Context

Question 1

Wildes personal life

Answer 1

mother was a nationalist poet, father was an ear and eye surgeon
went to Oxford where he helped found the Aesthetic Movement (‘art for arts sake’)
1895 - convicted of homosexuality
Irish poet and playwright
editor of The Womans World

Question 2

Victorian Morals

Answer 2

valued wealth, power and influence

while in public the upper classes valued morals highly , in private they were often ignored in favor of power and influence

Question 3

Victorian Gentlemen

Answer 3

powerful, well educated men

Question 4

The Dandy

Answer 4

• Wilde was a dandy
• dress flamboyantly and paid attention to fashion
• believed life was to be enjoyed and you should admire beautiful things
• stand for nothing in particular

Question 5

Victorian Society

Answer 5

very particular rules for polite behavior
Victorians were responsible for making ideal societies and systems, it is inevitable they would also try to make ideal men and women
men = public sphere, women = domestic sphere
arranged marriages were common among the upper classes
upper classes looked down on the poorer classes

Question 6

The New Woman

Answer 6

• feminist ideal that first emerged in the 19th century
• described by Henry James as a woman who wanted to live an independent, educated, career based lifestyle
• Suffragettes Movement of the 19th century
• wanted autonomy
• many white middle class women were gaining new property rights and the rights to attend uni and become lawyers, doctors, etc

Question 7

Women in Victorian Society

Answer 7

Expectations:
the angel in the house
devoted mothers
polite and charming
incorruptibly good

Rights:
no right to vote
chances for career and education prospects limited
all assets in the husbands name