Many historical events took place during the Romantic, Victorian and Modern eras. These events influenced the content of literature of their times. The events listed below are just a small sampling of societal events that occurred and the literature they influenced.
Evangelical Revolution
The evangelical revolution ushered in a time of great religious debate and philosophical thought that changed the way people thought of God and of themselves and their relationship to God. The intellectuals of the Victorian era even questioned the existence of God. Religious examination changed not only the church, but how people practiced religion, leading to how people chose to live. Society started to realize they were the captains of their own ships and acted accordingly.
Feminist Movement
During the Victorian era, women began to branch out against the norms in a movement known as the feminist movement. The feminist movement was one of many movements of the Victorian era, but the feminist movement was just as influential as any other movement of the time. One major part of the movement during Victorian times was the literature and writers involved in creating the literary works. The writers showed a new side to the life of a woman as women gained independence. Behind the scenes, many writers gained independence as well, which was unheard of during the Victorian times.
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution made many changes but it also impacted the literature aspect as well. During this time there was a lot of things going on but authors were still willing to write. They wrote about what was happening and how people were dealing with the new changes. The changes had many positive aspects as well as negative . The Northern Anthology of Literature was a piece of literature about the issues that came with the Industrial Revolution. Another famous piece of literature that was written during this time was the Pickwick Paper by Charles Dickens. Over all, the Industrial Revolution made a huge impact on English Literature.
Opium Wars
The Opium Wars were fought on vices and ultimately decided the fate of the trade systems we know today. Without their important effects on not only the trade routes that laid the pathways across the waters of history. We may not have had some inspiring works like Samuel Coleridge’s poem Kublai Khan that was written while he was believed to be under the effects of Opium, a drug that fueled a war and the creative capacities of some of the greatest writers we know today.