British Culture - User contributions [en]

William Thackeray

2011-01-18T21:13:20Z

Alice:

William Makepeace Thackeray (1811-1863) was an English writer. He was best known for his moralistic, satirical surveys and sketches of England’s upper and middle class.

== Life ==

William M. Thackeray was born in Calcutta, India on 18 July 1811. He was the only son of Richmond Thackeray, an officer in the [[East India Company]]’s Civil Service, and Anne Becher – both of Anglo-Indian descent. His father died on 13 September 1815 when William was three years old. Two years later his mother remarried and shortly after this sent William to a private school in Southampton, England. School time was not a very happy period in Thackeray’s life. He changed school and just became any happier in 1820, when his mother returned to England. Two years later he entered Charterhouse School in London before he matriculated at [[Trinity College, Cambridge]], in 1829.
For about a year Thackeray idled about and wasted money in college, where he sometimes wrote for student journals. In June 1830 he leaves Trinity College without a degree in order to tour through Germany. In the winter of 1830/31 he spent some time in Weimar and met Goethe before he returned to London and entered Middle Temple as a law student.
While in law school he became more and more interested in art and journalism and in 1833 invested money and became the proprietor and editor of a struggling literary weekly paper, the [[National Standard]]. However, only one year later the Standard went bankrupt and Thackeray lost almost all of his remaining private fortune.
In the following years he lived and studied in Paris where he wanted to become an artist. He supported himself with occasional publications of his articles and caricatures in journals.
In 1836 he met Isabella Shawe, a Paris correspondent for the Constitutional. They got married on 20 August and in the following year returned to London where their first daughter, Anne, was born. In the meantime Thackeray supported the family with small publications in magazines. In 1838 the second daughter, Jane, was borne but she died in March of the following year.
After the birth of their third daughter, Harriet, in May 1840 Thackeray’s wife Isabella suffered a mental breakdown and had to be put into a private asylum. After this Thackeray, unable to care for his children on his own, sent the girls to live with his mother in Paris and toured for some months through Ireland.
In the 1840s he published regularly – sometimes under the pseudonym of Michael Angelo Titmarch – and began to gain some recognition for his work.
In the years to come he became more and more successful and toured through different countries, the Mediterranean, the Near East, Scotland and the US among others, where he even held series of lectures on different works.
In 1875 he stood unsuccessfully as a parliamentary candidate for Oxford, but still continued publishing.
In 1860 he became the first editor of Cornhill Magazine. Two years later he resigned the editorship.
He died on 24 December 1863 after having suffered from heart troubles for some time.

== Work: Characteristics and Themes ==

Thackeray’s work predominantly contains studies of English, sometimes American, upper and middle class. These studies often contain [[satire]] and [[parody]] and offer an ironic view on society.
Certain aspects of society, such as her hierarchical order, religion, hypocrisy, the institution of marriage and family and military ideals are even attacked in Thackeray’s works.
Social manners, materialism, fashion, status and coming of age are topics that are dealt with in Thackeray’s novels such as [[Vanity Fair]] or Pendennis.
Furthermore, some autobiographical influences can be found in his work. His satiric remarks on the romantic ideals of the writer, for example, are a reflection of his own hard struggle to make it in the publishing business.
Some of Thackeray’s works are characterized as historical novels. They are predominantly set in the 18th century, a period that fascinated the Author. Examples: The History of Henry Esmond; The Virginians.
Thackeray’s realism is another prominent element within his work. In Vanity Fair he manages to create a very successful illusion of reality and simultaneously advertises the unreality of his ‘realism’. He reveals his perception of himself as the puppet-master and the characters of his novel as his puppets. Additionally he warns his readers that a realistic response to fictional illusions leads to self-deception and is naïve and. Still, in his fictional works, he tries to develop a realistic image of society.

== List of works ==

• ''The Yellowplush Papers'' (1837)

• ''Catherine'' (1839–40)

• ''A Shabby Genteel Story'' (1840)

• ''The Irish Sketchbook'' (1843) The Luck of Barry Lyndon (1844)

• ''Notes of a Journey from Cornhill to Grand Cairo'' (1846), under the name Mr M.A. Titmarsh

• ''The Book of Snobs'' (1848)

• ''Vanity Fair'' (1848)

• ''Pendennis'' (1848–1850)

• ''Rebecca and Rowena'' (1850), a parody sequel of Ivanhoe

• ''The Paris Sketchbook'' (1840)

• ''Men's Wives'' (1852)

• ''The History of Henry Esmond'' (1852)

• ''The Newcomes'' (1855)

• ''The Rose and the Ring'' (1855)

• ''The Virginians'' (1857–1859)

• ''The Adventures of Philip'' (1862)

• ''Denis Duval'' (1864)

• Sketches and Travels in London

• Stray Papers: Being Stories, Reviews, Verses, and Sketches (1821-1847)

• Literary Essays

• ''English Humourists''

• ''Four Georges''

• ''Lovel the Widower''

== Sources ==

Burstein, Miriam Elizabeth. Narrating women's history in Britain. 1770 - 1902. Hampshire: Ashgate,
2004.

Salmon, Richard. William Makepeace Thackeray. Horndon: Northcote House Publishers, 2005.

The Victorian Web - literature, history, and culture in the age of Victoria
16 Jan. 2011
<http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/wmt/wmtbio.html>

William Thackeray

2011-01-18T20:51:54Z

Alice:

William Makepeace Thakeray (1811-1863) was an English writer. He was best known for his moralistic, satirical surveys and sketches of England’s upper and middle class.

== Life ==

William M. Thackeray was born in Calcutta, India on 18 July 1811. He was the only son of Richmond Thackeray, an officer in the [[East India Company]]’s Civil Service, and Anne Becher – both of Anglo-Indian descent. His father died on 13 September 1815 when William was three years old. Two years later his mother remarried and shortly after this sent William to a private school in Southampton, England. School time was not a very happy period in Thackeray’s life. He changed school and just became any happier in 1820, when his mother returned to England. Two years later he entered Charterhouse School in London before he matriculated at [[Trinity College, Cambridge]], in 1829.
For about a year Thackeray idled about and wasted money in college, where he sometimes wrote for student journals. In June 1830 he leaves Trinity College without a degree in order to tour through Germany. In the winter of 1830/31 he spent some time in Weimar and met Goethe before he returned to London and entered Middle Temple as a law student.
While in law school he became more and more interested in art and journalism and in 1833 invested money and became the proprietor and editor of a struggling literary weekly paper, the [[National Standard]]. However, only one year later the Standard went bankrupt and Thackeray lost almost all of his remaining private fortune.
In the following years he lived and studied in Paris where he wanted to become an artist. He supported himself with occasional publications of his articles and caricatures in journals.
In 1836 he met Isabella Shawe, a Paris correspondent for the Constitutional. They got married on 20 August and in the following year returned to London where their first daughter, Anne, was born. In the meantime Thackeray supported the family with small publications in magazines. In 1838 the second daughter, Jane, was borne but she died in March of the following year.
After the birth of their third daughter, Harriet, in May 1840 Thackeray’s wife Isabella suffered a mental breakdown and had to be put into a private asylum. After this Thackeray, unable to care for his children on his own, sent the girls to live with his mother in Paris and toured for some months through Ireland.
In the 1840s he published regularly – sometimes under the pseudonym of Michael Angelo Titmarch – and began to gain some recognition for his work.
In the years to come he became more and more successful and toured through different countries, the Mediterranean, the Near East, Scotland and the US among others, where he even held series of lectures on different works.
In 1875 he stood unsuccessfully as a parliamentary candidate for Oxford, but still continued publishing.
In 1860 he became the first editor of Cornhill Magazine. Two years later he resigned the editorship.
He died on 24 December 1863 after having suffered from heart troubles for some time.

== Work: Characteristics and Themes ==

Thackeray’s work predominantly contains studies of English, sometimes American, upper and middle class. These studies often contain [[satire]] and [[parody]] and offer an ironic view on society.
Certain aspects of society, such as her hierarchical order, religion, hypocrisy, the institution of marriage and family and military ideals are even attacked in Thackeray’s works.
Social manners, materialism, fashion, status and coming of age are topics that are dealt with in Thackeray’s novels such as [[Vanity Fair]] or Pendennis.
Furthermore, some autobiographical influences can be found in his work. His satiric remarks on the romantic ideals of the writer, for example, are a reflection of his own hard struggle to make it in the publishing business.
Some of Thackeray’s works are characterized as historical novels. They are predominantly set in the 18th century, a period that fascinated the Author. Examples: The History of Henry Esmond; The Virginians.
Thackeray’s realism is another prominent element within his work. In Vanity Fair he manages to create a very successful illusion of reality and simultaneously advertises the unreality of his ‘realism’. He reveals his perception of himself as the puppet-master and the characters of his novel as his puppets. Additionally he warns his readers that a realistic response to fictional illusions leads to self-deception and is naïve and. Still, in his fictional works, he tries to develop a realistic image of society.

== List of works ==

• ''The Yellowplush Papers'' (1837)

• ''Catherine'' (1839–40)

• ''A Shabby Genteel Story'' (1840)

• ''The Irish Sketchbook'' (1843) The Luck of Barry Lyndon (1844)

• ''Notes of a Journey from Cornhill to Grand Cairo'' (1846), under the name Mr M.A. Titmarsh

• ''The Book of Snobs'' (1848)

• ''Vanity Fair'' (1848)

• ''Pendennis'' (1848–1850)

• ''Rebecca and Rowena'' (1850), a parody sequel of Ivanhoe

• ''The Paris Sketchbook'' (1840)

• ''Men's Wives'' (1852)

• ''The History of Henry Esmond'' (1852)

• ''The Newcomes'' (1855)

• ''The Rose and the Ring'' (1855)

• ''The Virginians'' (1857–1859)

• ''The Adventures of Philip'' (1862)

• ''Denis Duval'' (1864)

• Sketches and Travels in London

• Stray Papers: Being Stories, Reviews, Verses, and Sketches (1821-1847)

• Literary Essays

• ''English Humourists''

• ''Four Georges''

• ''Lovel the Widower''

== Sources ==

Burstein, Miriam Elizabeth. Narrating women's history in Britain. 1770 - 1902. Hampshire: Ashgate,
2004.

Salmon, Richard. William Makepeace Thackeray. Horndon: Northcote House Publishers, 2005.

The Victorian Web - literature, history, and culture in the age of Victoria
16 Jan. 2011
<http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/wmt/wmtbio.html>

Enlightenment

2010-12-06T20:13:20Z

Alice: /* English Enlightenment */

== Influences and background ==

The Age of Enlightenment was preceded by different philosophical movements. In the 14th and 15th centuries [[humanist]] thoughts using ancient Greek and Roman traditions to provoke changes in society especially in the gloom of Christian doctrines of the Middle Ages and establishing an optimistic view on the human individual and his capacities as the crown of creation.

In the 16th century the French philosopher Michel de Montaigne initiated ideas known today as [[cultural relativism]]. Cultural relativists used the examples of other cultures to influence the development of their societies. They argued that cultural orientations and dogmas are no absolute truths so that no dominant culture has the right to impose their beliefs on any other inferior cultural group.

In the 17th century philosopher René Descartes based his most important theories on the force of reason ("cogito ergo sum") and doing so paved the theoretical way for future philosophers.

Additional to the theoretical movements there were economic, social and political changes in [[Renaissance]] Europe that promoted the establishment and future flourishing of Enlightenment thought. Among these changes were, for instance, the improvement of trade and communication, the rural exodus and urbanization. Additional support for the prosperity of these philosophical movements came from the economically and socially very powerful aristocracy which many of the most enthusiastic followers of the new thinking belonged to.

== The Enlightenment Movement ==

The Age of Enlightenment (also the Age of Reason) derived from the ideas and thoughts of philosophers and universal scholars from mainly France and England between the 17th and 19th centuries. These thinkers believed that human reason could be used “to combat ignorance, superstition and tyranny and to build a better world” (cf. wsu). Their writings were principally directed against the domination of society by religion – mainly the Christian dogma - and by a hereditary aristocracy. Philosophical thought, scientific method and rationality became their means in the fight against inequality and injustice.

In Germany the ''Aufklärung'', which already began in the mid-17th century, was a literary and philosophical movement lead by thinkers like Friedrich Schiller and Immanuel Kant.

French Enlightenment was closely connected to the group of the ''philosophes'' who were authors, scientists and thinkers like Voltaire and Rousseau. Their appeal against social injustice caused by the countries governing classes provided “the intellectual basis for the [[French Revolution]]” (Oxford 200).

== English Enlightenment ==

Enlightenment in Great Britain was greatly influenced by the English [[John Locke]], the Scot [[David Hume]] and the English [[Thomas Paine]], one of the founding fathers of the U.S. and a great admirer of the French Enlightenment. The English and French Enlightenments experienced mutual influences through different channels. When Voltaire exiled to Great Britain in 1725 for about three years, the philosophical standpoints he encountered there had a huge impact on his own future thinking.

The Scottish intellectual movement around [[David Hume]] and [[Adam Smith]] that flourished in Edinburgh between 1750 and 1800 constituted one of the most productive foci of the British Enlightenment. Between 1768 and 1771 the ‘Society of Gentlemen in Scotland’, which had been formed in the 1740s “to emulate the great publishing achievement of the continental Enlightenment, Diderot's Encyclopédie” (Historyworld), published the ''[[Encyclopaedia Britannica]]''. This was a dictionary of the arts and sciences that illustrated important scientific advances that had been made in Scotland in the fields of chemistry, geology and medicine.
In literature the ideas of the Enlightenment have possibly encouraged the growth of literary realism and thus influenced the rise of the novel (cf. Oxford). In arts it had a major influence on Romanticism that was based on more individualist attitudes which were cultivated by the Enlightenment movement.

British society in general became more open to change due to some transformations that it had undergone before. England had gone through a phase of constitutional debates (which had cost [[Charles I]] his head and brought his son, [[James II]], into exile). Regarding religion, new grounds were broken and old dogmas abolished. English Protestantism demanded more freedom of speech and press and radical religious movements like [[Quakers]] and [[Unitarians]] prospered. Since England had dealt with two revolutions quite early in comparison to other European powers, its religious and aristocratic powers diminished gradually under the influence of the new ideas, not like in France, where they were violently uprooted during the Revolution.

== Sources ==

Historyworld.net
30 Nov. 2010 http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?ParagraphID=oaq>

Isaacs, Alan et al. eds. ''Oxford Dictionary of World History''. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2001.

wsu - Washington State University Homepage
30 Nov. 2010 <http://www.wsu.edu/~brians/hum_303/enlightenment.html>

Enlightenment

2010-12-06T20:11:29Z

Alice:

== Influences and background ==

The Age of Enlightenment was preceded by different philosophical movements. In the 14th and 15th centuries [[humanist]] thoughts using ancient Greek and Roman traditions to provoke changes in society especially in the gloom of Christian doctrines of the Middle Ages and establishing an optimistic view on the human individual and his capacities as the crown of creation.

In the 16th century the French philosopher Michel de Montaigne initiated ideas known today as [[cultural relativism]]. Cultural relativists used the examples of other cultures to influence the development of their societies. They argued that cultural orientations and dogmas are no absolute truths so that no dominant culture has the right to impose their beliefs on any other inferior cultural group.

In the 17th century philosopher René Descartes based his most important theories on the force of reason ("cogito ergo sum") and doing so paved the theoretical way for future philosophers.

Additional to the theoretical movements there were economic, social and political changes in [[Renaissance]] Europe that promoted the establishment and future flourishing of Enlightenment thought. Among these changes were, for instance, the improvement of trade and communication, the rural exodus and urbanization. Additional support for the prosperity of these philosophical movements came from the economically and socially very powerful aristocracy which many of the most enthusiastic followers of the new thinking belonged to.

== The Enlightenment Movement ==

The Age of Enlightenment (also the Age of Reason) derived from the ideas and thoughts of philosophers and universal scholars from mainly France and England between the 17th and 19th centuries. These thinkers believed that human reason could be used “to combat ignorance, superstition and tyranny and to build a better world” (cf. wsu). Their writings were principally directed against the domination of society by religion – mainly the Christian dogma - and by a hereditary aristocracy. Philosophical thought, scientific method and rationality became their means in the fight against inequality and injustice.

In Germany the ''Aufklärung'', which already began in the mid-17th century, was a literary and philosophical movement lead by thinkers like Friedrich Schiller and Immanuel Kant.

French Enlightenment was closely connected to the group of the ''philosophes'' who were authors, scientists and thinkers like Voltaire and Rousseau. Their appeal against social injustice caused by the countries governing classes provided “the intellectual basis for the [[French Revolution]]” (Oxford 200).

== English Enlightenment ==

Enlightenment in Great Britain was greatly influenced by [[John Locke]], the Scot [[David Hume]] and the English [[Thomas Paine]], one of the founding fathers of the U.S. and a great admirer of the French Enlightenment. The English and French Enlightenments experienced mutual influences through different channels. When Voltaire exiled to Great Britain in 1725 for about three years, the philosophical standpoints he encountered there had a huge impact on his own future thinking.

The Scottish intellectual movement around [[David Hume]] and [[Adam Smith]] that flourished in Edinburgh between 1750 and 1800 constituted one of the most productive foci of the British Enlightenment. Between 1768 and 1771 the ‘Society of Gentlemen in Scotland’, which had been formed in the 1740s “to emulate the great publishing achievement of the continental Enlightenment, Diderot's Encyclopédie” (Historyworld), published the ''[[Encyclopaedia Britannica]]''. This was a dictionary of the arts and sciences that illustrated important scientific advances that had been made in Scotland in the fields of chemistry, geology and medicine.
In literature the ideas of the Enlightenment have possibly encouraged the growth of literary realism and thus influenced the rise of the novel (cf. Oxford). In arts it had a major influence on Romanticism that was based on more individualist attitudes which were cultivated by the Enlightenment movement.

British society in general became more open to change due to some transformations that it had undergone before. England had gone through a phase of constitutional debates (which had cost [[Charles I]] his head and brought his son, [[James II]], into exile). Regarding religion, new grounds were broken and old dogmas abolished. English Protestantism demanded more freedom of speech and press and radical religious movements like [[Quakers]] and [[Unitarians]] prospered. Since England had dealt with two revolutions quite early in comparison to other European powers, its religious and aristocratic powers diminished gradually under the influence of the new ideas, not like in France, where they were violently uprooted during the Revolution.

== Sources ==

Historyworld.net
30 Nov. 2010 http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?ParagraphID=oaq>

Isaacs, Alan et al. eds. ''Oxford Dictionary of World History''. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2001.

wsu - Washington State University Homepage
30 Nov. 2010 <http://www.wsu.edu/~brians/hum_303/enlightenment.html>

Enlightenment

2010-12-01T22:14:23Z

Alice: Created page with '== Influences and background == The Age of Enlightenment was preceded by different philosophical movements. In the 14th and 15th century humanist thoughts using ancient Gre…'

== Influences and background ==

The Age of Enlightenment was preceded by different philosophical movements. In the 14th and 15th century [[humanist]] thoughts using ancient Greek and Roman traditions to provoke changes in society especially in the gloom of Christian doctrines of the Middle Ages and establishing an optimistic view on the human individual and his capacities as the crown of creation.

In the 16th century the French philosopher Michel de Montaigne initiated the theoretic thinking that is known today as [[cultural relativism]]. Cultural relativists used the examples of other cultures to influence on the development of their societies. They argued that cultural orientations and dogmas are no absolute truths so that no dominant culture has the right to impose their beliefs on any other inferior cultural group.

In the 17th century philosopher René Descartes based his most important theories on the force of reason and doing so paved the theoretical way for future philosophers.

Additionally to the theoretical movements there were economic, social and political changes in Renaissance Europe that promoted the establishment and future flourishing of enlightenment thought. Among these changes were for instance the improvement of trade and communication, the rural exodus and urbanization. Additional support for the prosperity of these philosophical movements came from the economically and socially very powerful aristocracy where many of the most enthusiastic followers of the new thinking belonged to.

== The Enlightenment Movement ==

The Age of Enlightenment (also the Age of Reason) derived from the ideas and thoughts of philosophers and universal scholars from mainly France and England between the 17th and 19th century. These thinkers believed that human reason could be used “to combat ignorance, superstition and tyranny and to build a better world” (cf. wsu). Their writings were principally directed against the domination of society by religion –mainly the Christian dogma - and by a hereditary aristocracy. Philosophical thought, scientific method and rationality became their means in the fight against inequality and injustice.

In Germany the Aufklärung, which already began in the mid-17th century, was a literary and philosophical movement lead by thinkers like Friedrich Schiller and Immanuel Kant.

French Enlightenment was closely connected to the group of the philosophes who were authors, scientists and thinkers like Voltaire and Rousseau. Their appeal against social injustice caused by the countries governing classes provided “the intellectual basis for the [[French Revolution]]” (cf. Oxford p. 200).

== English Enlightenment ==

Enlightenment in Great Britain was greatly influenced by the English thinker John Locke, the Scot David Hume and the English [[Thomas Paine]], one of the founding fathers of the U.S. and a great admirer of the French Enlightenment thought. The English and French Enlightenments experienced mutual influences through different channels. When Voltaire exiled to Great Britain in 1725 for about three years, the philosophical standpoints he encountered there had a huge impact on his own future thinking.

The Scottish intellectual movement around [[David Hume]] and Adam Smith that flourished in Edinburgh between 1750 and 1800 constituted one of the most productive foci of the British Enlightenment. Between 1768 and 1771 the ‘Society of Gentlemen in Scotland’, which had been formed in the 1740s “to emulate the great publishing achievement of the continental Enlightenment, Diderot's Encyclopédie” (cf. sic. Historyworld), published the [[Encyclopaedia Britannica]]. This was a dictionary of the arts and sciences that illustrated important scientific advances that had been made in Scotland in the fields of chemistry, geology and medicine.
In literature the ideas of Enlightenment have possibly encouraged the growth of literary realism and thus influenced on the rise of the novel (cf. Oxford). In arts it had a major influence on Romanticism that was based on more individualist attitudes which were cultivated by the Enlightenment movement.

British society in general became more open to change due to some transformations that it had undergone before. England had decapitated its king back in the 17th century, so that its monarchy had to change from absolute to constitutional. Regarding religion, new grounds were broken and old dogmas abolished. English Protestantism demanded more freedom of speech and press and radical religious movements like [[Quakers]] and [[Unitarians]] prospered. Since England had dealt with a revolution ([[Glorious Revolution]] of 1688) quite early in comparison to other European powers, her religious and aristocratic powers now diminished gradually under the influence of the new ideas, not like in France, where they were violently uprooted during the Revolution.

== Sources ==

Historyworld.net
30 Nov. 2010 http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?ParagraphID=oaq>

Isaacs, Alan et al. eds. Oxford Dictionary of World History. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2001.

wsu - Washington State University Homepage
30 Nov. 2010 <http://www.wsu.edu/~brians/hum_303/enlightenment.html>