Victorian Wizarding World
Jul 10, 2014 21:04:00 GMT -5
Post by Paige on Jul 10, 2014 21:04:00 GMT -5
In 1884, the United Kingdom was ruled by Queen Victoria, who had been the monarch for four decades. During her long and prosperous reign, the middle class that had arose in the 1700s became an educated middle class. This distinct educated middle class is what the Victorian Era is named for, as the Victorians were known for having clear social classes.
This was a tremendously exciting era in time when many artistic styles, grammar schools, as well as, social, political and religious movements flourished. It was a time of prosperity, broad imperial expansion, and great political reform. It was also a time, which today we associate with "prudishness" and "repression", in regards to social behavior and what was acceptable. Without a doubt, it was an extraordinarily complex age and is the beginning of Modern Times.
The social classes of England were newly reforming, and fomenting. There was a churning upheaval of the old hierarchical order, and the middle classes were steadily growing. Added to that, the upper classes' composition was changing from simply hereditary aristocracy (inherited titles) to a combination of nobility and an emerging wealthy commercial class (think merchants). The definition of what made someone a gentleman or a lady was, therefore, changing at what some thought was an alarming rate. By the end of the century, it was silently agreed that a gentleman was someone who had a liberal public (private) school education, no matter what his ancestors might have been. There continued to be a large and generally disgruntled working class, wanting and slowly getting reform and change.
Upper-class
Though most wizards still claim to have distanced themselves from muggles and all that they are, it is fact that the same etiquette and class the muggles hold by is the etiquette and class wizards also stand by. The classes among wizarding kind are all very different. Children of the upper-class are raised in comfort and luxury, spoiled with attention and gifts from birth. They are often taught by governesses; women who take up residence within the family home. Upon reaching the age of eleven and receiving their Hogwarts letter, the governess will be sent away to find a new home that needs her, because the children will begin to board at the school. The upper-class has the highest rate of graduates, though some children choose to complete their OWL year and then leave school for work, if male, or to return home and be prepared for an arranged marriage, if female.
As already stated, once they have graduated from Hogwarts in seventh year, each gender goes their separate ways. Males head off into a career or go in search for one in order to become successful. The range of time it takes for males to become successful depends heavily on their choice of career, family background, and how well they've performed at school. A man will be considered successful once he has climbed the ladder at a respectable job, earned enough money to afford the purchase of a home and married a respectable girl.
Females will have a Coming Out Ball upon graduation during seventh year, though the ball could be held sooner if the female in question chose to only complete school through her fifth year. A young lady’s ‘Coming Out’ is her introduction into adult society, announcing that she has completed her education and is eligible to be married. Usually, a girl is seventeen or eighteen when she has her Coming Out Ball, but again, had she only gone through fifth year in schooling, she could have been as young as fifteen when she became eligible for marriage. It is common for there to be pre-arranged marriages, so the ball is often used as an Engagement Announcement as well. The girl’s future husband will usually be five to ten years her elder, as it is next to impossible for a man her own age to be well established and prepared for marriage. After she is married, it was a woman’s responsibility to manage the household, including the servants, budget, and daily going-ons as well as to make house calls to represent her husband.
Middle-class
The rising middle class strives to become esteemed members of society, or ladies and gentlemen. Such titles were once only given to those who had noble birth and were, usually, wealthy, but as the middle class has risen in education men are now accepted as gentlemen as long as they had a private school education (Hogwarts). The same goes for a lady. This class is the less formal group and certainly more cozy. The home is the center of family life and it is the wife’s job to oversee that it is kept clean and neat. She will most likely have at least one servant or a housekeeper to assist her. It depends upon the husband’s job whether the family is able to afford a governess to teach their children until they reach school age. If the family is unable to afford a governess, the mother may send her children to a private tutor, who teaches elementary things such as how to read and write as well as etiquette. Tutors either have their own schools to teach such things or have sessions at their homes or the homes of their employers throughout the day.
Once through with school, the males either begin to learn about their family’s business or trade, or go off in search of an occupation. It is more common for males of the middle class to only go to school up until their fifth year or lower. Some families can only afford to send the females to Hogwarts up until fifth year, though most are able to complete seventh year. Outside of school, girls from middle class families are not afforded the same liberties of a ‘Coming Out’ Ball as their upper-class compatriots, and instead have to hope that they will be married to a man who at least owns his own home. They often mingle with the upper class in hopes of “marrying up” to improve their station in life, though the chances of this are slim.
Low-Class
Those of the working class are often viewed as the lowest class. They consist of servants, coal miners, prostitutes and other low-paying jobs and positions. Child labor is also widely used and accepted. Although Prince Albert made it compulsory for children ages 5-10 to receive an education, this did not become free until 1891, and therefore those that could not afford to send their children to school, did not. The lower class wizarding families do not send their children to any type of school before Hogwarts, being unable to afford it. Laws were passed to prevent anyone under the age of nine to work in the textile industry, which resorted in poor families sending their children out out to beg, steal, or earn money for their families by other means. Their living conditions are poor. It isn’t unusual to find several families living under the same roof. Every able-bodied member of the family is forced to work, no matter the age, to make ends meet. The better jobs among this class are serving as messenger boys to the middle and upper class society, though many are not so lucky.
Most working class families are not able to afford to send their children to Hogwarts when their letters arrive. The most promising first-years among this class, measured by accidental magic, are given scholarships that pay in full the cost of their attendance. Continuation of the scholarship from year to year depends upon the student’s academic progress and behavior. Though seen as a kind gesture by the school officials, most children awarded these scholarships drop out before completing their first year, due to being unable to read or write. Only a very small few of these children have the tenacity for learning to go on and finish their schooling at Hogwarts. If they are able to finish, they often went go out in search of an occupation, now in a position that could possibly push them up in class standing. This mostly applies to men, however, as women are often single and become old-maids, for the only jobs available to them are domestic service, physically taxing jobs, or prostitution.
This was a tremendously exciting era in time when many artistic styles, grammar schools, as well as, social, political and religious movements flourished. It was a time of prosperity, broad imperial expansion, and great political reform. It was also a time, which today we associate with "prudishness" and "repression", in regards to social behavior and what was acceptable. Without a doubt, it was an extraordinarily complex age and is the beginning of Modern Times.
The social classes of England were newly reforming, and fomenting. There was a churning upheaval of the old hierarchical order, and the middle classes were steadily growing. Added to that, the upper classes' composition was changing from simply hereditary aristocracy (inherited titles) to a combination of nobility and an emerging wealthy commercial class (think merchants). The definition of what made someone a gentleman or a lady was, therefore, changing at what some thought was an alarming rate. By the end of the century, it was silently agreed that a gentleman was someone who had a liberal public (private) school education, no matter what his ancestors might have been. There continued to be a large and generally disgruntled working class, wanting and slowly getting reform and change.
Upper-class
Though most wizards still claim to have distanced themselves from muggles and all that they are, it is fact that the same etiquette and class the muggles hold by is the etiquette and class wizards also stand by. The classes among wizarding kind are all very different. Children of the upper-class are raised in comfort and luxury, spoiled with attention and gifts from birth. They are often taught by governesses; women who take up residence within the family home. Upon reaching the age of eleven and receiving their Hogwarts letter, the governess will be sent away to find a new home that needs her, because the children will begin to board at the school. The upper-class has the highest rate of graduates, though some children choose to complete their OWL year and then leave school for work, if male, or to return home and be prepared for an arranged marriage, if female.
As already stated, once they have graduated from Hogwarts in seventh year, each gender goes their separate ways. Males head off into a career or go in search for one in order to become successful. The range of time it takes for males to become successful depends heavily on their choice of career, family background, and how well they've performed at school. A man will be considered successful once he has climbed the ladder at a respectable job, earned enough money to afford the purchase of a home and married a respectable girl.
Females will have a Coming Out Ball upon graduation during seventh year, though the ball could be held sooner if the female in question chose to only complete school through her fifth year. A young lady’s ‘Coming Out’ is her introduction into adult society, announcing that she has completed her education and is eligible to be married. Usually, a girl is seventeen or eighteen when she has her Coming Out Ball, but again, had she only gone through fifth year in schooling, she could have been as young as fifteen when she became eligible for marriage. It is common for there to be pre-arranged marriages, so the ball is often used as an Engagement Announcement as well. The girl’s future husband will usually be five to ten years her elder, as it is next to impossible for a man her own age to be well established and prepared for marriage. After she is married, it was a woman’s responsibility to manage the household, including the servants, budget, and daily going-ons as well as to make house calls to represent her husband.
Middle-class
The rising middle class strives to become esteemed members of society, or ladies and gentlemen. Such titles were once only given to those who had noble birth and were, usually, wealthy, but as the middle class has risen in education men are now accepted as gentlemen as long as they had a private school education (Hogwarts). The same goes for a lady. This class is the less formal group and certainly more cozy. The home is the center of family life and it is the wife’s job to oversee that it is kept clean and neat. She will most likely have at least one servant or a housekeeper to assist her. It depends upon the husband’s job whether the family is able to afford a governess to teach their children until they reach school age. If the family is unable to afford a governess, the mother may send her children to a private tutor, who teaches elementary things such as how to read and write as well as etiquette. Tutors either have their own schools to teach such things or have sessions at their homes or the homes of their employers throughout the day.
Once through with school, the males either begin to learn about their family’s business or trade, or go off in search of an occupation. It is more common for males of the middle class to only go to school up until their fifth year or lower. Some families can only afford to send the females to Hogwarts up until fifth year, though most are able to complete seventh year. Outside of school, girls from middle class families are not afforded the same liberties of a ‘Coming Out’ Ball as their upper-class compatriots, and instead have to hope that they will be married to a man who at least owns his own home. They often mingle with the upper class in hopes of “marrying up” to improve their station in life, though the chances of this are slim.
Low-Class
Those of the working class are often viewed as the lowest class. They consist of servants, coal miners, prostitutes and other low-paying jobs and positions. Child labor is also widely used and accepted. Although Prince Albert made it compulsory for children ages 5-10 to receive an education, this did not become free until 1891, and therefore those that could not afford to send their children to school, did not. The lower class wizarding families do not send their children to any type of school before Hogwarts, being unable to afford it. Laws were passed to prevent anyone under the age of nine to work in the textile industry, which resorted in poor families sending their children out out to beg, steal, or earn money for their families by other means. Their living conditions are poor. It isn’t unusual to find several families living under the same roof. Every able-bodied member of the family is forced to work, no matter the age, to make ends meet. The better jobs among this class are serving as messenger boys to the middle and upper class society, though many are not so lucky.
Most working class families are not able to afford to send their children to Hogwarts when their letters arrive. The most promising first-years among this class, measured by accidental magic, are given scholarships that pay in full the cost of their attendance. Continuation of the scholarship from year to year depends upon the student’s academic progress and behavior. Though seen as a kind gesture by the school officials, most children awarded these scholarships drop out before completing their first year, due to being unable to read or write. Only a very small few of these children have the tenacity for learning to go on and finish their schooling at Hogwarts. If they are able to finish, they often went go out in search of an occupation, now in a position that could possibly push them up in class standing. This mostly applies to men, however, as women are often single and become old-maids, for the only jobs available to them are domestic service, physically taxing jobs, or prostitution.
