The Hidden Truths of the Victorian era
Cassandra Parker
English 200C
Among other things, the Victorian era is marked by the tremendous growth of industry experienced at that time. With this growth, one might assume that much of the population live a financially comfortable life, however we know this was not the case and that much of England lived in extreme poverty. At the time, this poverty was not the image that those in power wanted put forth to reflect their state, so it was masked by an image of a wealthy powerful nation. Hiding the truth and the true images of life at in the era went as far as city development, where in major cities prosperous storefronts lined the streets, masking the ghettos that covered much of the area behind them. In using the detective genre in The Moonstone, Wilkie Collins creates a perfect forum for cleverly reflecting this Victorian theme of masking or hiding the true nature of things through this piece of literature.
The detective mystery in The Moonstone portrays very clearly how things are not always as they seem or first appear. In the search after the disappearance of the moonstone, things that are not at first apparent are often things reveal the truth or are the most valuable evidence. For example, the paint smear left on the back of Miss Rachel Verinder’s door is dismissed by Superintendent Seegrave as un-important, when in fact Sergeant Cuff later discovers it to be a vital piece of evidence in his investigation. Sergeant Cuff himself does not appear to be very insightful in his discoveries and unusual in his processes upon first impression. While he remains rather unusual, it does become apparent that he is more than they judge him for when he unearths important information in the case. The most important of the hidden truths is the ultimate point of the detective novel, in this case, who stole the moonstone. Hidden behind an intricate web of lies and an image of an upstanding citizen is the culprit, Mr.Godfrey Ablewhite. This hidden truth is the most reflective of Victorian society in the novel. Behind the image of prosperity, as projected by both England and Godfrey, is success, but only at the price of others. In the case of England, it is all those who worked and suffered at the cost of bettering the economy, and for Godfrey, it is those who were judged or accused wrongly and the lives that were damaged in the process.
The Moonstone also reflects the hiding that Victorians did on a more personal level. Rosanna Spearman’s feelings for Mr. Franklin Blake remained hidden due to the pressures and constraints of the classes in Victorian society. In this case, not being able to share the truth with the world caused her to make assumptions on his feelings. Eventually, her hidden emotions and her inability to share them with the world drove her to end her own life. Another case of characters hiding the truth is Mr. Blake’s unintentionally hiding the fact that he took the moonstone from Miss Rachel’s room. Because he was unknowingly under the influence of opium, Mr. Blake was not even aware that during the search for the moonstone that he was at the centre of the theft. This is a reflection on the Victorian society in that at times, people masked things unintentionally. For example, because of the way people of the era were socialized, things that might not have been in accordance with the Victorian way of life were hidden, but there was no thought to it. It was not even apparent to them, as it was not to Mr. Blake, that in fact they were hiding the truth.
English 200C
Among other things, the Victorian era is marked by the tremendous growth of industry experienced at that time. With this growth, one might assume that much of the population live a financially comfortable life, however we know this was not the case and that much of England lived in extreme poverty. At the time, this poverty was not the image that those in power wanted put forth to reflect their state, so it was masked by an image of a wealthy powerful nation. Hiding the truth and the true images of life at in the era went as far as city development, where in major cities prosperous storefronts lined the streets, masking the ghettos that covered much of the area behind them. In using the detective genre in The Moonstone, Wilkie Collins creates a perfect forum for cleverly reflecting this Victorian theme of masking or hiding the true nature of things through this piece of literature.
The detective mystery in The Moonstone portrays very clearly how things are not always as they seem or first appear. In the search after the disappearance of the moonstone, things that are not at first apparent are often things reveal the truth or are the most valuable evidence. For example, the paint smear left on the back of Miss Rachel Verinder’s door is dismissed by Superintendent Seegrave as un-important, when in fact Sergeant Cuff later discovers it to be a vital piece of evidence in his investigation. Sergeant Cuff himself does not appear to be very insightful in his discoveries and unusual in his processes upon first impression. While he remains rather unusual, it does become apparent that he is more than they judge him for when he unearths important information in the case. The most important of the hidden truths is the ultimate point of the detective novel, in this case, who stole the moonstone. Hidden behind an intricate web of lies and an image of an upstanding citizen is the culprit, Mr.Godfrey Ablewhite. This hidden truth is the most reflective of Victorian society in the novel. Behind the image of prosperity, as projected by both England and Godfrey, is success, but only at the price of others. In the case of England, it is all those who worked and suffered at the cost of bettering the economy, and for Godfrey, it is those who were judged or accused wrongly and the lives that were damaged in the process.
The Moonstone also reflects the hiding that Victorians did on a more personal level. Rosanna Spearman’s feelings for Mr. Franklin Blake remained hidden due to the pressures and constraints of the classes in Victorian society. In this case, not being able to share the truth with the world caused her to make assumptions on his feelings. Eventually, her hidden emotions and her inability to share them with the world drove her to end her own life. Another case of characters hiding the truth is Mr. Blake’s unintentionally hiding the fact that he took the moonstone from Miss Rachel’s room. Because he was unknowingly under the influence of opium, Mr. Blake was not even aware that during the search for the moonstone that he was at the centre of the theft. This is a reflection on the Victorian society in that at times, people masked things unintentionally. For example, because of the way people of the era were socialized, things that might not have been in accordance with the Victorian way of life were hidden, but there was no thought to it. It was not even apparent to them, as it was not to Mr. Blake, that in fact they were hiding the truth.
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