Victorian Values Humanities 345-BXH-03 Ethical Values

Instructor: Susan Bayley

Semester: Fall 2000

Office: 3D.7. Phone: 931-8731 local 1288. Office hours as posted outside 3D.7

Course Objectives: 1) to introduce students to the value system of the Victorian era (1837-1901) 2) to identify the moral beliefs, issues and contradictions which existed in the Victorian period. 3) to study the influence of ethical values on the life and work of the Victorians 4) to compare the Victorian value system with our own so that students can perceive the relativity of values and examine their own moral sense from a new perspective 5) to demonstrate that ethics are historical and social constructions

Course Standards:
On completion of this course, students should be able to: 1) describe the major ethical values of Victorian society, e.g. social and sexual division, religion, progress, innovation, family life, imperialism, etc. 2) give examples of how moral values affected the everyday life of the Victorians 3) explain how moral standards were both a cause and effect of social progress 4) present a reasoned discussion of the moral attitude of Victorian society to issues such as religion, sex, crime, poverty, equality, work and family 5) draw comparisons between the moral issues of the Victorian period and of our own

Teaching Methods: 1) lectures, note-taking and discussion of main points 2) reading and interpretation of primary and secondary sources 3) production of a 1200 word research paper which is program-specific 4) visit to a historic site or museum 5) creation of a Victorian collectible with an accompanying short essay. The collectible is an item researched and created by the student in the Victorian style.

Evaluation: Research paper outline and bibliography (due September) 10% Research paper