‘The Victorian’

Literature CompassVolume 1, Issue 1 p. **-** 'The Victorian' Philip Davis, Philip Davis University of LiverpoolSearch for more papers by this author Philip Davis, Philip Davis University of LiverpoolSearch for more papers by this author First published: 15 December 2005 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-4113.2004.00029.xCitations: 1Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Abstract Scepticism about the term 'Victorian' is part of a more general scepticism about literary history and criticism. An account is given of the doubts and risks involved, specifically, in writing the volume The Victorians 1830–1880 for the Oxford English Literary History series. The problems in establishing a framework for the Victorian age are themselves a version of the problems confronted by many Victorians. These problems are historical (in particular to do with secularization and the loss of home); they are also part of a continuous conversation amongst the Victorians that has a self-conscious ongoing history. A defence is offered of what constitutes a literary history – in particular of the Victorians, with whom literature often functions as an agnostic holding-ground for exploration, testing the area between the particular and the general in specific human terms. Literary history requires not only knowledge but also imagination; it is not an end in itself but a means to an end, particularly in relation to Victorian questioning. Citing Literature Volume1, Issue1January 2003 ‐ December 2004Pages **-** RelatedInformation