What is a 'fallen woman'?

            A fallen woman is a Victorian woman with sexual experience. In almost every situation, a fallen woman has a "sexual trespass that produced her fall" (Auerbach 30). Fallen woman are popularly prostitutes, which were very common during the Victorian era. The fallen women is the opposite of the ideal women. However, the husbands of ideal women will still turn to fallen women for sexual experiences. Ideal women are regarded as innocent and angelic and society teaches that they need to be kept that way and often that excludes them from any sexual experiences, even after marriage. Although the majority of prostitutes' clients are "bachelors postponing marriage... middle-class youths... soldiers and sailors...and so on" (Tosh, "Historians with Masculinity", 182). Men also turned to homosexuality but although the "'gay life' was very widespread...it remained firmly out of sight" (Tosh, "Historians with Masculinity", 182). Due to sexual promiscuity through prostitutes STDs spread through society. In 1864 the first Contagious Diseases Act was enacted. This law held women responsible for the spread of STDs; therefore, doctors could legally examine any woman, or mechanically rape her, upon suspicion.  

The Lady of Shalott

            "The Lady of Shalott" by Tennyson shows us an ideal woman trying to break away from conventions. The Lady of Shalott stays inside the house and is very innocent and delicate. In a painting rendition by John Waterhouse, she is with her knitting work in front of her while looking through the mirror, a very domestic activity. So she fits this ideal domestic and feminine role. However, she decides that she is "half sick of shadows" and breaks away from the confinement of the house and feminine role (Tennyson 71). In consequence of breaking away from this tradition a curse comes upon her and she dies before she ever gets to Camelot. Through "The Lady of Shalott" we see the tension of the limiting feminine ideal in society and women trying to break away from that ideal.     

Ulysses: two roles of masculinity

            In “Ulysses” by Tennyson we examine two different male roles through the father and the son. The father's role is an adventurer, explorer and fighter. This is a common role for Victorian men because they were charged with the responsibility to explore colonies and claim land for the glory of the empire. The father craves "to sail beyond the sunset, and the baths/ of all the western starts, until [he] die[s]" (Tennyson 60-61). Socially this is an accepted male duty and role. This role is contrasted with the role of the son. The son's role in "Ulysses" is to stay at home and rule the land. There is a lot of tension about the son's duty because it could be interpreted as a feminine role. The son must "through soft degrees/ subdue [the people] to the useful and the good" (Tennyson 37-38). Men are traditionally supposed to be hard, not fulfilling the "offices of tenderness" (Tennyson 41). It is also a very domestic and feminine role to stay at home and take care of things while the father, or man, goes off to gather glory and riches. However, socially ruling is an acceptable role for a man. Queen Victoria claimed that in order to be a good women--to be "feminine and amiable and domestic"--women were "not fitted to reign" (Victorian Era LII). Therefore, she let her husband, Albert, rule the country for the short time he was alive. She was very submissive to his will and opinion and more took upon herself the domestic mother role (Victorian Era LII). Therefore, this tension built in "Ulysses" starts to expand our view of the male roles that are socially acceptable.   

Masculinity

Society was based on a patriarchal system in the Victorian Era. Even though women were expected to be in the home and supervise all the servants the household authority "was a pyramidal structure with the father at the top (Tosh, "A Man's Place", 25). Female ideals were taken from the upper class, and masculine ideals were also reflected with that standard. Among the traditional masculine roles are: gentleman, prophet, priest, and soldier (Adams). But what is a gentleman? During this era, society allows men to qualify for the title 'gentleman' rather than just inheriting it from birth; however, because of this masculinity and gentility are expected to be the same thing—to be a proper man you should be a gentleman. John Tosh defines masculinity, or gentility, as both a psychic and social identity. Masculinity is a psychic identity because the “subjectivity of every male” as masculinity “takes shape in infancy and childhood” (Tosh, "Historians with Masculinity", 198). It is a social identity because masculinity is “inseparable from peer recognition” and also “depends on performance in the social sphere” (Tosh, "Historians with Masculinity", 198). This blurs the lines even more in defining a gentleman through proper masculinity. "If" by Rudyard Kipling defines characteristics of masculinity so that boys can grow up to be men. However, “If” sets up a characteristic and then limits that characteristic in a way that logically seems contradictory. For example, “trust yourself when all men doubt you, / But make allowance for their doubting too” (Kipling, 3-4). So when everyone doubts you, trust yourself and do not yield. But when everyone doubts you, listen to their opinion and yield. Easy enough, right? The characteristics are very ideal Christian values as they stride toward perfection. However, the poem ends with, then “…you’ll be a man, may son!” (Kipling 32). This almost leaves a sense of desperation because you cannot be a man until you master all of the characteristics in the poem. You are so glad that you have the key to becoming a man and then you realize that it is unattainable. Crushing limitations weigh down upon masculinity as society expects perfection from men. 

Introduction

In about 1780, Britain begins what is now known as the industrial revolution (Mathias, 14-16). Later, Queen Victoria takes the throne in 1837 marking a rough beginning for the Victorian Era (Royal Household). Therefore, Britain's industrial revolution was well underway when the Victorian Era began. The industrial revolution promoted a great migration of people from the country and farming to cities and factory work. A middle class emerged in British society as the industrial revolution continued to boom. This migration and class change opened up the re-evaluation and complexity of masculinity and femininity.