Short Note on the Victorian Compromise.

Victorian Compromise: “Victorian Compromise”  is a socio-political and cultural compromise that took place in Britain during the Victorian era (1837-1901). It refers to the compromise of traditional values and the rapid progress of science in society. It is connected to Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809-1892). In the Victorian era (1833-1901), this crisis happened in the minds of almost all.

Origin of the phrase: Lawrence Friedman (1930-present), an American law professor and also a historian, first coined the term.

Victorian Compromise: Victorian compromise happened between science and religion, poor and rich, war and peace, educated and non-educated, etc. The conflict between science and religion is well-known among these.

The Compromise Between Science and Religion: People were highly conflicted between science and religion in the Victorian Age. Scientific development conflicted with people’s hearts. Charles Darwin’s theory, in particular, tells us that man originated from a monkey. But Religion tells us men do not originate from monkeys. Tennyson says that science should be given a position in its place, and religion should be given a position in its place.

Contribution of Tennyson: In Tennyson’s poem, he tried to compromise the contemporary trends. For this reason, he is called the representative poet of that age. In “Locksley Hall,” he tries to show the condition of the poor and rich. In ‘Ulysses,’ ‘Tithonus,’ ‘Oenone,’ ‘In Memoriam,’ etc., he expresses the idea of compromise between different aspects of the Victorian period.

In short, the Victorian compromise was necessary as it filled the demand of time. It reveals the contrasting nature of the era and combines traditionalism with innovation.  Finally, it balances between traditional values and scientific progress and belief.