Unit 6: The Victorians Study Guide

“The Condition of England” & “Signs of the Times”

What are some improvements brought by the Industrial Revolution?

increased production of goods and increased wealth in general

“The Condition of England” & “Signs of the Times”

What negative effects of the Industrial Revolution does Carlyle identify in the lower and upper classes?

more poverty and loss of creativity

In “Signs of the Times”, what does Carlyle mean by calling the era the “Age of Machinery”?

people are becoming more mechanical and are losing their individuality

“The Conversion of Aurelian McGoggin”

What is the narrator’s persona?

cutting, sarcastic, wise

“The Conversion of Aurelian McGoggin”

How does Aurelian change throughout the narrative?

he becomes more cautious in his beliefs and in sharing his beliefs

“The Conversion of Aurelian McGoggin”

Why does he change?

he gets an intense form of heat stroke which he doesn’t fully understand and this causes Aurelian to question his own knowledge

“Crossing the Bar”

What extended metaphor does Tennyson us in this poem?

He uses a voyage as an extended metaphor:

• The sand bar represents life.

• Crossing the sand bar represents death.

• The sea represents eternity.

• The Pilot represents God

“Ulysses”

What message is Ulysses giving to his people?

he is leaving the kingdom to seek new adventures

“Ulysses”

What theme can we draw from it?

a person ought to do what he or she finds meaningful in life

In Memoriam

How do the “rung out” objects or actions in Canto 106 reflect a Victorian mindset?

it reflects a positive mindset toward progressive values and change

How has Tennyson’s mindset toward grief changed over the course of In Memoriam?

at first, he feels just the pain of the loss and wonders what the point of the pain is

near the end, he finds joy and meaning in the friend that he had

In Memoriam

What line signifies the ultimate theme of this poem?

“It is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.”

“Sonnet 43”

what does the wide-flung nature of the images in the poem suggest about the speaker’s love?

her love knows no limits

“Porphyria’s Lover”

How does the persona, the speaker, develop throughout the poem?

• he expresses his love for Porphyria in a more wholesome way

• he feels powerless and doubts that Porphyria will reciprocate

• he takes the matter into his own hands and kills Porphyria so that she will never leave him

“Porphyria’s Lover”

What do you think the speaker means by the final line?

his murder of Porphyria must not be wrong because he got away with it

“Pied Beauty”

Despite its shortened form, how does “Pied Beauty” demonstrate the characteristics of a sonnet?

it is split into two sections like an Italian sonnet and has a turn at the end of the poem which resolves its situation

“Pied Beauty”

How does Hopkins use beauty in these poems to promote truth and goodness?

He uses the beauty of the world to infer two things:

• There must be an amazing Creator of such a beautiful world

• We ought to praise the Creator for giving us such a world

“The Darkling Thrush”

What mood does the speaker create with the setting?

dark and depressing

“Pied Beauty”

How does the speaker describe the thrush?

Old, sickly, dying, and full of unlimited joy

“Pied Beauty”

What is the poem’s main symbol, and what does it represent for Hardy?

the thrush representing hope

who wrote “In Memoriam”

Alfred, Lord Tennyson

who wrote “Crossing the Bar”

Alfred, Lord Tennyson

who wrote “Porphyria’s Lover”

Robert Browning

who wrote “Sonnet 43”

Elizabeth Barret Browning

who wrote “God’s Grandeur”

Gerard Manley Hopkins

who wrote “The Darkling Thrush” & “Ah, Are You Digging on My Grave?”

Thomas Hardy

who wrote "The Conversion of Aurelian McGoggin"

Rudyard Kipling