Social Concerns in the Poetry of Alfred, Lord Tennyson
Hello everyone this blog is a part of an assignment of paper no 104: Literature of the Victorians.
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#Table of Content
Personal Information
Assignment Details
Abstract
Key Words
Introduction
Faith in Crisis: Religion vs. Science
The Impact of Industrialization
Gender Roles and Women’s Rights
Class Division and Social Inequality
Imperialism and National Identity
Mortality and the Human Condition
Conclusion
References
Personal Information:
Name:- Khushi Goswami
Batch:- M.A.Sem 1 (2024-2026)
Enrollment no:- 5108240001
E-mail Address:- khushigoswami05317@gmail.com
Roll no:- 9
Assignment Details:
Topic:- Social Concerns in the Poetry of Alfred, Lord Tennyson
Paper & Subject Code: 104 Literature of the Victorian Period-22395
Submitted To:- Smt. Sujata Binoy Gardi, Department of English, MKBU, Bhavnagar
Date of Submission:- 20 November, 2024
Abstract:
Being a representative English poet of the Victorian era, Alfred, Lord Tennyson accurately reflected the social unrest and moral conflicts of his lifetime in his writings. His poetry exemplifies key social concerns, including the crisis of faith that has resulted from the critical collision of religion and science, the impact of industrialization on traditional life, and the unfairness of Victorian class structure. He also tackles gender roles and the shifting status of women within society as reflected in “The Princess” while coming to terms with national identity and the human impact of imperialism in works such as “Ulysses” and “The Charge of the Light Brigade” Tennyson's subtle handling of mortality and the human plight speaks to his awareness of the pressures of a changing world. In weaving these concerns into his art, Tennyson not only gave voice to the anxieties of his era but also crafted a poetry whose relevance in understanding complex human experience would endure.
Key Words: Social Concerns in the Poetry of Alfred, Lord Tennyson
Introduction:
Alfred, Lord Tennyson is one of the most distinguished representatives of Victorian poetry. His works reflect the social, ethical, and intellectual dilemmas of his time, characterized by rapid industrialization, scientific discoveries, and changes in societal values. Tennyson's poems speak to the anxieties of Victorian society but also try to solve issues of faith, identity, and human beings in their classic sense. Below, we discuss major social concerns addressed by Tennyson in his works, which illustrate his sensitive understanding of the age's needs and problems.
Faith in Crisis: Religion vs. Science:
In Victorian society, the tension between traditional belief in the Christian faith and the emerging thought of science and particularly Darwinian evolutionary theory posed a profound issue. This “crisis of faith” is one in which Tennyson reflects in his poetry; he became a voice for those struggling to come to terms with uncertainty and doubt.
“In Memoriam A.H.H.” is perhaps his most famous exploration of this theme. Written in memory of his close friend Arthur Henry Hallam, the poem reflects Tennyson’s personal grief while addressing universal questions about life, death, and the afterlife. In the face of grief, he writes:
This line captures the essence of Tennyson's view on doubt. He was a firm believer in doubt as an essential part of faith. He never rejected science but tried to combine it with faith principles, exactly like the Victorian did with their age-old religion.
The Impact of Industrialization:
The Victorian era was synonymous with industrial growth, bringing both progress and problems. While technological advancements improved many aspects of life, they also disrupted traditional rural economies, widened the gap between classes, and caused environmental and social upheavals.
Tennyson, at least subtly, reveals the impact of industrialization through his poetry. His poems often express a sense of longing for the past, or rather for the pre-industrial age of the pastoral. The perspective is more of a subtle critique: yet it speaks to the alienation of people under urbanization and dehumanization.
Gender Roles and Women’s Rights:
Tennyson, the place of women in society was a topic of considerable debate. The Victorian “angel in the house” while celebrating women as selfless caregivers and moral guides, found growing challenges in the form of calls for women's education and suffrage.
Tennyson tackled these topics in “The Princess: A Medley” a long narrative poem that focuses on a woman who leads a college dedicated to female education. Even though the poem resolves in a reaffirmation of traditional gender roles, its engagement with the topic speaks to the Victorian ambivalence about changing women's roles:
"Man for the field and woman for the hearth
Man for the sword and for the needle she
Man with the head and woman with the heart
Man to command and woman to obey."
This passage highlights the tension between advocating for progress and adhering to established norms.
Class Division and Social Inequality:
Victorian society was heavily stratified and now increasingly came to realize the inequalities between the working class and the rich elite. Despite being one of the establishment's poet laureates, Tennyson would occasionally refer to social injustices.
For example, in “The Brook” while the brook's steady, unchanging flow can be contrasted with the transient lives of those laborers who depend on it, reflecting a world of hardship for the working class and the seeming indifference of nature and society to that end, Tennyson subtly acknowledges these issues within his greater consciousness of Victorian class tensions.
Imperialism and National Identity:
The Victorian period was also the peak of British imperialism; thus, Tennyson's poetry often reflects the values of duty, heroism, and national pride instilled upon the empire. However, at the same time his works carry an undercurrent of ambivalence about the human cost of empire.
In “Ulysses” Tennyson celebrates the spirit of exploration and resilience:
“To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.”
This embodies the Victorian ideal of ambition and endurance but can also be read as a commentary on the relentless pursuit of empire and its moral ambiguities.
“The Charge of the Light Brigade” glorifies the bravery of soldiers while subtly mourning the futility of war. The poem immortalizes the heroism of the British cavalry during the Crimean War but does not shy away from the tragic consequences of blind obedience:
“Theirs not to reason why,
Theirs but to do and die.”
Mortality and the Human Condition:
Tennyson's writing is the fatalism of death and humanity's struggle for significance. This is one of the most haunting themes in light of the Victorian obsession with death, which was greatly amplified by high infant mortality rates, diseases, and wars.
In “Break, Break, Break,” Tennyson reflects on loss and the passage of time:
“But O for the touch of a vanished hand,
And the sound of a voice that is still!”
This desire for connection in the midst of death reflects the Victorian fixation on remembrance and afterlife, emphasizing the fragility of human relationships within an age of change in his life.
Conclusion:
Tennyson's works are steeped in the Victorian age, a period of optimism and anxiety. His poetry epitomizes these shifts in society and the existential dilemmas brought about by his time-the rigors of industrialization, the crisis of faith, debates of gender, and human costs of imperialism. The ways in which Tennyson wove these social concerns into his art made him an articulate voice for his generation, but they also ensure that the relevance of his poetry is still felt today, even as a complex understanding of human experience.
References:
Sinfield, Alan. “Tennyson and the Cultural Politics of Prophecy.” ELH, vol. 57, no. 1, 1990, pp. 175–95. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/2873250 . Accessed 19 Nov. 2024.
Felluga, Dino Franco. “Tennyson’s Idylls, Pure Poetry, and the Market.” Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900, vol. 37, no. 4, 1997, pp. 783–803. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/451071 . Accessed 19 Nov. 2024.
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