Edwardian

Sometimes referred to as 'the golden age', the Edwardian era was a time of great change and famous literature. The turn of the century brought excitement and fear in equal measures. Here we will look at what happened during the Edwardian era and the literature it produced.

Edwardian era

The Edwardian era is a period of time in British history that commonly dates from the end of the Victorian era in 1901 until the beginning of the First World War in 1914. The period is named after the reign of King Edward VII. Although Edward's reign ended with his death in 1910, the four years that succeeded are also referred to as 'Edwardian'. The Edwardian era is the last in British history to be named after a reigning monarch.

Although it was a relatively short time, it was a period of tremendous change. The Victorian era brought about the Industrial Revolution, which rapidly increased the size and population of cities. This increase led to the poor and working classes living among the more wealthy and this, in turn, led to a demand for social change. It was also the time when women's suffrage came to prominence. High-profile campaigns brought women's suffrage to the forefront of political discussion.

The Edwardian era was a period of great change.

Here we look at some facts about the Edwardian era across culture.

• The Edwardian era is sometimes known as the 'golden age', this is because it was a time of great prosperity and luxurious parties among the wealthy elite.

• Child labour laws were finally introduced to prevent children from working during the Edwardian era. No longer did children have to perform dangerous tasks like sweeping chimneys or mining for coal.

• King Edward VII was a popular if somewhat controversial monarch. He was thought of as quite fashionable with the company he kept and made frequent visits to Paris. He also had a reputation as a playboy due to his fondness for parties and women.

• The Edwardian era oversaw a lot of progressive social change. As well as child labour laws being introduced, the Edwardians also saw women's suffrage rise to prominence and the working class becoming an active voice in politics.

Edwardian literature

Because of the era's short length in time, there is an overlap between Victorian and Edwardian literature. Renowned authors such as Arthur Conan Doyle and Joseph Conrad were prolific in both periods and could be considered either Victorian or Edwardian. For that reason, we will primarily look at individual texts written between 1901 and 1914. The writers George Bernard Shaw and E.M. Forster are much more closely associated with the era and helped bring forward a dramatic shift in storytelling.

The Edwardian era saw the origins of movements such as Modernism, the Bloomsbury Group and, somewhat ironically, the Georgian poets. The Bloomsbury group were a collective of authors, painters and critics who would often meet in the London district of their name. The majority of these movements chose to move away from the traditional forms of storytelling and poetry to embrace more experimental methods. Authors started using techniques including unreliable narrators and using a stream of consciousness. The Georgian poets, by contrast, were almost anti-modern, producing lyric poetry with rural and pastoral themes. Many of these Georgian poets found themselves fighting in the First World War.

Notable works

Here we will look at some notable works from writers predominantly associated with the Edwardian era.

A Room With a View (1908)

The novel, written by G.K. Chesterton, could be considered a surreal or metaphysical spy thriller. Gabriel Syme is hired by Scotland Yard to join an anti-anarchist task force. He infiltrates a secret anarchist council that plans to commit acts of terrorism led by an enigmatic leader known only as 'Sunday'. In a confusing turn of events, Gabriel (Thursday) discovers that he is not the only undercover detective in the council.

Characteristics of Edwardian literature

Edwardian literature followed the Victorian era, and the period had a transformative effect on storytelling. Edwardian literature is a period of time rather than a movement or style, so the work of the time is wide-ranging. This means that there aren't strict characteristics for the work of the time. There are, however, some familiar characteristics developed in Edwardian literature that are still used today. Below are some of the more common themes.

Questioning society

The Edwardian era was a time of great transition marked by the dawn of a new century. This gave writers the opportunity to look introspectively into society. George Bernard Shaw used his plays to polemicise on society's ills. The theatre became a place where the political ideas of the past were challenged. Another writer who used their work to take a closer look at society was E.M. Forster. Forster examined the repressive nature of the Edwardian era in novels such as A Room With a View and Howard's End (1910).

New ways of telling a story

Modernism did not fully come into prominence until after the Edwardian era. This is most likely due to the events of the First World War. However, the origins of modernism are rooted in the Edwardian era as writers looked for new ways to tell their stories. Ford Maddox Ford used an unreliable narrator for his novel The Good Soldier (1915). Developments in psychoanalysis meant both writers and readers were more aware of the subconscious. Characters became more complex, and their intentions were no longer so clear. Joseph Conrad's The Secret Agent (1907) and G.K. Chesterton's The Man Who Was Thursday (1908) exemplify this duality.