The Differences In The Social Classes Of Mid Victorian England
The Differences In The Social Classes Of Mid-Victorian EnglandI. Introduction
In the Mid-Victorian period in English history there were distinct class
differences in its society. There were three classes in England.
These were the Aristocracy, the Middle-Class (or Factory owners) and
the working class. Each class had specific characteristics that defined
its behavior. These characteristics were best seen in four areas of
British society.
During the time-period known by most historians as the
Industrial Revolution, a great change overtook British culture. Aside
from the political and economic change which occurred, a profound social
alteration transpired. The populace seeking to better their lives,
sought employment in newly-formed industries. Many of the workers which
included women and children, labored through 12 hour work shifts, with
poor nutrition, poor living conditions and completing tedious tasks1.
These factors, accompanied by various ideological precepts by Britain’s
intellectual community, and those concepts imported from France, provoke
a crucial social evolution. Though no government was overthrown, a
distinct transformation took place causing rebellious behavior to erupt
among the working class. This essay will address the questions of how
and why this behavior was expressed by the lower order of British
society. It will also discuss methods the ruling class used in
suppressing and controlling the rebellious behavior exhibited by the
working class.
The middle class held to two basic ideologies that served in
the exploitation of the lower order of the British society. Richard
Atlick identified them as Utilitarianism (or Benthamism) and
Evangelicalism. Both served the self-interested inclinations of the
middle class. Utilitarianism created the need to fulfill a principle of
pleasure while minimalization pain. In the context of the “industrial
revolution” this meant that the pleasure extracted from life would be at
the working classes’ expense. This provided a perfect justification for
the middle class to capitalize on. The working class of Britain,
throughout the industrial revolution and through the Victorian age,
acted in a defiant manner toward both the aristocracy and middle class.
This behavior extended from the everyday activities of the workers to
radical anarchist movements that categorized the underground.
The middle class seemed to be just as familiar with the inverse
of Benthamism as they were with its normal application. The pleasure
principle was measured in terms of minimalization of pain. If the sum
of pain, in a given situation, is less than the sum of pleasure, than it
should be deemed pleasurable. The inverse principle applied to the
working class was how pain (work) can be inflicted, with the absolute
minimum distribution of pleasure (wages), without creating an uprising.
This...
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