This thesis examines middle-class social relations in nineteenth-century Dublin and Edinburgh, giving particular attention to how the cities’ inhabitants dealt with sectarian conflicts. These cities occupied an unusual position within the UK as they were both stateless capitals, towns that no longer possessed a national parliament, but still performed many of the administrative functions of a capital city. Being a stateless capital affected Dublin and Edinburgh in contrasting ways and this distinction shaped the wider character of each city and middle-class social relations within them. The thesis adopts philanthropy as a vantage point from which to explore these issues as charitable institutions occupied a unique place in nineteenth-century towns, being a junction between voluntary association and official government activity. Presbyterian Edinburgh and predominately Catholic and Anglican Dublin were both home to vibrant philanthropic associational cultures based on similar middle-class values. Contrary to older analyses, Presbyterianism did not promote a greater interest in participating in voluntary activity any more than Catholicism discouraged it. There were, however, differences between the cities. Edinburgh was a more ostensibly successful city by contemporary middle-class standards. Its organisations helped it to overcome social divisions to a greater extent than their counterparts in Dublin. The contrasting nature of state-charity relations in each city partly explains this difference. Overt central state intervention in Edinburgh’s philanthropic institutions was rare, hence Edinburgh was seen as a society trying to manage its own problems. Dublin by contrast, appeared to be a dependent city as its charities received substantial parliamentary aid. Hence, Edinburgh could present itself as a self-confident capital city whereas Dublin, although a more overt centre of power, sometimes appeared to be simply an intermediary through which London influenced the rest of Ireland. Although both cities were part of the UK mainstream associational culture, charitable activity also emphasised their Irish or Scottish characteristics. These national attributes were not perceived as equally attractive. Philanthropy associated Edinburgh with Enlightenment and education, by contrast it connected Dublin with poverty and dependency.

This thesis investigates the origins and impact of electrical telegraphy in Germany between 1830 and 1880, situating them within the context of long-term transformations in the theory and practice of communication. It uses the development of telegraphy as an analytical lens through which to explore the connections between actors at the heart of the socio-economic transformations taking place in Germany during the period. Both as an innovation and as a tool of communication, this thesis argues, the telegraph epitomised the simultaneously growing interdependence and differentiation between people and places which was a defining characteristic of modernity. By exploring the motivations and interactions of scientists, entrepreneurs, state officials, and ordinary users who engaged with the technology, this thesis highlights the diverse expectations which were placed upon telegraphy, and the many different directions in which its development was pulled. In doing so, it reveals the ties between the ‘modernising’ processes with which the technology has been associated. It challenges linear narratives of technological innovation which focus exclusively upon individual or state actors, emphasising the cooperation and collaboration across society which was necessary to produce the telegraph. It similarly questions triumphalist interpretations of the 'communications revolution' so often attributed to the nineteenth century, emphasising instead the tensions and divisions which it also generated. Revisiting the themes of industrialisation, capitalism, community and bourgeois class-formation in nineteenth-century Germany in this light, this thesis emphasises their intrinsic interdependence, and the inevitable mixture of hopes and anxieties, expectations and frustrations, which it produced.

The central aim of this thesis is to critically examine the values associated with dogs in Victorian British art and visual culture. It studies the redefining and restructuring of the domestic dog as it was conceptualized in visual culture and the art market. It proposes that the dog was strongly associated with social values and moral debates which often occurred within a visual arena, including exhibitions, illustrated newspapers, and prints. Consequently, visual representations of the dog can be seen as an important means through which to study Victorian culture and society. Historians have agreed that the Victorian period was a significant turning point for how we perceive the dog. Harriet Ritvo, Michael Worboys and Neil Pemberton cite the Victorian period as founding or popularizing many recognisable canine constructs; such as competitive breeding; a widespread acceptance of dogs as pets; and the association of particular breeds with particular classes of people. Phillip Howell defines the Victorian period as the point at which the domestic dog was conceptually established. The figurative domestic dog did not simply exist in the home but was part of the home; an embodiment of its core (often middle class) values. As such, the domestic dog became the standard by which all other dogs were perceived and the focal point for related social debates. Yet most studies concerning the Victorian dog overlook the contribution of visual culture to these cultural developments. William Secord compiled an extensive catalogue of Victorian dog artwork and Diana Donald examined Landseer and the dog as an artistic model yet neither have fully situated the dog within a broader Victorian social environment, nor was their intention to critically examine the dog’s signification within the larger visual landscape. Chapter One provides this overview, while subsequent chapters provide studies of key canine motifs and the manner in which they operated in art and visual culture. Underpinning this thesis is a concern with the Victorian moral values and ideals of domesticity in urban environments. These values and their relation to the dog are explored through the framework of the social history of art. Seen through this methodology, this thesis allows the relationship between canine debates, social concerns, and visual representations to be understood. It will argue that the figure of the dog had a significant role to play both socially and visually within Victorian society and propose a reappraisal of the dog in art historical study.

This dissertation examines the role of the mob in Early American literature, and how the mob continues to be an essential part of American society. Chapter one uses Linebaugh's and Rediker's The Many-Headed Hydra to argue that early American authors acted as demagogues attempting to control the mob. These earliest American writers aligned with Federalist-leaning politicians and convey a conservative message to the reading public. For these American authors it was essential to keep the Revolutionary spirit alive, and to point the overeager mob in the direction of worthwhile causes. Just who is deciding whether a cause is a "moral" one or not is the subject of chapter two. Charles Brockden Brown's Wieland and "Trials of Arden," and Stephen Burroughs' Memoir reveal attempts by these authors to manipulate and force the reader to wrestle with "reasonable doubt." These authors frame the reader as the mob, and attempt to push the reader to think without "hasty judgment." Building on these ideas, the discussion moves to the "neutral ground" in The Spy, "My Kinsman, Major Molineux," "Rip Van Winkle," and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow." The neutral ground, a liminal space, is the truest test of Democracy, as it is an area without formal laws and regulations. Mob rule dominates this region, and, though dangerous, it allows for the greatest freedom in the new nation. Chapter four argues that the hope of the "neutral ground" on the frontier is a myth. The sea-novels of Herman Melville, Richard Penn Smith's Col. Crockett, and political cartoons of the 1830s, reveal that corrupt captains are formed wherever Americans look for freedom, whether that be at sea or on the western frontier. The concluding chapter focuses on the current usage of "mob" in American culture--looking at the Tea Party and Occupy movements of the last decade--and asserts that mobs are currently alive and well in American literature and culture.

A intenção do presente trabalho é conceituar roupa interior feminina com foco no século XIX. A partir da conceituação de roupa interior, e da pesquisa da roupa exterior, as peças internas serão identificadas e analisadas para compreender seu conceito como suporte do corpo. Com o estudo de imagens, catálogos, fotografias, revistas, livros, periódicos e manuais de construção de roupas, o trabalho destina-se ao entendimento do corpo modelado pela roupa interior, formadora das silhuetas do século XIX, analisando os suportes internos como influenciadores da forma do corpo e do comportamento no período / Conceptualizing underclothing for women is the main intention of this paper and such concept is focused in the Nineteenth Century. Based upon the conceptualization of underclothing and the research involving the usual outer clothing of the time, under pieces are identified and analyzed. Thus, it\'s possible to understand the role these pieces play as a concept for bodily support. Through the study of images, catalogs, photographies, magazines, books, journals and guides of garment manufacturing, this paper looks forward to understanding the body as modeled by underclothing (which helped shape the body in the Nineteenth Century) and to analyzing the inner supports as major influences in the social conduct and bodily shapes of that era

Covering the years 1832 to 1908, a period that saw significant development in prosthetic technologies—in particular artificial legs, teeth, and eyes—this thesis explores representations of prostheses in British and American nineteenth- and early twentieth-century literature and culture. By considering prosthetic devices such as wooden legs and hook hands alongside artificial body parts that are often overlooked in terms of their status as prostheses, such as wigs and dentures, this thesis is the first to examine holistically the varied and complex attitudes displayed towards attempts to efface bodily loss in this period. Lennard J. Davis has shown how the concept of physical normalcy, against which bodily difference is defined, gained cultural momentum in the nineteenth century as bodily statistics emerged onto the scene (Enforcing Normalcy). This thesis builds on Davis’s work by considering other historical factors that contributed to the rise of physical normalcy, a concept that I show was buttressed by an understanding of the “healthy body” as “whole”. Like Davis, I also explore the denigration of physical difference that such a rise encouraged. The prosthesis industry, which saw tremendous development in the nineteenth century, cashed in on the increasing mandate for physical normalcy. However, as this thesis shows—and where it breaks new ground—while contemporary journalism and advertising often lauded the accomplishments of an emerging group of professional prosthesis makers, fiction tended to provide the other side of the picture, revealing the stereotypes, stigma, scepticism, inadequacies, and injustices attached to the use and dissemination of prosthetic devices. I argue that Victorian prosthesis narratives complicated the hegemony of normalcy that Davis has shown emerged in this period. Showing how representations of the prostheticised body were inflected significantly by factors such as social class, gender, and age, this thesis argues that nineteenth-century prosthesis narratives, though presented in a predominantly ableist manner, challenged the dominance of physical completeness as they either questioned the logic of prostheticisation or presented non-normative subjects in threateningly powerful ways.

Magister Artium - MA

Recovering the lost voices of marginalized groups and integrating them into history helps reshape social constructs of the past, revitalize historiographical practices, and rethink spaces of exclusivity. Using an archival methodology and a feminist rhetorical lens, this thesis recovers the history of College Temple, a nineteenth-century women’s college located in Newnan, Georgia, and the women who attended the school, examining how the local space contributes to both rhetoric and composition’s larger historical narrative and modern practices. Though in existence a mere thirty-six years (1853-1889), College Temple provided its student with several contemporary opportunities, particularly within the realm of composition, contributing to their sense of agency and ethos. Exploring this contribution demonstrates the importance of the microhistory, serving as a call to further this type of research.

This thesis argues that what it terms fever narratives figure prominently in Charles Dickens’s fiction. Fever was regarded not as a symptom but as a generic disease that had sub-species, such as cholera, smallpox, typhus and typhoid, and that presented itself through devastating epidemics that frightened the public and drove the government to enact public health legislation. The core elements of the fever narrative – such as fever’s cause, pathology, treatment and prevention – were still not clearly understood. This inevitably heightened public anxiety and frustration, particularly given lengthy delays in the bureaucratic processes of Parliament and local governments in dealing with fever’s perennial threat. The politically favoured sanitarian narrative influenced Dickens significantly. Sanitarians believed that water and sewer projects in urban localities and improved sanitary practices would prevent most diseases. However, Dickens was influenced also by an alternative approach that this thesis calls the “medical narrative,” comprising a more holistic vision of public health, reliant on improved treatments, greater medical professionalism, and specialized hospitals, in addition to sanitary reform. Dickens’s 1840s novels reflected both approaches, but he emphasized the medical narrative in portrayals of the fevers of individual characters. In the 1850s, the predominant focus of fever narratives in Dickens’s journals and novels became fever of the social body – fever that figuratively infected English institutions or the country as a whole. Dickens’s fever narratives became progressively darker during these two decades and, with each novel onward from Dombey and Son (1846-48), his representations of fever apocalypses infecting both the rich and the poor became more strident, even to the extent of suggesting that the whole institutional and economic infrastructure of the country would suffer an irrevocable blow. The thesis argues that Dickens presented these minatory scenes of vengeance in response to what he perceived as the blindness of the middle class to the condition of the sick and poor of England. This reached a climax with “Revolutionary fever” in A Tale of Two Cities (1859). The thesis presents a final argument that Dickens’s stories of the early 1860s and Our Mutual Friend (1864-65) provided both a continuation of and a denouement for the two previous decades’ fever narratives, by offering a view of the dust of corpse upon corpse of those who were mowed down by fever, and of a river polluted by this dust. However, he foresees also the possibility of the fundamental regeneration of a more humane physical, social and institutional environment in England.

It is the purpose of this work to compile and organize available material dealing with children's magazines published in the nineteenth century in America, and present it in a usable form.