Cambridge University Press Remaking Queen Victoria: 10 (Cambridge Studies in Nineteenth-Century Literature and Culture, Series Number 10)

Queen Victoria's central importance to the era defined by her reign is self-evident, and yet it has been surprisingly overlooked in the study of Victorian culture. This collection of essays goes beyond the facts of biography and official history to explore the diverse, and sometimes conflicting, meanings she held for her subjects around the world and even for those outside her empire, who made of her a multifaceted icon serving their social and economic needs. In her paradoxical position as neither consort nor king, she baffled expectations throughout her reign. She was a model of wifely decorum and solid middle-class values, but she also became the focus of anxieties about powerful women, and - increasingly - of anger about Britain's imperial aims. Each essay analyses a different aspect of this complex and fascinating figure. Contributors include noted scholars in the field of literature, cultural studies, art history, and women's studies. Review "...an invaluable resource which could easily...be used as a text in classes in several disciplines." Rosemary T. VanArsdel, Victorian Periodicals"Excellent essays by Alison Booth, Elizabeth Langland, Robin L. Bott, Maria Jerinic, and Karen Chase and Michael Levenson explore the ways that Victoria both informed and was appropriated by the culture of her time. This book is a fine contribution to cultural studies of Victoria in all her many incarnations." Joseph W. Childers"Containing twelve thought-provoking essays, this collection ensures that Victoria now has fewer places to hide before the scholarly eye." Nineteenth-Century Literature"...essays here raise interesting questions, questions which could concern historians." Dorothy Thompson, Victorian Studies Book Description An exploration of the diverse and conflicting meanings Queen Victoria held for her subjects and others.