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Approaching democracy: the virtues of representative government in mid-Victorian England

dc.contributor.authorSilva, Elisabete Mendes
dc.date.accessioned2015-07-24T10:08:42Z
dc.date.available2015-07-24T10:08:42Z
dc.date.issued2014
dc.description.abstractIn 19th century Britain, the century of reform par excellence, the questions of representation, parliamentary reform and democracy were more categorically discussed. The Great Reform Act of 1832 epitomised hope for many people who felt left out of the suffrage, as it would reform the British electoral system but in fact it undermined the expectations since the vote was based on property and on the payment of a rent. The growing political power of a more dominant middle class and the constant pressure of liberals made parliamentary franchise a need and a reality. For this reason, the 1867 Representation of the People Act, also known as the Second Reform Act, removed anomalies in the system the 1832 Reform Act had not addressed, and extended the vote. Within this framework, the purpose of this paper is thus twofold. On the one hand, we will assess the direct and unintended effects of the 1867 Act, exploring the relation between representation and democracy as the possession of the vote and of political power were not necessarily the same thing. On the other hand, we intend to analyse the construction of a political discourse sustained by several playwrights, such as historians and political writers, to meet political, economic, social and cultural needs. With this in mind, we will highlight opposing views regarding suffrage and the disbelief in democracy focusing particularly on Thomas Carlyle and his 1867 Pamphlet: Shooting Niagara - And after?, and some of the supporters of popular democracy and in favour of the extension of the franchise, namely J.S. Mill, W.E. Gladstone and Benjamin Disraeli. In order to support these objectives, we will also bring to light some 19th century periodicals, such as The Illustrated London News, The Sunday Times, The Times and Punch, scrutinising how they cast the debate on suffrage.por
dc.description.sponsorshipFCTpor
dc.identifier.citationSilva, Elisabete Mendes (2014). Approaching democracy: the virtues of representative government in mid-Victorian England. In 2nd International Conference: Victorian Like us: The Victorian Household: Power, Policies, Practices. Lisboapor
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10198/11973
dc.language.isoengpor
dc.peerreviewedyespor
dc.publisherUniversidade de Lisboa, Centro de Estudos Anglísticospor
dc.subjectLiberalismpor
dc.subjectParliamentary franchisepor
dc.subjectDemocracypor
dc.subjectReformpor
dc.titleApproaching democracy: the virtues of representative government in mid-Victorian Englandpor
dc.typeconference object
dspace.entity.typePublication
oaire.awardURIinfo:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/3599-PPCDT/PEst-OE%2FELT%2FUI0114%2F2013/PT
oaire.citation.conferencePlaceLisboapor
oaire.citation.endPage62por
oaire.citation.startPage61por
oaire.citation.title2nd International Conference: Victorian Like us: The Victorian Household: Power, Policies, Practicespor
oaire.fundingStream3599-PPCDT
person.familyNameSilva
person.givenNameElisabete Mendes
person.identifier.ciencia-idEE12-AC24-227B
person.identifier.orcid0000-0002-1782-2567
project.funder.identifierhttp://doi.org/10.13039/501100001871
project.funder.nameFundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia
rcaap.rightsopenAccesspor
rcaap.typeconferenceObjectpor
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relation.isAuthorOfPublication.latestForDiscoveryc6cfeddd-2444-47cd-bd74-1da763a86608
relation.isProjectOfPublication57f29104-6df7-4836-a534-e44daab2527a
relation.isProjectOfPublication.latestForDiscovery57f29104-6df7-4836-a534-e44daab2527a

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