Victorian People and Ideas: A Companion for the Modern Reader of Victorian Literature

Richard Alricks' book Victorian People and Ideas presents an accessible and enjoyable overview to Victorian culture. He presents a clear and well-researched understanding of the issues that plagued Victorians from a social, theological, and intellectual standpoint. Altick writes about the effects of the emerging industrial revolution on the way ordinary people lived, the importance of art and literature in the upper-class society, the new idea of democracy, and perhaps most important to writers such as Tennyson - the crisis in religion and the loss of faith that followed the publication of The Origin Of Species by Charles Darwin. Altick manages to cram quite a bit of material into an easily readable, engaging, and well-organized work of non-fiction. In the preface, Altick writes that this book is not "meant to be a comprehensive survey of Victorian life and ideas" but rather, that the book is intended as an introduction to the era. He makes the point that this book should not be substituted for reading the actual literature in which his book references. He also the emphasizes how, unlike other eras in human history, the literature of the Victorian period is so connected with the Victorians contemporary lifestyle, philosophy, and culture. I imagine the intended audience for this book is anyone interested in Victorian culture, ideas, or obviously, anyone with a desire to learn more about the context surrounding important literature of the time. Yet this book is not sufficient in this respect. This work should be considered a jumping-off point as a means of finding other sources related to specific topics. The reference section proved helpful for finding more information on subjects the book only touched upon. The author's informal style suits the intended audience. While some non-fiction books on Victorian culture and literature can seem dull, Altick's book is rather non-daunting due to its well-organized and engaging style. The narrative is scattered with interesting facts and illustrations which prove useful in context for the literature, politics, and events discussed.

Did you ever read a book by an academic and think to yourself, "Gosh, I hope his lectures are better than his writing, or else I pity his students." I guarantee that thought won't occur to you while reading this wonderful work. Recognizing that the author, not inappropriately, chose to style it as a "companion" to Victorian literature, and likely would have disavowed any suggestion that it is actually a work of history, that's in fact what it is, and a great one. But rather than simply a social history, it is primarily an intellectual history of the period with an emphasis on the roles of artists and men and women of letters as well as the Utilitarians, Evangelicals, the Oxford Movement, the Pre-Raphaelites, incipient socialism, all thoroughly accessible to readers unacquainted with the period but surpassingly enjoyable to the most knowledgeable among us as well. I come backwards to the book, having read much Victorian literature, innumerable histories of the period and biographies of its principal actors. But I enjoyed the book tremendously nonetheless, not only because it sharpened and refined my understanding of the subjects treated, but also because of the author's superb writing skills. Professor Altick died earlier this year, having served on the OSU faculty from 1945 to 1982 (!), and having been honored as the only Regents Professor in his department's history. This book and his other works (more of which I will certainly read) will serve as suitable memorials to a marvelous writer and an undoubtedly great teacher.

I cannot imagine a better "companion" to Victorian literature than this nicely organized book. This is an invaluable guide to anyone who would like to situate their knowledge of Victorian prose and poetry within the era's social/historical zeitgeist. Malthus, dissenters, social reforms, sexuality, class consciousness -- all here. I have found myself returning to this book many times over the years. Kudos to Altick.

I highly recommned this introduction to the values and literature of Victorian Britain. Replete with lively anecdotes and thoughtful analyses, Altick's work makes for an entertaining read even as it educates those just beginning to tackle nineteenth century British history and literature.