Stiles, Ronald Peter (1995) an Examination of Selected Binary Oppositions in the Work of Elizabeth Gaskell Which Serve to Demons
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Stiles, Ronald Peter (1995) An examination of selected binary oppositions in the work of Elizabeth Gaskell which serve to demonstrate the author's response to unitarianism and other prevalent influences within mid- Victorian society. PhD thesis. http://theses.gla.ac.uk/1699/ Copyright and moral rights for this thesis are retained by the Author A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the Author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the Author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given Glasgow Theses Service http://theses.gla.ac.uk/ [email protected] AN EXAMINATION OF SELECTED BINARY OPPOSITIONS IN THE WORK OF ELIZABETH GASKELL WHICH SERVE TO DEMONSTRATE THE AUTHOR'S RESPONSE TO UNITARIANISM AND OTHER PREVALENT INFLUENCES WITHIN MID-VICTORIAN SOCIETY by Ronald Peter Stiles, B.A., M. A., M Ed., M. A. C.E., J.P. A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Faculty of Arts, Centre for the Study of Literature and Theology University of Glasgow N, September, 1995 ABSTRACT This dissertation examines in detail the work of Elizabeth Gaskell, a mid- Victorian English author. It establishes that she was significantly influenced in her writing by the Unitarian social milieu to which she belonged during her lifetime, and by a wide range of other dominant influences, such as Romanticism and the rise of Darwinism. It demonstrates that conflicting doctrinal strains within Unitarianism, and emphases in Unitarianism differing from that of other prevailing influences within society, jointly contributed to the particular nature of her literary output. Elizabeth Gaskell's work is characterised by a series of binary oppositions, a feature of her fiction which serves to illustrate her individual response to conflicting values or concepts. Rather than dogmatically resolving the series of antinomies revealed throughout her work, she maintains their co-existence in such a manner that the mutual interdependence of each set of polarities is perpetuated. This suggests that she preferred, despite varying emphases at certain points, an intelligent open-endedness regarding opposing views. In fact, her work infers an acceptancethat textual vitality and purpose is fostered by allowing such tensions to exist. The binary oppositions exhibited in her work that are discussed in this dissertation are varied in nature. In Chapters Two and Three, the Priestleyan notion of necessarianism, a form of moral determinism, is set against the equally evident notion of free-will and divine benevolence. In Chapter Four, the radical edge of her Unitarian faith is balanced by an equally strong appreciation of the benefits of social respectability. Elizabeth Gaskell's work reflects a recurrent commitment to the Unitarian espousal of truthfulness, but she also understands the textual benefits of concealment and deception. This is discussed in detail in Chapter Five. In Chapter Six it is demonstrated in her that work an appreciation of the beauty of the natural world contrasts with an acceptanceof Darwinian theory and the optimism accompanying Victorian progress in many fields. The desire on the part of some characters freedom, to achieve personal or, alternatively, to remain in a state of 2 submission or resignation, is another clearly differentiated example. This is illustrated, metaphorically, in Chapter Seven,by window scenesin Elizabeth Gaskell's fiction. All the above chapters support the hypothesis that the notion of binary oppositions is a useful mechanism in a critical examination of her work. The problematic nature of Elizabeth Gaskell's work is resolved by an appreciation of her personal history and by an understanding of the period in which she lived. The nature of mid-Victorian English thought leads, in her case,to the acceptanceor accentuation in her fiction of a conjunction of conflicting influences. Elizabeth Gaskell's response is to maintain these opposing influences in such a way that they become an integral and fruitful tension in her writing. 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract 2 ................................................................................................................................... List Illustrations 5 of ............................................................................................................... Acknowledgements 6 .............................................................................................................. Chapter One "To Truth, to Liberty, to Religion": Unitarianism and Other Influences in the Life Work Elizabeth Gaskell 8 and of ......................................................................... Chapter Two "The Dome of Iron": An Extreme View of Free Will and Moral Determinism in the Fiction Elizabeth Gaskell 35 of ..................................................................................... Chapter Three "God does not Willingly Afflict": An More Tempered View of Free Will and Moral Determinism in the Fiction Elizabeth Gaskell 63 of ..................................................................................... Chapter Four From Discreet Chapel to Gothic Ostentation: Developments in Nineteenth Century Unitarian Architecture and Attitudes to Diseaseas Paradigms for the Oppositional Nature Elizabeth Gaskell's Fiction 99 of ................................................................................ Chapter Five "1 am Afraid I Enjoy Not Being Fettered by the Truth": Truth Mendacity Life Work Elizabeth Gaskell 132 and in the and of ............................... Chapter Six "Laws Impressed on Matter by the Creator": Darwinism and Conflicting Views of the Natural World in the Work Elizabeth Gaskell 157 of ..................................................................................... Chapter Seven To the Threshold: Window Scenesin Elizabeth Gaskell's Ruth 169 .................................................................. Chapter Eight "Mrs Gaskell'sgenius was so compositeas a quality" (Henry James): ConclusionsConcerning the Maintenanceof Oppositions in the Life Work Elizabeth Gaskell 192 and of ..................................................................... Bibliography 203 ...................................................................................................................... 4 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Illustration 1 Knutsford Chapel, 1689 from Godfrey, P., Hague, G., and McLachlan, J., Heritage, 1986, 23 107 The Unitarian privately published p. ................................................ Illustration 2 Cross Street Chapel, 1694 from Uglow, Jenny, 12 108 ElizabethGaskell (A Habit of Stories),Faber and Faber, 1993,Illustration ............... Illustration 3 Mill Hill, Leeds, 1848 from Godfrey, P., Hague, G., and McLachlan, J., The Unitarian Heritage, 1986, 70 108 privately published p. ................................................ Illustration 4 Hope Steet, Liverpool. Built for JamesMartineau in 1849 (since demolished). from Godfrey, P., Hague, G., and McLachlan, J., The Unitarian Heritage, 1986, 74 109 privately published p. ................................................ Illustration 5 Monton Unitarian Church, Salford, 1875 from Pass,Anthony J., ThomasWorthington (Victorian Architectureand SocialPurpose), 138 110 Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society, Manchester, 1988,p. ............... 5 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would especially like to thank the Revd Dr David jasper for his unswerving encouragement, support and excellent advice through the years of research and writing needed to complete this dissertation. I would also like to thank Mr Rob McGregor for his scrupulous attention to detail in formatting and preparing this dissertation for final presentation. Finally without the love, understanding and interest of my wife, Kerrie and children, Rachel, Stephen and Andrew, this dissertation would not have been completed. Deo optimo maximo. 6 DECLARATION The material in this dissertation is wholly original and has not been submitted for any other academic award. CHAPTER ONE "TO TRUTH, TO LIBERTY, TO RELIGION': UNITARIANISM AND OTHER INFLUENCES IN THE LIFE AND WORK OF ELIZABETH GASKELL Elizabeth Gaskell's Unitarian Background Elizabeth Gaskell (nee Stevenson)was constantly exposed to Unitarian father, thought and teaching throughout her entire life (1810-1865). Her William Stevenson, was a Unitarian minister; she attended a school in Warwickshire favoured by Unitarians such as the Wedgwoods, of pottery fame [1]; spent time with prominent Unitarian families like the Turners, of Newcastle [2]; and finally married an influential Unitarian minister, William Gaskell, with whose ministry she was deeply involved [3]. During her married life in Manchester she was to meet most of the foremost Unitarians of her time, including the Martineaus and J. J. Tayler. She lived and functioned as a minister's wife and woman of letters within an increasingly significant and respected Unitarian middle-class best represented in the industrial centres of mid-nineteenth century England [4]. The Unitarian influences to which she was exposed made a significant impact upon her literary output. Even though Elizabeth read widely and throughout her married life met