected to be highly educated. 

Middle class: There were expected to take education, help in the family business and try to get married into the nobility. 

Lower class: Women’s were not educated. They sold their own goods and service to the people of their village or cleaned or worked as housekeepers to the upper middle class. 

There was no justice in salary between male teachers and female teachers. Female teachers were humiliated by having been payed lower wages compared to male ones.

In this time period, women would be ostracized if they showed too much skin. Hence, women were forced to wear these outfits. There is one advantage in women fashion it is: pockets.

It was a big deal that women could have pockets. In the 18th century, only men’s clothing had pockets, which represented superiority, and women’s clothing now having pockets was considered to be a societal upgrade. 

In the first decade of the 1800's, men successfully embraced fashions that were appropriate for formal, work and casual occasions. The 1800's were all about polish and sophistication (especially the first decade), which is evident in the clothing that was worn especially by men. At the beginning of the century, the standard for men's wear still adhered to the styles of the 18th century, with knee-length breeches worn over stockings, tail coats cut high over the top of the breeches, collars turned up and ruffled cravats worn at the neck. The hat of choice was usually a top hat and most men carried walking sticks. Cloaks were still worn during this period; but by 1820 this gave way to the more practical and manageable overcoat.

- My personal in class notes.

- Dr. Hadeer Abouelnagah's presentations.

- My notes from Fiction course.

- Richey, T. (Producer). (2016, January 24). The Corn Laws[Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iostWBLJ0M

- https://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/p/pride-and-prejudice/critical-essays/womens-roles-in-early-nineteenthcentury-britain 

- Braungardt, J. (n.d.). Philosophy in the 19th Century. Retrieved from http://braungardt.trialectics.com/philosophy/philosophy-in-the-19th-century/

- Danelek, J. (2010, August 9). Top 10 Greatest Inventions of the 19th Century. Retrieved from https://www.toptenz.net/top-10-greatest-inventions-of-the-19th-century.php

- Ideas, A. O. (Director). (2013, March 13). Collectivism and Individualism[Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdPyrKVFMpA

- Lambert, T. (2019). A HISTORY OF BRITAIN IN THE 19th CENTURY. Retrieved from http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html

- Jennings, D. (n.d.). Men's 1800's Wear. Retrieved from https://mens-fashion.lovetoknow.com/Mens_1800's_Wear

- Victoria, & Museum, A. (2013, March 28). Introduction to 19th-Century Fashion. Retrieved from http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/i/introduction-to-19th-century-fashion/

- 19th century in literature. (2019, February 22). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/19th_century_in_literature

- Gender and work in the nineteenth century. (n.d.). Lecture presented at Department of History in University of Warwick. Retrieved from https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/modules/hi253/lectures/lecture3/.

- Victorian Art (1840-1900). (n.d.). Retrieved April 3, 2019, from http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/history-of-art/victorian.htm

- Lambert, T. (n.d.). 19TH CENTURY HOUSES. Retrieved from http://www.localhistories.org/vichomes.html

- Elementary education in the 19th century. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/transformingsociety/livinglearning/school/overview/in19thcentury/

- Victorians: Religion. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/story-of-england/victorian/religion/

- Victorian women and roles of women in the Victorian Era. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://victorian-era.org/roles-of-women-in-the-victorian-era.html

2- Age of reason: The time of life when one begins to be able to distinguish right from wrong, period characterized by a prevailing belief in the use of reason.

Age Of Reason. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/age of reason

3- Capitalism: a country's trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the state. 

4- Civilization: The social process whereby societies achieve an advanced stage of development and organization. 

Civilization. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.thefreedictionary.com/civilisation

6- Colonialism: The policy or practice of acquiring full or partial political control over another country, occupying it with settlers, and exploiting it economically. 

7- Communism: political and economic doctrine that aims to replace private property and a profit-based economy with public ownership and communal control of at least the major means of production (e.g., mines, mills, and factories) and the natural resources of a society. Communism is thus a form of socialism—a higher and more advanced form, according to its advocates. 

9- Ethnic Literature: It is literature written from a perspective of a unique background. A person who grew up with a different set of belief from you might experience things differently. Maybe more intensely, less intensely or with a different belief set or experience. So it is a way to connect to the human experience through a different set of lenses. Sometimes, different cultures put a higher or lower weight on different values. So it is like having a telescope and pointing it to a different part of the cosmos and discovering new and interesting things.

Ethnic literature. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-meaning-of-ethnic-literature

10- Enlightenment: The state of understanding something. 

12- Farce: is a literary genre and type of comedy that makes use of highly exaggerated and funny situations aimed at entertaining the audience. Farce is also a subcategory of dramatic comedy, which is different from other forms of comedy as it only aims at making the audience laugh. It uses elements like physical humor, deliberate absurdity, bawdy jokes, and drunkenness just to make people laugh. We often see one‐dimensional characters in ludicrous situations in farces. 

13- Gothic Literature: a style of writing that is characterized by elements of fear, horror, death, and gloom, as well as romantic elements, such as nature, individuality, and very high emotion. These emotions can include fear and suspense. 

14- Heretic: a person who maintains beliefs contrary to the established teachings of the Church. A heretic is someone whose beliefs or actions are considered wrong by most people, because they disagree with beliefs that are generally accepted.

15- Humanism: a belief system based on the principle that people's spiritual and emotional needs can be satisfied without following a god or religion.

HUMANISM | meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/humanism?q=Humanism

16- Individualism: the idea that freedom of thought and action for each person is the most important quality of a society, rather than shared effort and responsibility.

17- Islamophobia: unreasonable dislike or fear of, and prejudice against, Muslims or Islam.

Islamophobia | meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/islamophobia?q=Islamophobia

18- Meditation: is a mental exercise of regulating attention. It is practiced either by focusing attention on a single object, internal or external (focused attention meditation) or by paying attention to whatever is predominant in your experience in the present moment, without allowing the attention to get stuck on any particular thing (open monitoring meditation). The word “meditate” actually means to think deeply about something. However, when eastern contemplative practices were “imported” to Western culture, this is the term that was used to define them, for lack of a better word. Nowadays meditation has more the meaning of this exercise of focusing attention than to reflect deeply. 

What is Meditation - The Ultimate Guide To Get You Started. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://liveanddare.com/what-is-meditation/

20- Microscope: a device that uses lenses to make very small objects look larger, so that they can be scientifically examined and studied. 

MICROSCOPE | meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/microscope

21- Modernism: Modernism seeks to find new forms of expression and rejects traditional or accepted ideas.

MODERNISM | meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/modernism

22- Multicultural Literature: describes how people live in different parts of the world. In other words, we can learn about their culture and beliefs. It also presents an accurate representation of the culture it portrays and must be free from stereotypes, or beliefs about a particular group that are oversimplified or based upon generalizations.

Multicultural literature Definition. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://study.com/academy/lesson/multicultural-literature-definition-books-importance.html

23- Mysticism: is the pursuit of communion with, identity with, or conscious awareness of an ultimate reality, divinity, spiritual truth, or God. The believer seeks a direct experience, intuition, or insight into divine reality/the deity or deities. Followers pursue certain ways of living, or practices that are intended to nurture those experiences. Mysticism can be distinguished from other forms of religious belief and worship by its emphasis on the direct personal experience of a unique state of consciousness, particularly those of a peaceful, insightful, blissful, or even ecstatic character. It is a feeling of God’s presence — without media. Mysticism asserts on behalf of mystics that immediate experience of God is possible and preferred. This means that nothing mediates the experience of God for the mystic — not a holy book, not a holy person, not an idea, not a church, not a synagogue, not a temple, not a mosque, not a bent knee, not a pinched-shut eyelid nor lips parted in prayer. 

Mysticism/What is mysticism? (n.d.). Retrieved from https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Mysticism/What_is_mysticism?

24- Naturalism: was a literary movement that attempted to portray realistic situations often with a pessimistic and detached tone. Naturalism grew out of and against certain movements; the theory to which it owed most, in fact, was Charles Darwin’s Theory of Evolution. Naturalist writers believed that anything that happened could be traced to genetic or environmental causes, and characters would act in “scientific” ways according to these principles. Naturalism was opposed to movements such as Surrealism and Romanticism, which focused on symbolic and supernatural events as well as idealizing situations and characters. 

Naturalism Examples and Definition. (2016, May 16). Retrieved from http://www.literarydevices.com/naturalism/

25- Postmodernism: in Western philosophy, a late 20th-century movement characterized by broad skepticism, subjectivism, or relativism; a general suspicion of reason; and an acute sensitivity to the role of ideology in asserting and maintaining political and economic power. 

Duignan, B. (2018, October 25). Postmodernism. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/topic/postmodernism-philosophy

26- Public Health Act: is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Its purpose was to combat filthy urban living conditions, which caused various public health threats, including the spread of many diseases such as cholera and typhus. 

Public Health Act 1875. (2019, February 11). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_Health_Act_1875

27- Rationality: The quality of being based on or in accordance with reason or logic.

Rationality | Definition of rationality in English by Oxford Dictionaries. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/rationality

28- Realism: The attitude or practice of accepting a situation as it is and being prepared to deal with it accordingly.

Realism | Definition of realism in English by Oxford Dictionaries. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/realism

29- Reality: The state of things as they actually exist, as opposed to an idealistic or notional idea of them.

Reality | Definition of reality in English by Oxford Dictionaries. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/reality

30- Renaissance: The period of new growth of interest and activity in the areas of art, literature, and ideas in Europe during the 15th and 16th centuries.

31- Romanticism: A movement in the arts and literature that originated in the late 18th century, emphasizing inspiration, subjectivity, and the primacy of the individual.

Romanticism | Definition of romanticism in English by Oxford Dictionaries. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/romanticism

32- Scholasticism: the system of theological and philosophical teaching predominant in the Middle Ages, based chiefly upon the authority of the church fathers and of Aristotle and his commentators.

Scholasticism. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.dictionary.com/browse/scholasticism

33- Science Fiction: Fiction based on imagined future scientific or technological advances and major social or environmental changes, frequently portraying space or time travel and life on other planets.

Science fiction | Definition of science fiction in English by Oxford Dictionaries. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/science_fiction

34- Socialism: An economic system in which goods and services are provided through a central system of cooperative and/or government ownership rather than through competition and a free market system.

What is socialism? definition and meaning. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/socialism.html

35- Symbolism: the use of symbols in art, literature, films, etc. to represent ideas.

SYMBOLISM | meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/symbolism

36- Syndicate: a group of people or companies who join together in order to share the cost of a particular business operation for which a large amount of money is needed.

SYNDICATE | meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/syndicate

37- Telescope: a device used to form magnified images of distant objects. The telescope is undoubtedly the most important investigative tool in astronomy. It provides a means of collecting and analyzing radiation from celestial objects, even those in the far reaches of the universe. 

Kellermann, K. I., & Klock, B. (2019, March 08). Telescope. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/science/optical-telescope

38- The Codex: The earliest type of manuscript in the form of a modern book (i.e., a collection of written pages stitched together along one side), the codex replaced the earlier rolls of papyrus and wax tablets. The codex had several advantages over the roll, or scroll. It could be opened at once to any point in the text, it enabled one to write on both sides of the leaf, and it could contain long texts. It has been called the most important advance in book making before the invention of printing. The codex transformed the shape of the book itself, and offered a form that lasted until present day.

Britannica, T. E. (2018, February 07). Codex. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/topic/codex-manuscript

39- The Crusades: were a series of religious wars between Christians and Muslims started primarily to secure control of holy sites considered sacred by both groups. In all, eight major Crusade expeditions occurred between 1096 and 1291. 

Editors, H. (2010, June 07). Crusades. Retrieved from https://www.history.com/topics/middle-ages/crusades

40- The Dark Ages: a period or stage marked by repressiveness, a lack of enlightenment or advanced knowledge, etc.

Dark ages. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.dictionary.com/browse/dark-ages

41- The Golden Ages: the period in life after the middle age, traditionally characterized by wisdom, contentment, and useful leisure. 

Golden age. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.dictionary.com/browse/golden-age

42- The plague (The black death): a form of bubonic plague pandemic in Europe and Asia during the 14th century, when it killed over 50 million people.

Black death. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.dictionary.com/browse/black-death