A presente dissertação tem como objetivo estabelecer um diálogo entre três obras da literatura britânica do século XIX: o romance Frankenstein (1818), da autora Mary W. Shelley; a novela O Médico e o Monstro (1886), de autoria de Robert Louis Stevenson; e o romance A Ilha do Dr. Moreau (1896), de H. G. Wells. Tal comparação será feita com base nas convenções advindas dos gêneros Gótico e Ficção científica, presentes nas obras. Como principal alicerce teórico para a definição de gêneros entendem-se as considerações de Tzvetan Todorov, que defende que os gêneros são inevitáveis como horizonte de interpretação, além de serem entidades em constante mudança numa cadeia de influências através da qual novos gêneros são criados a partir de outros pré-existentes. O presente trabalho parte desse pressuposto para determinar de que maneira os gêneros Gótico e Ficção científica estão presentes nas obras, observando como os traços do Gótico, ao se adaptarem através do tempo, deram lugar a convenções ainda semelhantes, mas que já apontavam para o que posteriormente seria considerado um novo gênero literário. Primeiramente, são feitas considerações sobre conceitos de gênero textual/literário através do tempo, as quais mostram o quanto seu estudo permaneceu constante. A seguir são definidas certas convenções dos dois gêneros, assim como o modo como dialogam entre si. A segunda parte do trabalho analisa as duas primeiras obras em ordem cronológica, Frankenstein e O Médico e o Monstro, de maneira a perceber a predominância de convenções do Gótico – especialmente relacionadas ao conflito interior dos personagens, como o "duplo" – ao mesmo tempo que a emergência de temas da ciência, como os de criador/criatura e ambição científica. O último capítulo verifica como a primeira fase da Ficção científica de H. G. Wells em geral e A Ilha do Dr. Moreau em particular resgatam convenções dos dois gêneros supracitados, ao mesmo tempo servindo como consolidador das convenções do último. Conclui-se, portanto, que houve uma evolução que possibilitou a emergência de um novo gênero ligado ao contexto histórico das obras, o que legitima a consideração dos gêneros como entidades mais livres e não restritivas, que podem estar presentes em diversas obras ao mesmo tempo e ampliar seu horizonte de interpretação. / This thesis establishes a dialogue among three books from 19th century British literature: the novel Frankenstein (1818), by M. W. Shelley; the novella Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1886), by Robert Louis Stevenson; and the novel The Island of Dr. Moreau (1896), by H. G. Wells. This comparison is made based on the specific Gothic and Science fiction conventions present in the books. The main theoretical support for the definition of genres employed here comes from Tzvetan Todorov. The author argues that genres are inevitable as horizons of interpretation, entities in constant change which tend to create new genres from pre-existent ones, in a chain of influences. This thesis considers this supposition to determine how Gothic and Science fiction make themselves present in the works analyzed, in a way that Gothic traits, being adapted through time, give way to similar but yet innovative conventions, which subsequently would be considered a new literary genre. Primarily, considerations concerning the concept of genres through history are made, all of which show how this study was kept constant. Hereafter, certain conventions regarding both genres are defined, as well as the manner they dialogue amongst themselves. The second part of the thesis is dedicated to the analysis of Frankenstein and Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and establishes the predominance of Gothic conventions – especially the ones related to the inner conflict of the characters, such as the "double" –, while considering the emergence of scientific themes, such as the creator/creature relationship and scientific ambition. The last section verifies how the first cycle of H. G. Wells' Science fiction in a broad sense, and The Island of Dr. Moreau in a strict sense, reemploy conventions of both genres, serving to consolidate the latter. Therefore, it is concluded that there was an evolution which enabled the emergence of a new genre, considering the historical contexts and the books analyzed. This consideration justifies genres as wide-ranging, non-restrictive entities, which may be present in various works simultaneously and broaden their horizon of interpretation.

A presente dissertação tem como objetivo estabelecer um diálogo entre três obras da literatura britânica do século XIX: o romance Frankenstein (1818), da autora Mary W. Shelley; a novela O Médico e o Monstro (1886), de autoria de Robert Louis Stevenson; e o romance A Ilha do Dr. Moreau (1896), de H. G. Wells. Tal comparação será feita com base nas convenções advindas dos gêneros Gótico e Ficção científica, presentes nas obras. Como principal alicerce teórico para a definição de gêneros entendem-se as considerações de Tzvetan Todorov, que defende que os gêneros são inevitáveis como horizonte de interpretação, além de serem entidades em constante mudança numa cadeia de influências através da qual novos gêneros são criados a partir de outros pré-existentes. O presente trabalho parte desse pressuposto para determinar de que maneira os gêneros Gótico e Ficção científica estão presentes nas obras, observando como os traços do Gótico, ao se adaptarem através do tempo, deram lugar a convenções ainda semelhantes, mas que já apontavam para o que posteriormente seria considerado um novo gênero literário. Primeiramente, são feitas considerações sobre conceitos de gênero textual/literário através do tempo, as quais mostram o quanto seu estudo permaneceu constante. A seguir são definidas certas convenções dos dois gêneros, assim como o modo como dialogam entre si. A segunda parte do trabalho analisa as duas primeiras obras em ordem cronológica, Frankenstein e O Médico e o Monstro, de maneira a perceber a predominância de convenções do Gótico – especialmente relacionadas ao conflito interior dos personagens, como o "duplo" – ao mesmo tempo que a emergência de temas da ciência, como os de criador/criatura e ambição científica. O último capítulo verifica como a primeira fase da Ficção científica de H. G. Wells em geral e A Ilha do Dr. Moreau em particular resgatam convenções dos dois gêneros supracitados, ao mesmo tempo servindo como consolidador das convenções do último. Conclui-se, portanto, que houve uma evolução que possibilitou a emergência de um novo gênero ligado ao contexto histórico das obras, o que legitima a consideração dos gêneros como entidades mais livres e não restritivas, que podem estar presentes em diversas obras ao mesmo tempo e ampliar seu horizonte de interpretação. / This thesis establishes a dialogue among three books from 19th century British literature: the novel Frankenstein (1818), by M. W. Shelley; the novella Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1886), by Robert Louis Stevenson; and the novel The Island of Dr. Moreau (1896), by H. G. Wells. This comparison is made based on the specific Gothic and Science fiction conventions present in the books. The main theoretical support for the definition of genres employed here comes from Tzvetan Todorov. The author argues that genres are inevitable as horizons of interpretation, entities in constant change which tend to create new genres from pre-existent ones, in a chain of influences. This thesis considers this supposition to determine how Gothic and Science fiction make themselves present in the works analyzed, in a way that Gothic traits, being adapted through time, give way to similar but yet innovative conventions, which subsequently would be considered a new literary genre. Primarily, considerations concerning the concept of genres through history are made, all of which show how this study was kept constant. Hereafter, certain conventions regarding both genres are defined, as well as the manner they dialogue amongst themselves. The second part of the thesis is dedicated to the analysis of Frankenstein and Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and establishes the predominance of Gothic conventions – especially the ones related to the inner conflict of the characters, such as the "double" –, while considering the emergence of scientific themes, such as the creator/creature relationship and scientific ambition. The last section verifies how the first cycle of H. G. Wells' Science fiction in a broad sense, and The Island of Dr. Moreau in a strict sense, reemploy conventions of both genres, serving to consolidate the latter. Therefore, it is concluded that there was an evolution which enabled the emergence of a new genre, considering the historical contexts and the books analyzed. This consideration justifies genres as wide-ranging, non-restrictive entities, which may be present in various works simultaneously and broaden their horizon of interpretation.

The purpose of this study was to understand the experiences and perceptions of 12th-grade literature teachers about curriculum, Post-Colonial literature, and students. Theories posed by Piaget (1995), Vygotsky (1995), and Rosenblatt (1995) formed the framework for this micro-ethnographic study. Seven teachers from public and private schools in South Florida participated in this two-phase study; three teachers in Phase I and four in Phase II. All participants completed individual semi-structured interviews and demographic surveys. In addition, four of the teachers were observed teaching. The analysis yielded three themes and two sub-themes: (a) knowledge concerned teachers’ knowledge of British literature content and Post-Colonial authors and their literature; (b) freedom described teachers’ freedom to choose how to teach their content. Included in this theme was dilemmas associated with 12th-grade classrooms which described issues that were pertinent to the 12th-grade teacher and classroom that were revealed by the study; and (c) thoughts about students described teachers’ perceptions about students and how literature might affect the students. Two subthemes of knowledge were as follows:(1) text complexity described teacher responses to a Post-Colonial text’s complexity and (2) student desirability/teachability described teachers’ perception about how desirable Post-Colonial texts would be to students and whether teachers would be willing to teach these texts. The researcher offers recommendations for understanding factors associated with 12th-grade teachers perceptions and implications for enhancing the 12th-grade experience for teachers and curriculum, based on this study: (a) build teacher morale and capacity, (b) treat all students as integral components of the teaching and learning process; teachers in this study thought teaching disenfranchised learners was a form of punishment meted out by the administration, and (c) include more Post-Colonial authors in school curricula in colleges and schools as most teachers in this study did not study this type of literature nor knew how to teach it.

My thesis explores why beauty became so much more important in nineteenth-century Britain, especially for marriageable young women in the upper and middle class. My argument addresses the consequences of that change in the status of beauty for plain or ugly women, how this social shift is reflected in the novel, and how authors respond to the issue of plainer women and issues of their marriageability. I look at how these authorial attitudes shifted over the century, observing that the issue of plain women and their marriageability was dramatized by nineteenth-century authors, whose efforts to heighten the audience's awareness of the plight of plainer women can be traced by contrasting novels written early in the century with novels written mid-century. I argue that beauty gained more significance for young women in nineteenth-century England because the marriage ideal shifted, a shift which especially influenced the upper and middle class. The eighteenth century brought into marriage concepts such as Rousseau's "wife-farm principle" the idea that a man chooses a significantly younger child-bride, mentoring and molding her into the woman he needs. But by the end of the century the ideal of marriage moved to the companionate ideal, which opted for an equal partnership. That ideal was based on the conception that marriage was based on personal happiness hence should be founded on compatibility and love. The companionate ideal became more influential as individuality reigned among the Romantics. The new ideal of companionate marriage limited parents' influence on their children's choice of spouse to the extent that the choice lay now largely with young men. Yet that choice was constrained because young men and women were restricted by social conventions, their social interaction limited. Thus, according to my reading of nineteenth-century authors, the companionate ideal was a charade, as young men were not able to get to know women well enough to determine whether or not they were compatible. So instead of getting to know a young woman's character and her personality, they distinguished potential brides mainly on the basis of appearance.

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From the first electric lights in London along Pall Mall, and in the Holborn Viaduct in 1878 to the nationalisation of National Grid in 1947, the narrative of the simple ascendency of a new technology over its outdated predecessor is essential to the way we have imagined electric light in London at the end of the nineteenth century. However, as this thesis will demonstrate, the interplay between gas and electric light - two co-existing and competing illuminary technologies - created a particular and peculiar landscape of light, a 'lightscape', setting London apart from its contemporaries throughout the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Indeed, this narrative forms the basis of many assertions made in critical discussions of artificial illumination and technology in the late-twentieth century; however, this was not how electric light was understood at the time nor does it capture how electric light both captivated and eluded the imagination of contemporary Londoners. The influence of the electric light in the representations of London is certainly a literary question, as many of those writing during this period of electrification are particularly attentive to the city's rich and diverse lightscape. Though this has yet to be made explicit in existing scholarship, electric lights are the nexus of several important and ongoing discourses in the study of Victorian, Post-Victorian, Modernist, and twentieth-century literature. This thesis will address how the literary influence of the electric light and its relationship with its illuminary predecessors transcends the widespread electrification of London to engage with an imaginary London, providing not only a connection with our past experiences and conceptions of the city, modernity, and technology but also an understanding of what Frank Mort describes as the 'long cultural reach of the nineteenth century into the post-war period'.