ENG 463 Catherine Anne Hubback
From WolfWikis
Stephanye Hunter
Brief Biography
- Catherine Anne Austen was the daughter of Sir Francis Austen, one of Jane Austen's brothers
- Catherine was born in 1818, so she never knew her Aunt Jane Austen, but she often met Cassandra, Jane's sister, who read her neices Jane's works, both complete and incomplete.
- In 1842 Catherine married John Hubback, and they had three sons.
- From 1844 until 1847, John suffered from mental breakdowns until he was admitted to an asylum in 1847. Catherine and her three sons moved back to her parents' house.
- After her husband was committed, Catherine began writing novels in order to support herself and her three sons.
- Catherine moved to California following her second son in 1870. Here she wrote an article for the magazine the Overland Monthly in 1871.
- Catherine died in 1877
source: The Victorian Web
Works
The Younger Sister published around 1850
- completion of Jane Austen's unfinished novel The Watsons
The Wife's Sister or The Forbidden Marriage
May and December: A Tale of Wedded Life published 1855
Three Marriages or Life at a Watering Place or Malvern published 1856
The Old Vicarage published 1856
Agnes Milbourne or Foy Pour Devoir published 1856
The Rival Suitors published 1857
"The Stewardess' Story" published in Overland Monthly Magazine in 1871
One of Catherine Anne Hubback's sons, John Hubback, is said to have co-written Jane Austen's Sailor Brothers with his daughter Edith Charlotte Hubback, originally published in 1906. This novel is the biography of Catherine's father, Sir Francis Austen, and of his youngest brother Charles.
Class, Tradition, and Money
In her novel The Rival Suitorspublished in 1857, Catherine Anne Hubback defines the class system outlined in English society. In the central setting of Airstone Park, Hubback manages to bring together members from various classes in order to inject her views on the significance of class in Victorian society.
Hubback introduces a member of the highest order of the aristocracy in her character Duke Loughborough and his wife Duchess Loughborough. As a member of the aristocracy, Duke Loughborough is automatically a member of the House of Lords and is considered a “peer.” Duke Loughborough’s oldest son, Lord Clarence St. Armand, will inherit the title of Duke as well as the position and property it includes after his father’s death. The Duke and Duchess also have at least two daughters, Lady Fanny and Lady Ada. At her first introduction, Lady Ada has recently been married to Sir George, who is probably either a baronet or a knight.
The next class represented is the landed gentry, who, though still members of the aristocracy, are neither titled nor considered peers. The landed gentry in The Rival Suitors are Mr. Lawrence and Mr. Mortimer. The landed gentry live chiefly in the country at their family estate. For the Lawrences, this estate is Airstone Park, and for Mr. Mortimer, the estate is Brierly Hall in the county of Warwick. Often called squires, these men lease the land surrounding their country home to farmers. They are responsible for providing homes for these farmers, and often their families superintend the church and the school in the village.
The representatives of the middle class in this novel are Captain and Miss Barton, as well as Nora Moore, their ward, until she marries Mr. Mortimer. As the Inspecting Commander of the Coast Guard, Captain Barton is perhaps the younger son of a nobleman or a landed gentleman. Captain and Miss Barton, as well as Nora, live in Rock Cottage on the edge of a small market town and a fishing port near the sea. Because Captain Barton has the means to employ at least one domestic servant and possibly a stableboy, he can be assumed to make around 500 pounds per year. Although this income can sustain relatively comfortable living conditions, it does not compare to the 10,000 to 30,000 pounds made by aristocrats per year on investments and land leases.
While the main plot of The Rival Suitorsdetails the winning of Miss Nora Moore by Mr. Mortimer and their subsequent, although illegitimate, marriage, Hubback develops her peripheral characters of different classes to demonstrate relationships between the classes. Hubback begins by immediately establishing that in the time leading up to the novel, the characters of the middle and upper class had little to do with each other:
“Early in the afternoon a very dashing dog-cart drove up to the door, from which descended the hero of the previous day, and the owner of Airstone Park, Mr. Mortimer and Mr. Lawrence. The latter was known by sight to the ladies at Rock Cottage for so Captain Barton’s residence was named; although, in the natural course of events, it would not have occurred that the great squire and landowner five miles off would have taken any cognizance of the existence of the Inspecting Commander of the Coast Guard.” The Rival Suitors page 34
When the characters do begin to interact, Mr. Mortimer is often described as having a condescending attitude to all those in the classes below him, especially to Captain Barton and Nora. In his discussions with Gerard and Nora, Mr. Mortimer is quick to assert his own superiority due to his aristocracy. When Gerard asks where he is from, Mr. Mortimer responds that his family home is:
“In the county of Warwick; I dare say you have heard of it?” observed he; “my property is somewhat considerable, and has been in my family a long time.” Gerard could not say he had, and Mr. Mortimer was forced to console himself, by despising him internally for such stupid ignorance.” The Rival Suitors page 64
Mr. Mortimer is unable to believe that anyone, regardless of their class, could be ignorant of his station and property. The fact that Gerard does not know or care to know about Mr. Mortimer’s importance further illustrates his belief of his own superiority.
According to Hubback, a belief in the superiority of the upper classes is a fault of character. She describes that while Miss Barton is virtuous in every other way, she is too influenced by rank and title:
“Miss Barton certainly looked on him with additional respect, as this fact of his possessions came to her knowledge. She had been brought up in that profound reverence for landed proprietors, which is a sort of infatuation with some English people. The doctrine of family estates to be preserved, of the rights of primogeniture, and the claims of property on the respect of the unendowned, are creeds into which English men and women are early initiated, and which it takes more tie and reflection to shake off than Miriam had bestowed on the subject.” The Rival Suitors pages 64-65
Hubback clearly identifies Miss Barton's emphasis on class as a character fault, one which plays greatly into the conflict of the novel. When Nora's marriage to Mr. Mortimer is found to be false, Miss Barton realizes that she was blinded by her desire for Nora to marry a gentleman Rather than be concerned about his title, she should have investigated his character.
The characters that Hubback depicts as virtuous, however, place little importance on class. When Mr. Mortimer appeals to Gerard to allow Nora to marry him, he asks Gerard if he knows Nora’s sentiments towards himself. Gerard claims he has no control over Nora’s feelings, but he also assures Mr. Mortimer that his wealth and property will fail to influence her decision as well:
"Have you no influence with your cousin, Captain Barton?" said Mr. Mortimer, with a look that expressed a desire to read his motives. "If I had, I should decline to use it in such a case." "May I ask why? Is it from any motive in which I personally am concerned? Is it my character, position, or fortune which makes you reluctant to favour my suit? Is it that I am unfortunately some years senior to your charming cousin? I am aware that this might be considered an objection, although I trust not an insurmountable one. I have no title, no coronet to lay at her feet; and admirable as she is, you may perhaps consider that she has claims to a higher rank than anything I can offer. No doubt she has: but mine is one of those untitled families which yet form the aristocracy of the country. She would fill no mean position as my wife; she would have no low, or unsuitable associates. I have never coveted rank for myself, but if a title would procure me the happiness I desire, I would stoop to seek for one by any means in my power." "I hope, sir," replied Garard, calmly, "that no consideration of mere rank, wealth, or station would influence either my cousin or myself." The Rival Suitors pages 154-155
Gerard and Nora, both virtuous characters in the eyes of Hubback, do not consider rank, title, wealth, or property as a value of personal worth.
In Malvern, a novel published in 1856, Hubback voices similar sentiments on the insignificance of class. When an imposter infiltrates the party at Malvern, a gentleman, Mr. Clarke, claims that his evil nature is merely a characteristic of his low class. Annie Carden, a young girl who has recently come to England after her childhood in America, states a different view:
“I think little of your classes and your castes,” replied Annie; “they are purely artificial distinctions, not recognized by philosophy, good feeling, or religion. A man is a man in spite of the accidental circumstances of his birth. The distinction between nations I can comprehend: an American, an Englishman, A Spaniard- these are all wide and evident divisions. But beyond those arbitrary differences are invisible in my eyes; and if you cannot see that every Englishman who hears the tale should blush for this miserable criminal, I can only say I do not comprehend either you nationality or your sense of honor.” Malvern page 445.
Miss Carden expresses that class distinctions do not represent divisions of character at all, and what wrong is done by a man, regardless of his class, must be shameful to all men, whether or not they are from the same class. In the same way, Hubback claims that class does not determine virtue. In the Rival Suitors, her most virtuous characters occupy opposite ends of the class system: Nora, who can never fail, is an orphan in a middle class station before her marriage, while Lady Fanny and Lord Clarence, Nora’s most constant friends in trouble, are of the highest nobility.
Sources:
Hubback, Catherine Anne. Malvern. Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott and Co., 1856.
Hubback, Catherine Anne. The Rival Suitors. London: Charles J. Skeet, Publisher, 1857.
Working Life
As a young wife, Catherine Anne Hubback quickly learned the importance of work when her husband, John Hubback, was admitted to an insane asylum. In order to provide for herself and her three sons, Hubback, at twenty-nine years old, began writing novels. Hubback remembered the stories told by her Aunt Cassandra of Jane Austen’s unfinished works, including The Watsons. She resourcefully used her position as Austen’s niece to publish a completed version of the novel in The Younger Sister in order to provide for her family. Six years after publishing The Younger Sister, Hubback published Malvern (also called The Three Marriages or Life at a Watering Place), commenting on her own views of idleness and resourcefulness.
In Malvern, Hubback again uses the plot element of rival suitors competing for the hand of a young lady of the highest virtues. This technique allows the reader to compare the two rivals, Astely Boyle and Norman Grant, side by side in order to comment on their idleness and work as they pursue Miss Flora Denys.
Mr. Astley Boyle is the stepson of Mr. Denys, Flora’s uncle and guardian. As such close (almost) relations, they spend much of their youth together, forming a bond which later leads to love. In order to propose to Flora, who is an heiress, Astley feels he must be able to match her wealth. His uncle on his mother’s side, Mr. Boyle, is a successful businessman in Australia. In his many letters to Astley, the uncle has expressed interest in adopting Astley as his heir as soon as he returns to England. Mr. Boyle plans to buy the family land in order to give it to Astley to manage. Flora, in her intimate friendship with Astley, has often heard of these plans, as she comments to her friend Mrs. Newton:
“[He] was in the hopes of accumulating money enough to repurchase the old place, and re-establish Astley, on whom he doted in imagination, as the landed proprietor where his ancestors had been so long settled.” (Flora) Malvern p. 76
In fact, Mr. Boyle so strongly desires to establish Astley as the proprietor of the family land that he discourages Astley from choosing a profession. Later, when Mr. Boyle, who is actually an imposter for the real Mr. Boyle, Astley's uncle, returns to England, he reproaches Astley for his idleness. In fact, Mr. Boyle (who is really Robert Masters, a law clerk who served Mr. Boyle on his trip home from Australia, where the unfortunate Mr. Boyle became sick and died) says he will no longer adopt Astley for an heir because of his idleness. In this conversation with Mr. Boyle, Flora attempts to remind the older man that he encouraged Astley’s lack of profession:
“ ‘I own I should have thought better of him had I found him a busy man, working hard at some profession, or following some useful occupation.’ (Mr. Boyle)
‘Now, really, I must say that is unjust,’ cried Flora, indignation getting the better entirely of fear and reserve. ‘Why, it was your own doing that he had no profession.’
‘My own doing! How do you make that out?’ inquired he, in a voice which contrasted, by its studied softness, with her excited tones.
‘Why, don’t you remember before he went to Oxford, how we wished to purchase a commission; and, afterwards, when he became to old for that, how anxious he was to take orders, and you always objected? Ah! And don’t you recollect the little postscript to one of his letters, about the sword and the red coat?’ continued Flora, eagerly, yet coloring deeper every moment.
‘I am afraid my memory is failing sadly, my dear,’ replied he, shaking his head with a mournful air. ‘Perhaps, if you could tell me more about that postscript, I could recall it.’
‘Oh! I don’t like to remember my own sauciness and folly. If you have forgotten it, let it be,’ replied she; ‘but you must surely recollect all your objections, both to the army and navy, and also how you persisted that a learned profession should be quite unnecessary.’ Malvern p. 161
Flora describes Astley’s interest in first joining the army and then joining the clergy. When Astley conveyed these interests to his real uncle Mr. Boyle, however, he was told that such a profession was unnecessary. The Mr. Boyle that Flora is speaking with does not remember such discussions because he is not the real Mr. Boyle.
In his conversation with Flora, Mr. Boyle also remarks: “Little can you guess how many ways idle young men have of concealing their faults, and veiling their vices from those whose esteem they covet.” Malvern p. 160-161
Mr. Boyle claims that idleness encourages vices (a very middle-class idea), and because Astley is idle, Mr. Boyle assumes that he has many vices that he is concealing from those around him. Based on this assumption, Mr. Boyle refuses to give any of his fortune to Astley.
Later in the novel, Astley himself regrets his lack of profession. Mr. Boyle the imposter has refused to give Astley any inheritance, and therefore Astley feels free from his promises of idleness. In a conversation with Mrs. Newton, Astley expresses interest in a profession. Mrs. Newton encourages this idea, also discussing the immorality of idleness which Mr. Boyle early addressed.
“ 'I wonder what you propose eventually to do. An idle man seems to me so miserable. I am used to see men work so hard; real, actual work. What a pity you have not a profession!' (Mrs. Newton)
'When I have settled the business I am going about, and see my way before me, I think I shall enter into partnership with some great manufacturer, or embark in business of some kind, just to have real duties and tangible claims; some to depend on me—some to look up to me. I shall be much happier, I dare say, when I have not an hour I can call my own, or a day when I am my own master.' (Astley)
'Not a bit, if you do it to be happy. Do it to be of use; find out your talents, and employ them, because you ought, because you hold them on trust, and must give an account.'” (Mrs. Newton) Malvern p. 191
Mrs. Newton, in a typical middle-class manner, praises work for its usefulness. She advises Astley to find a profession, or some kind of “actual work.”
Flora’s other suitor, Mr. Norman Grant, is described as a “handsome young lawyer” (Malvern p. 464). Mr. Grant is most certainly a barrister due to his high place in society (he later marries an heiress with a fortune of 90,000 pounds). According to Sally Mitchell in Daily Life in Victorian England, barristers argued cases in court, did not work with partners, and enjoyed a high social status (66-67). Mitchell describes the training necessary to becoming a barrister, saying:
“In order to qualify, they had to attend one of London’s four Inns of Court: Lincoln’s Inn, Gray’s Inn, the Inner Temple, or the Middle Temple. They often had a university education as well, though it was not required” (66).
Mr. Grant is praised, for upon his arrival at Malvern, he sets about making friends “with tact and earnestness." Malvern p. 200
Earnestness, which opposes idleness, is highly valued in such a man.
In other parts of the novel, however, Mr. Grant is described as idle. When Mr. Grant’s sister, Louisa (who later marries the imposter Mr. Boyle, who is really Robert Masters), writes to her brother, the reader quickly discovers his work ethic regarding his profession.
“Such was the letter she dispatched to her only brother, Norman Grant, and as he was one of those gentlemen whose legal business never detains them when they have more amusing pursuits in and, or in prospect, she had every hope it would be answered in person.” Malvern p. 185
Obviously, Mr. Grant is less in earnest about his profession. In fact, Mrs. Newton describes Mr. Grant (based on what she has learned from his sister Louisa), commenting not on his success or his profession at all, but on his appearance and clothing.
"[H]er descriptions, from which I gather that he is an Antinous in beauty, a Sheridan in wit, a compendium of fashionable accomplishments, and a walking advertisement of his tailor’s abilities.” (Mrs. Newton) Malvern p. 188
Not only is Mr. Grant idle in his profession, but he is praised more for his social earnestness and appearance than his work ethic.
In the included image, Archer Polson, the author of Law and Lawyers, published in 1841, describes the payment of lawyers. In this description, lawyers claim additional fees for services which are actually rendered by those employed by them, such as an errand boy, an inferior clerk, or a stationer. This description of lawyers reinforces Hubback’s view of Mr. Grant as idle, for according to Polson, lawyers charge extra fees for work that they never perform, work which is in fact performed by someone else.
Note that Polson does not claim that lawyers are idle. He merely censures lawyers for charging fees for services provided by others. This excerpt is an excellent comparison of the work of many professions and classes in society. A solicitor, such as described by Polson, is from the upper middle class, while the errand boy who carries his messages is a child who must work in order to help feed his family.
While Mr. Grant is constantly shown as idle in profession, Astley, is praised throughout the novel for his morals and values, including his desire to be useful. Indeed, his only shortcoming is his want of profession, which we can assume is quickly remedied when he inherits from Mr. Boyle and perhaps begins caring for the family estate.
In order to comment on her ideas of idleness and work ethic, Hubback sets up a contrast between the profession-less Astley, who is earnest in his desire to be useful, and Mr. Grant the barrister, who is idle in work and earnest only in society. Reverting to her own experiences of work, Hubback indicates that earnestness in desiring to be useful is the key to an admirable work ethic. A profession, while desirable in order to provide constant duties, does not guarantee a lack of idleness at all.
Sources:
Hubback, Catherine Anne. Malvern. Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott and Co, 1856.
Mitchell, Sally. Daily Life in Victorian England. Westport: Greenwood Press, 1996.
Polson, Archer. Law and Lawyers. Philadelphia: Carey & Hart, 1841.
Science and the Urban World
The steamship is one of several significant inventions during the Victorian period. Catherine Anne Hubback, who rarely discusses any new technology in her novels, even briefly, gives attention to these steamships in her novel The Old Vicarage. In this novel, Hubback hints at the controversy regarding the safety of steamships.
Captain Hepburn, who later marries the heroine of the novel, is a naval officer. When the ship he originally commanded, the Pandanus, was found defective, Captain Hepburn and his fiancé Hilary’s brother Maurice are transferred to a steamship called the Erratic. The difference in the names of the ships offers the first insight into the Victorian society’s view on steamships. A pandanus is a type of plant usually found in South East Asia. Its fruit resembles a pineapple, and its leaves resemble those of a palm tree. The exotic name of the ship perhaps refers to its varying destinations, evoking feelings of excitement at foreign shores. The steamship, however, is named the Erratic, indicating that it is not trustworthy.
The author of History of Merchant Shipping and Ancient Commerce, William Schaw Lindsay, was a sailor and a ship owner before becoming an advocate for iron steam ships. In this history, he says, “[T]here were [in the early 1840s] still many unbelievers in the suitability of iron, for the construction of sea-going vessels, and still more who had no faith whatever in the value of the screw” (page 188) This lack of faith in the credulity of steamships is evident in Hubback’s choice of names.
Despite a cultural unease with the new steamships, the characters of The Old Vicarage show interest in the Erratic. Mr. Barham, a gentleman from the landed gentry, and his two daughters Isabel and Nora express interest in seeing the ship:
“I do not know anything about these new steamers,” observed [Mr. Barham], “I have never had an opportunity of studying these subjects; yet it is an important one, one which deserves the attention of those who hold a large stake in their country’s welfare; being a subject which must strongly affect the interest of a great naval power. I must take the matter into consideration.”
“I am sure my brother would be happy to show you his new ship, if you would honour the Erratic with a visit,” observed Sybil, very proud of Maurice and his steamer also. The Old Vicarage Volume 3 pages 2-3
The public was curious about iron steamships, as is shown by the enthusiasm of Mr. Barham and his daughters for the new ship. In 1854, the British Association for the Advancement of Science came to Liverpool to discuss the important question of iron steamships. Leaders such as William Fairbairn, and President John Scott Russell, a naval architect and shipbuilder, tried to provide the audience with scientific evidence in order to encourage faith in the new steamers. The audience, many of whom were women, assembled to hear Russell’s speech. In order to encourage acceptance of a new ship, the Leviathan, later called the Great Eastern, being built at the time, Russell discussed the progress in shipbuilding. He began by questioning the safety of older steamers, such as the Great Western and the Great Britain in order to encourage faith in the more modern sciences of the Leviathan. While many “older gentleman of science” allied with Russell and the BAAS, the discussion only increased controversy in the public, including the dispute over the credibility of a compass in an iron ship. Engineering Empires p. 102
After the meeting, a journal called the Mercury reported an article entitled “On ocean steamers and clipper ships and their descriptive measurement” by Captain Andrew Henderson. In this paper, Henderson claims that the Leviathan [or the Great Eastern, which he calls the ‘Himalaya’ or the ‘modern Ark’] may provide the “speed, economy and comfort promised.” Yet he states, “[L]ittle consideration has been given to the subject to its security in the heavy SEAS, its capabilities for navigation, and the effect of an ocean wave on a vessel of such extraordinary length.” The captain, who in his own experience has seen waves over 50 feet high, says that these waves would make it impossible for this large of a vessel “to be kept under command in such a sea should any accident happen to her machinery” Engineering Empires p. 104-105
Hubback discusses controversy regarding the new technology with a hint of comedy. While Mr. Barham and his daughters are escorted around the Erratic by Maurice, Hilary and her sister Sybil rest under the protection of Captain Hepburn.
“Sybil was tired, and wished to sit down, whilst the greater part of the visitors continued their investigations; and her eldest sister was not unwilling to remain with her under the special guardianship of Captain Hepburn, whose uniform was a certain protection against the inquiries and suspicions of correct policemen, anxious to secure her Majesty’s dockyard from the possible evil designs of unknown ladies and civilians.” The Old Vicarage volume 3 page 15
In this excerpt, Hubback says that Captain Hepburn’s presence was necessary to prove to policemen guarding the Erratic that the ladies were not trying to sabotage the new ship. Hubback is perhaps mocking the amount of significance placed on the new steamships by both its advocates and its skeptics.
Sources:
Hubback, Catherine Anne. The Old Vicarage London: Charles J. Skeet, 1856.
Marsden, Ben and Crosbie Smith. Engineering Empires Hampshire: Palgrave MacMillan, 2005.
Government and the Law
Through her references to crime in her novel The Rival Suitors, Catherine Anne Hubback discusses the crime of bigamy, its formal punishment, and its extended punishment. Mr. Mortimer is a wealthy squire who marries a poor orphan, Nora, in a private country wedding. He brings Nora home, where Nora lives unhappily as his wife, before Mr. Mortimer absconds six months later. Nora is left without an explanation for his departure, her cousin Gerard informs her that her husband is guilty of bigamy.
Mr. Mortimer later explains why he committed bigamy in a letter he wrote to Nora after he fled England: “The risk of discovery seemed so small, the bliss of possessing you so great, it was irresistible. Seven years had passed, and no one knew or even suspected the foolish marriage in France, into which I had been so madly hurried.” The Rival Suitors volume 3 page 193
Mr. Mortimer had married a woman in France, but had quickly realized his mistake and had returned to England. After living as a bachelor for many years in England, he fell in love with Nora. He did not expect that his first marriage would return to haunt him.
Although the two marriages of Mr. Mortimer are not explained in the novel, a description of the trial of Miss Crudleigh, also known as Lady Bristol or Duchess of Kingston elaborates further on such crimes. Miss Crudleigh was mislead into believing that her lover jilted her, and she settled for marrying a man whom she disliked. After marrying him, she realized her mistake, and spent as little time as possible with him. She and her husband, the Earl of Bristol, later declared their marriage void, and she married the Duke of Kingston. When the Duke died, he left her his fortune. The will was contested by his relatives when a witness to the Duchess’s first wedding was found. The Duchess was tried in Westminster Hall. She was found guilty, but because she was a member of the peerage, she only had to pay a fine. The lords, however, intended to deprive her of her personal property and restrict her to England. She learned of this scheme before it was executed and escaped to the continent. She died on August 26, 1796, a few days after one of her blood vessels burst. Chronicles of Crime
The image on the left shows a quote from the Electress of Saxony, a friend of Miss Crudleigh’s. The quote demonstrates the foreigner’s attitude towards English law.
In the following excerpt, Hubback also discusses the punishment Mortimer would face if she had not escaped to Rio Janeiro.
“ ‘I repeat what I said before,’ cried Gerard; ‘he shall undergo the punishment of his crime.’ ‘That is transportation for fourteen years,’ observed Mr. Hedley, gravely. ‘So much the better,’ retorted Captain Barton. ‘Transportation for fourteen years,’ slowly repeated the other, ‘including forfeiture of property, loss of character and station, disgrace to his children, and sorrow to all connected with him. The family will be broken up, an indelible stain affixed to his name, and in doing justice to the culprit, you will be inflicting the most cruel of all injuries on this unoffending child, robbing him of honour and home, name and respectability.’” The Rival Suitors volume 3 page 103-104
According to Sally Mitchell, transportation was a punishment that involved sending the offender to Australia for a determined sentence. Crimes that were originally punished by hanging were more often punished by transportation in the Victorian period. In the penal institutions of Australia, Mr. Mortimer would likely build roads, clear land, make harbors, or do clerical work and other administrative jobs. Page 99
Aside from the punishment of transportation, the family of Mr. Mortimer suffered from humiliation and separation. Hubback is especially attentive to these punishment inflicted on the family. While Gerard wants to arrest Mr. Mortimer in order to prosecute, Lord Clarence is aware of the repercussions of a public crime and trial on Mr. Mortimer’s family.
“ ‘I trust he may be arrested speedily,’ said [Gerard] between his closed teeth, ‘and expiate, by the punishment he so richly deserves, the misery he has occasioned, and the guilt he has occurred.’ ‘ He cannot suffer alone!’ said Lord Clarence in a voice between indignation and grief. ‘You forget, sir, that the punishment will fall as heavily on the innocent as the guilty.’ ‘If he escapes,’ retorted Gerard, ‘the innocent will suffer alone. Is that your mercy?’ (Gerard) ‘But they will suffer more if public shame is added to private grief,’ was the answer.” The Rival Suitors volume 3 page 6-7
Sources: Hubback, Catherine Anne. The Rival Suitors. London: Charles J. Skeet, 1857.
Mitchell, Sally. Daily Life in Victorian England. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1996.
Pelham, Camden, Esq. Chronicles of Crime. London: Reeves and Turner, 1886
House, Food, and Clothes
Hubback maintains a firm stance on her opinion of woman’s clothing which is consistent in her novels, including May and December (1855), and The Rival Suitors (1857). In these novels, Hubback states through her characters that luxurious and elegant clothing is impractical and ridiculous.
The character of May in May and December is a well-intentioned young woman who makes many mistakes, including marrying a man much older than her primarily in order to live a luxurious life. While Hubback spends the novel commenting on this type of “mercenary marriage,” she also expresses her disgust with audacious clothing and accessories by describing her heroine’s costume. Mr. Arnold, who is married to May’s cousin, comes to London in order to help guide this young woman. Mr. Arnold is pragmatic and dresses in useful, out of date clothing. When he offers to escort May to the house of some of her husband’s employees, he demands that she remove her many fine pieces of jewelry. Mr. Arnold instructs May, saying, “[G]et your bonnet and shawl-don’t put on any fine frippery, and leave those trumpery gold chains behind you. I will not walk with a woman in fetters, be they gold or silver. They are the badge of a slavery to fashion, an indulgence in show and extravagance, permissible on state occasions, but insufferable in daily life ” May and December volume 2 page 42. The language used by this character, who Hubback values for his good judgment, reflects that of the author herself.
The description of clothing in The Rival Suitors expresses similar opinions. The character Nora, however, is praised by the author for placing more significance on personal goodness than on clothing. When Nora is walking on the seashore, she sees a little French boy about to drown. Suddenly a man, Mr. Mortimer, as we discover later, arrives and asks to use Nora’s scarf to save the boy. After the rescue, both Nora’s caretaker, a young man named Gerard, and Mr. Mortimer offer her replacement scarves.
" 'Here, Nora, I have brought this for you, that you, at least, may have no cause to repent of yesterday’s adventure.—I hope you will like it.’ [Gerard]
The parcel, when opened by her eager fingers, presented a very pretty, but simply black silk mantle, intended to replace the scarf she had lost.
Nora was enraptured with the gift, not only for the elegant simplicity of its choice, but for the kind thoughtfulness which it evinced” The Rival Suitors volume 1 page 42.
In this excerpt, Gerard replaces Nora’s scarf with a new, but simple, black silk scarf. She is delighted with the gift for its simplicity and for the kindness of Gerard to think of giving her such a gift.
A few days later, Mr. Mortimer sends another scarf, which is received very differently.
“Just then a servant entered with a large carton in her hands, such as indicates to female eyes some desirable article of millinery lying within. It was addressed to Miss Barton, and there was a note accompanying it.
She opened it, a little curious and surprised. It was from Mr. Mortimer, and stated, in the politest terms, that, regretting extremely to have been the means of depriving Miss Moore of her scarf, he had endeavored to replace the article in the best way he could, and he hoped she would find the accompanying mantle a tolerable substitute. Nora looked both grave and astonished: she did not interfere, but allowed Cousin Miriam to open the box and take out its contents.
It was an azure silk mantle, profusely trimmed and ornamented with all that superfluity of lace, guipure, and frill, which mariners’ interests and innate bad taste persuade so many women is at once fashionable and elegant, but which is so ludicrously unfitted for an outer covering in our changeable and humid climate.” The Rival Suitors volume 1 page 48-49.
The scarf sent by Mr. Mortimer is much finer, but Nora quickly decides to return it. She cannot accept such a gift, both for its useless luxury and for the impropriety of the sender. Nora, as the virtuous heroine, is Hubback’s example of how a woman should view clothing.
Later in the novel, Nora is exposed to women who view clothing in a much different manner. Mr. Mortimer’s daughters, two of which are older than Nora, place a great deal of significance on personal appearance. When Nora, now Mrs. Mortimer, is preparing for her fist dinner her new stepdaughters, she asks her maid for help dressing.
“ ‘Madame may please herself,’ said the waiting woman, who Mr. Mortimer had chosen should be French. ‘It is at her taste to dress to-night. Mademoiselle Mortimer is in demie toilette, her sisters have put themselves in en grande-toilette.’ ‘Which do you think right, then, Juliette?’ replied the mistress; ‘but, perhaps, as Miss Mortimer is the eldest, I had better follow her way;’ with a lively recollection of the sort of shock with which she had seen the beautiful white arms of Margherite uncovered to the shoulder, except for some costly bracelets which encircled her wrists. It was a style she had never seen, except at the full-dressed party at Airstone Park, and which she had not learned to associate with home life.” The Rival Suitors volume 1 page 280.
The descriptions of Nora’s choice of clothing, demie toilette, perhaps meaning half elegant, and en grande toilette, prominent elegance, begins to categorize the types of clothing available to women in the Victorian period. As Nora discovers, the Mortimer sisters dress at home as if they are going to parties. While they dress in beautiful, expensive clothing, Nora experiences the harsh depravity of their characters, for she is disrespected by all of Mr. Mortimer’s daughters, who make her life miserable by their connivances.
Another character who places emphasis on clothing is Flora in Hubback’s novel Malvern. An heiress, Flora is accustomed to a high level of luxury in her life. When contemplating her wealth, she considers that she would much rather be poor.
“Not that she had the slightest taste for self-denial, or had any real inclination for economy and hardship; but, simply because she never realized what they could be. She did not connect, in her own mind, carriage and horses, milliner’s bills and new dresses, Melnote’s shoes and Howell and James’s trinkets, with the fortune which she despised. These were the simple necessities of life, without which she could scarcely fancy a young lady existing, and which she should, of course, retain at all events.” Malvern page 147-148
Flora, because she was born wealthy, does not attach wealth to her elegant clothing, which she considers a staple. This excerpt is interesting because it lists the types of shoes- was Melnote’s a style or a store? And Howell and James’ trinkets, which could perhaps be one of the department stores that was just coming into existence during the Victorian period. Regardless of what these names describe, the articles are necessities to Flora. Although Hubback criticizes a love of elegant clothing, she surprisingly does not condemn Flora too harshly, only reminds her through her cousin (and later husband) Astley to pay more attention to her character. In fact, this lesson is consistently taught to the heroines in Hubback’s novels. The clothes of a woman may be beautiful, but the clothes do not always reflect the character of the wearer.
Hubback's point is best summarized in the following excerpt:
"[May] went in the morning, to the new Sunday school, and devoted herself to teaching the first class for a couple of hours; enforcing on them the peculiar necessity of neatness and plainness of attire, and the unbecomingness of a love of finery, whilst all the time the eyes of her pupils being earnestly fixed on her, she flattered herself she was making a great impression on them by her moral lecture; little guessing that the flowers and feathers in her pretty little bonnet, were the universal subject of speculation amongst the girls; and that though they might hesitate as to the object of her instructions, they never forgot how many flounces she had on her muslin gown." May and December volume 2 page 183
Sources:
Hubback, Catherine Anne. The Rival Suitors. London: Charles J. Skeet, Publisher, 1857.
Hubback, Catherine Anne. May and December. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1855.
Hubback, Catherine Anne. Malvern. Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott and Co., 1856.
Family and Social Rituals
While Hubback only focused on politics and commerce in the periphery of her novels, the rites of passage of Victorian men and women were central to the plot. In The Rival Suitors, there is a description of courtship, marriage and death. In Malvern, Hubback presents the reader with three courtships and marriages, as well as one detailed account of a wedding. In May and December, Hubback also describes a wedding.
The main character in the novel May and December is May, a young, middle-class girl who has secured her future wealth by accepting the marriage proposal of the wealthy merchant Mr. Cameron. Throughout the novel, May is described as being interested in clothes and other demonstrations of wealth. It comes as no surprise that the courtship and wedding of Mr. and Mrs. Cameron, which can also symbolize wealth, is detailed.
The accumulation of May’s trousseau is described in May and December: “As to her trousseau, it may be edifying to the reader to mention, that Grace Dunsford readily undertook to give the necessary orders at some of the wedding and outfitting warehouses, who undertake to supply these important occasions, on the shortest conceivable notice, with all the necessaries of civilized society; and that when her laces, lawns, and muslins were all settled, and sent to her, they really gave her perfect satisfaction.” (144).
As the quote states, the trousseau is a demonstration of “civilized society.” According to wikipedia, the trousseau is the outfit of the bride and other similar clothing.
The next issue discussed in relation to the wedding is that of the bridesmaids. Because May was planning to be married quietly, she only requested her cousin, Miss Wildey, to serve as her bridesmaid. When Miss Wildey accepts Mr. Arnold’s marriage proposal, however, the two brides discuss their predicament.
“But it would look so odd, my dear; nobody ever heard of such a thing as a young lady goin to church to be married without any female friend. People would talk so much of it.” (Ann)
“I am not afraid of that, indeed, Ann, partly because, as we go together, it cannot be said we go along; and partly, because, as there is nobody in the neighborhood, I do not think there will be much talking; and partly because, if there were as many tongues as there are geese, and they all spoke at once, I should probably hear nothing of their discourse.” (May)
“Still I don’t like it at all,” persisted Miss Wildey; “for my old friends in London will be sure to ask about it when they see me, and they would be so surprised when they hear of my having no bridesmaids.”
May considered a little, and then said:- “Very well, Ann, I will tell you what we can do; we will ask the two Miss Cokers to be the bride’smaids, and I will give them a new gown apiece on the occasion.”
“Oh—as you please—that is, if you think right; but the Miss Cokers are not ladies, are they?—only farmer’s daughters?”
“I should not mind that in the least; and if your friends in London hear of their names, they are not likely to hear of their father’s occupations unless you tell them; so keep your own counsel, and they will know nothing about it.”
May and December p. 146
Hubback describes their predicament: “Here was a perplexing dilemma for a young lady in such a situation, or rather for two young ladies. Two brides and never a bride’smaid! Let any well-educated young woman, versed in the important mysteries of etiquette and propriety, and looking forward with modest confidence to being followed by a train of six or eight elegant girls to the matrimonial altar, judge of the distress of my heroine on this trying occasion. To be without these accompaniments to a wedding which are scarcely less necessary than a bridegroom, a priest, or a wedding gown, might well perplex the brightest intellectual, and try the merriest temper.” May and December 145
While Ann believes that the bridesmaids are very important, Hubback seems to poke fun at the significance placed on bridesmaids by saying they are as important as the groom or the priest. Mitchell describes the wedding ceremony, saying that the bride could have up to twelve bridesmaids, while Hubback seems to claim that six to eight bridesmaids are enough (159). According to this quote, having upper-class ladies as one’s bridesmaids was very important, or at least to Miss Ann Wildey. Having no bridesmaid at all, is a disgrace.
The dresses of the bridesmaids were chosen by the bride (Mitchell 159). The dresses did not have to be of the same style or the same color. In Malvern, Miss Louisa Grant chooses the dresses for her four bridesmaids, and all wear dresses of the same “apple-green” color about which Hubback says, “[Their] elegance […] would need a more poetic pen than mine pretends to be” (414). In fact, Hubback says that these dresses probably achieved the bride’s intention:
“[T]he effect was exactly what Flora had anticipated, and, possibly what the bride has wished, the young ladies themselves looked so ill, that no comparison could be drawn between their youthful charms and the more mature beauty of Miss Grant.” (p. 414)
After Miss Grant’s wedding, she and her new husband return to the house to welcome their wedding guests and those not invited to the wedding to breakfast. The image above is a page from Malvern which describes this breakfast.
Sources:
Hubback, Catherine Anne. May and December. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1855.
Hubback, Catherine Anne. Malvern. Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott and Co., 1856.
Mitchell, Sally. Daily Life in Victorian England. Westport: Greenwood Press, 1996.
Education
Because Hubback was the mother of three sons as well as an author, she focuses on education in many of her novels. In The Old Vicarage, Hubback describes the education of the younger Duncan daughters: Gwenyth, the oldest, Sibyl, the middle, and Nest, the youngest. These three girls are educated primarily by their older (half) sister Hilary. Hilary instructed the girls in their basic lessons, including French, English, music, and art. Mitchell discusses the topics taught to girls: "[Parents] wanted their daughters to acquire some general knowledge-- but largely so they would (as women) be able to carry on pleasant social conversations. Posture, speech, manners, taste, and personal presentation were considered more important than knowledge of geometry or philosophy." page 179 In the quote from The Old Vicarage on page 84 at the bottom of this page, Gwenyth describes the subjects of her lessons. As the excerpt shows, the lessons focus more on the proper subjects.
While parents may not have placed as much emphasis on the intellectual instruction of their daughters, the girls nonetheless had a busy schedule of lessons every day. Mitchell describes the schedule of an eight year old girl taught by a governess: "piano practice, breakfast, copy books, arithmetic, history, break, geography, poems, dinner, rest, Bible reading, reading aloud from novel, walk, tea, sewing while listening to someone read aloud" (page 180). Hilary also keeps a strict schedule, rarely allowing the girls a day off for the lessons. The image on the right is a page from The Old Vicarage which describes Mr. Huyton's first day at the Duncan house. Although Mr. Huyton is a landed aristocrat, Maurice does not bring him in to the family until Hilary is finished teaching for the day.
When Maurice, Hilary's older brother and the half brother of the other girls, comes home, he often assists with their instruction. When Maurice, who is in the navy, receives orders that he is to return to duty, he talks with the family friend Mr. Huyton, remaking:
"'I only wish you could help [Hilary] teach the children a little,' he added, laughing; 'but I am afraid you cannot quite take my place as tutor.'
'We will see,' was the reply given [from Mr. Huyton]."
The Old Vicarage page 78
Mr. Huyton does in fact take the place of the brother by instructing the girls in many of their lessons. In fact, Hubback says, "All [Mr. Huyton's] leisure time was spent [at the Duncan's home], reading, drawing, teaching, gardening for them, and with them" The Old Vicarage page 88.
Hilary continues her own education as well. Mitchell describes that while their brothers were often away at boarding schools, Victorian young women continued to study: "Studying languages was especially widespread. Many women became thoroughly competent translators by spending an hour or two every day with a dictionary, a grammar, and a substantial book written in another language" (178). Hilary continues her own eduction by studying German.
Just as Mr. Huyton helps with the teaching of Gwenyth, Sibyl, and Nest when Maurice leaves, he helps instruct Hilary with her German. After Mr. Huyton's proposal to Hilary has been rejected, she begs him to leave the Duncan family for a time. When he tells the younger girls of his intention to go abroad, Gwenyth, who is unaware of his proposal to Hilary, says: " 'We could not get on without you[...] Hilary wants to go on learning German, and I am sure nobody could teach her so well; and your French and English books, and your music and paintings are much better, and nicer, and prettier than any we have of our own." The Old Vicarage page 84
Because The Old Vicarage focuses on the family life of the Duncan family, Hubback gives the reader an insight into the education of young girls, which is often primarily performed at home.
Sources:
Hubback, Catherine Anne. The Old Vicarage London: Charles J. Skeet, 1856.
Mitchell, Sally. Daily Life in Victorian England. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1996.
Health and Medicine
Pregnancy in the Victorian Period could be dangerous for both mother and baby. According to Mitchell, the number of infants who died within one year of birth (the infant mortality rate) in Liverpool in 1889 was:
upper class: 139 deaths per 1,000 births working class: 274 deaths per 1,000 births poorest people: 509 deaths per 1,000 births (page 192)
As a member of the working class, Grace Dunsford in May and December and her baby are very at risk: the baby has a 75% chance of surviving its first year of life.
Grace is also at risk, for doctors, especially because she is of the working class. Mitchell says, "Many working class women were undernourished, continued doing hard labor throughout their pregnancy, and had no access to prenatal care. Rickets (a bone disease caused by insufficient amounts of vitamin D) narrows and deformed a woman's pelvis. The lack of meat, eggs, green vegetables, and fruit in the diet made a woman anemic" (193).
Although Grace does not have a paying job, she assists in teaching her younger siblings and in the care of her invalid father. The description of Grace in the excerpt to the left describes the suffering of her health from the combination of her pregnancy and the continuation of hard work.
Grace herself realizes that she may not survive the birth of her child. Because midwives who often delivered babies stayed in the home to care for the infant, the transmission of diseases remained low. When women went to a hospital to give birth, however, she was much more at risk for infection. Doctors had not yet learned the importance of disinfecting their hands often transmitted diseases from one patient to the next. Puerperal fever, also called "childbed fever" was transmitted by doctors from patient to patient.
According to the Encyclopedia Britannica Online, Puerperal Fever is an infection of a female reproductive organ after giving birth or having an abortion. Symptoms include a fever. Puerperal fever is a type of infection usually caused by streptococcus pyogenes, which is also the cause of scarlet fever. Many thought that puerperal fever was caused by overcrowing and poor ventilation. The physicians Oliver Wendell Holmes and Ignac Fulop Semmelweis both advocated cleanliness in separate efforts to reduce the number of deaths due to puerperal fever. Hubback does not say whether Grace gives birth at home or in a hospital. Either way, Grace seems fully aware of the fact that she may not survive childbirth, as the excerpt on the right demonstrates.
Hubback only subtly mentions that Grace is pregnant in her novel, although she does describe Grace as unhealthy. Grace refers to her pregnancy as the "hour of pain and trial" in the excerpt on the right. In the excerpt above, Mr. Arnold, a family friend, refers to Grace's pregnancy as "her state." May herself dose not mention the word "pregnancy," and she is a close female friend of Grace. Despite the vague references, Grace is pregnant, for later she is described with her new child.
Sources
Hubback, Catherine Anne. May and December. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1855.
"Puerperal Fever." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. 1 April 2007.
Mitchell, Sally. Daily Life in Victorian England. Westport: Greenwood Press, 1996.
Holidays, Sports, and Recreation
While most characters in Hubback's novels entertained themselves by walking, sewing, reading, and playing games, one character stands out for his unique pastime of studying history and natural history. Mr. Hamilton in Malvern is constantly educating his neighbors at Malvern about the history of the building or showing them a fossil from his collection.
Mitchell discusses this pastime, saying, "Natural history was also very popular. Amateur naturalists combined hobby and science; they collected fossils, seaweeds, mosses, ferns, fungi, butterflies, and other insects-- and they did the basic descriptive and classification work on many species" (232).
Mr. Hamilton fits into this class of amateur naturalists. Hubback describes him: "Mr. Hamilton really was, as Mrs. Newton had hinted, an enthusiast in ecclesiology, and antiquities of every kind; and he found a good deal to interest him in the way of Norman arches, and in hunting for brasses and old monuments; whilst Flora, half laughing at his enthusiasm, and half entering into it, was most conveniently ignorant, and yet most intelligent" (Malvern volume 1 page 103).
His knowledge does not stop at natural history, however. When Mrs. Woodbridge, a wealthy widow who is visiting Malvern with her clergyman brother suggests an outing to see the sunset and the moon rise, she guesses what time would be best. Mr. Hamilton is quick to correct her, displaying his ample knowledge of astronomy as well as of history and natural history.
"Nobody can be expected to remember the variations in so inconstant and changeable a thing as the moon," replied Mr. Clarke, gravely. "I do not apprehend she knows her own mind, or keeps to the same point, any two days together in the year."
"The moon will be full to-night," said Hamilton, looking up, "and she will rise a little after the sun sets, about 8:40, I think."
"I wish I could hit on something Hamilton could not always answer," observed Mr. Clarke, "it is so discouraging to be constantly met by accurate information, and exact understanding" (Malvern volume 1 page 198-199).
The other characters of Malvern tease Mr. Hamilton for his enthusiasm. Mr. Clarke remarks, "By the way, Hamilton there exactly resembles a truffle-hunter in his favourite pursuits, and his cleverness in nosing out some hidden monstrosity. The difference is as slight in name as in reality." "I hate bad jokes," said Mr. Hamilton, majestically (Malvern volume 1 page 227-228).
Mr. Hamilton is very good-natured about the teasing at his expense. His love for science does interfere with his personal life, for he is repeatedly described as having no interesting in anything but his scientific pursuits, including a wife.
Flora, who is an attractive young heiress, describes her experiences with Mr. Hamilton: "He is so sincere in his love of his own pursuits; and that I believe is what makes him pleasant. If he talks of history, botany, science, he neither thinks of me, nor of himself, but of his subject; and I like him for it" [Flora] (Malvern volume 1 p. 131). While Flora is being wooed by several suitors, only Mr. Hamilton neglects to notice that he is a bachelor conversing with a single girl.
Later, Flora imagines another match for him : "[I]f it were not horridly vulgar, and like Mrs. Alder, to suggest such things, I should say she would make an excellent wife for Mr. Hamilton; only I believe he is too much engrossed by the geology and conchology of the world before the floor, to care for anything so modern and unfossilized as Mrs. Woodbridge" [Flora] (Malvern volume 1 page 219).
Mr. Hamilton's earnestness towards science becomes a subtle joke throughout the novel. Several characters make references to a "Dudley Locust." For example, Hubback says, "Miss Grant spent the next morning in making investigations into some matters more interesting to her than the Dudley Locust" (Malvern volume 1 page 180).
According to Wikipedia, the "Dudley Locust" is another name for the trilobite fossil (pictured above left ). The name came from the discovery of these fossils in Wren's Nest, Dudley in the United Kingdom. Men who worked in limestone quarries found these fossils and called them "Dudley locusts" or "Dudley bugs." Trilobite is featured on the town's coat of arms (pictured right). The Locust is between the anchor and the miner's lamp (which represent the town's industries).
Sources
Hubback, Catherine Anne. Malvern. Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott and Co., 1856.
Mitchell, Sally. Daily Life in Victorian England. Westport: Greenwood Press, 1996.
Wikipedia. "Trilobite". 5 April 2007. Wikipedia Foundation, Inc.
Young, Robert. "Civic Heraldry of England and Wales." 5 April 2007. "Civic Heraldry".
Religion and Reform
As the reader can guess, Catherine Anne Hubback's novel The Old Vicarage concerns the family and life of a vicar, Mr. Duncan, and his family. A vicar, according to Mitchell, is a term used to describe a priest of an Anglican church (the Church of England).
The Christian faith at the time was divided into the "low church," or the Evangelicals, and the "high church." The evangelical party "stressed personal piety, conversion, individual Bible reading, and the serious Christian life. To evangelicals, Christianity demanded personal morality, social reform, and philanthropic work. Evangelicals put less emphasis on church services than on private readings of the scriptures" (Mitchell page 242). The "high church," on the other hand, stressed traditions, such as the authority of the vicar or priest and the sacraments of the church. Although Hubback does not state whether the Duncan's belonged to the high or low church, Hilary's behavior indicates an Evangelical perspective. While the reader does not often see the Duncan's attending church, partly because of Mr. Duncan's age, Hilary and the other characters often discuss their spiritual devotion, citing scripture.
Hubback details a conversation between Mr. Charles Huyton, who lacks the religious persuasions of the Duncan family (until he is on his deathbed at the end of the novel), and Mr. Duncan. They are discussing Mr. Duncan's inevitable future blindness. Mr. Huyton has called in the best optometrist he knows to examine Mr. Duncan. When the optometrist concludes that nothing can be done, Mr. Huyton does not accept this decision. He is calmed by the faith of Mr. Duncan, who says, "I have looked forward for some time to this even; and having enjoyed my eyesight for sixty years, Charles, I have no reason to think it a very grievous hardship if I spend a few more in darkness. It will not last for ever--light will come, I humbly trust, at length; a better, purer, brighter light than that on which my old eyes are so fast closing; the Light of everlasting Day" (The Old Vicarage' page 136).
Hilary also discusses her faith quite freely. When she learns that her brother, Maurice, has been asked to rejoin the Navy and may be gone for several years, she quietly accepts the hardships that lay ahead of her: "More is not required than is possible; ours is not a hard Master;--but then the proper interest must be returned for the talents committed to us, or we are unfaithful as well as unprofitable servants" (The Old Vicarage page 83). Hilary is clearly referencing the Biblical parable of the talents, in which a master gives his servants his money to watch until he returns. Upon his return, he praises the servant who has increased the money the most. Charles's ignorance of religion is evident is his response: "He was silent, for she was talking an unknown tongue to him, alluding to things as realities, who existence he hardly recognised" (The Old Vicarage page 83). Hubback is clearly painting a picture of an ideal Christian: Hilary is very knowledgeable about the Bible, most likely due to her private studies.
When Mr. Huyton first meets Hilary, he is surprised by the charm and elegance possessed by Hilary, a young girl who has been very little exposed to upper class society. Hubback explains: "He had yet to learn that real Christianity is the best school of good manners; and that the rule of doing as we would be done, secures that substance, of which politeness and refinement can only give the shadow or the reflection" (The Old Vicarage page 67). Through his many years as a friend of the Duncan family, Mr. Huyton gradually begins to be "converted" to Christianity through their Christian lifestyles. As mentioned earlier, Mr. Huyton, after marrying Dora, flees his insane wife. In his exile, he learns the real meaning of life. He returns home to tell Hilary of his conversion, only to die soon afterwards. Although Hilary does not present Mr. Huyton with tracts, and she does not follow the crusading reformer by establishing new charities (although she does assist the poor in her own community), her Christian lifestyle converts Mr. Huyton.
The images to the right and left demonstrate the personal commitment to Christianity of Hilary and her brother Maurice. Maurice, as a sailor, creates an allegory in which the life of the sailor represents the life of the Christian. Maurice also says that his duty, the duty he feels to his country as a member of the Navy, is second only to his duty to God as a Christian.
Sources:
Hubback, Catherine Anne. The Old Vicarage London: Charles J. Skeet, 1856.
Mitchell, Sally. Daily Life in Victorian England. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1996.
Victorian Morality
Catherine Anne Hubback's unique experiences made her especially interested in the role of women in the Victorian period. As a wife and mother, Hubback understood her role as the "angel of the house," as discussed by Coventry Patmore. Mitchell describes the role of women as wives and mothers: "The pure woman's life was supposed to be entirely centered on the home. She preserved the higher moral values, guarded her husband's conscience, guarded her children's training, and helped regenerate society through her daily display of Christianity in action" (266). This description of women fits many (if not all) of the heroines in Hubback's novels.
In The Old Vicarage, Hilary describes her feelings towards her husband, which follow the idea of a woman's role as wife and mother:
"She looked up to him as something so immeasurably her superior, that his approbation seemed an honour; she felt she could trust him; that he would be one who would sacrifice all to right, and that no selfish consideration would induce him to forget her interests, or to endeavor to influence her to a questionable act" (261). Hilary sees herself as following her husband's example, trusting him for decisions and guidance. When her husband Captain Hepburn grows ill, Hilary becomes the devoting wife, much like Mrs. Newton discussed below.
When her husband was committed to an insane asylum, Hubback learned first hand of the difficult lives of independent women. In her novel Malvern, she uses Annie Carden, a girl who (along with her sister Mary) has recently been orphaned. The two sisters move to England after spending their lives in America. Hubback says that Annie can find the protection and shelter Annie needs the most through marriage.
Hubback juxtaposes the situations of Annie Carden and Flora Denys. Flora is a rich young heiress, yet despite her ability to live independently, she understands that marriage offers a sense of security as well: "Matrimony was the only asylum to which she could look to screen her from the weariness, the self-torment, the scorn and contempt, with which an aimless and narrow-minded old-maidenhood would be visited. She had been taught music, and dancing, sketching, and flower-painting; to these useful employments had been added a slight knowledge of Italian, a tolerable acquaintance with French. These were the provisions made for the dull season of middle life, or the decaying faculties of nature; or, rather, these were the means put into her hands by art; which, in connection with her handsome face, it was expected would procure her an establishment suitable to her rank in life. These were the weapons with which she was to fight her battle of life; and if these did not succeed, what was there before her? -- to live uncared-for and useless, to die unlamented and forlorn" (335). Although Flora has many possibilities because of her wealth and status, she thinks of marriage as a necessity because it will give her life purpose and meaning.
The burden of mother and wife may have overwhelmed Hubback at times, especially when left to care for her three sons while her husband recovered. Mrs. Newton in Malvern experiences a similar burden. She and her family have come to Malvern in hopes that Mr. Newton will recover from illness. Mr. Newton is never seen in the novel, but his wife is described as patiently nursing him. When Flora comes to Mrs. Newton for advice, which most of the characters do, Mrs. Newton discusses the necessity of carrying our burdens. The conversation is included in the image to the left.
Mrs. Newton's description of the burdens of life continues one page 277, a portion of which is included in the image on the right. Mrs. Newton's philosophy that the end result should be the focus of life rather than the troubles experienced in life. While this is primarily a Christian philosophy, it mirrors the Victorian idea of work discussed by Mitchell:
"The values associated with evangelical religion helped promote the growth of business and the advance of middle-class men. Although hard work, frugality, and self-denial were apt to bring economic rewards, most evangelicals believed it was wrong for a man to devote his life to work simply because he wanted to get rich. Hard work was seen as a moral good in itself" (Mitchell 261). Mrs. Newton agrees with the Victorian idea that work, including work despite suffering, is good in itself.
Sources:
Hubback, Catherine Anne. The Old Vicarage London: Charles J. Skeet, 1856.
Hubback, Catherine Anne. Malvern. Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott and Co., 1856.
Mitchell, Sally. Daily Life in Victorian England. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1996.
England and Empire
In the Victorian period, England controlled many colonies and nations around the world. As a result of increased interaction with people of other cultures, the British began to have a different concept of race. Beginning in the 1860s, race began to be considered as biological. The British, therefore, had evolved the most biologically, allowing them to be the rulers of all of the less evolved races.
Although England acquired many new colonies during the Victorian period, Ireland was a British colony since the sixteenth century. Because they ruled the Irish for over three hundred years, the British were accustomed to considering the Irish as an inferior race. During the Victorian period, when race began to be thought of as biological, the Irish often became associated with natives in other countries because of their pagan rituals. The passionate character of the Irish, such as that described by Matthew Arnold, also encouraged ideas of British supremacy over this uncontrollable race.
Catherine Anne Hubback rarely discusses the British Empire in her novels. Rather, her novels focus on domestic situations which were often removed from the concept of England as an Empire. An Irish man does enter into her novel May and December, however. Contrary to many opinions regarding the Irish, Hubback proves this character to be respectable although he does make mistakes.
Captain Mountsteven is a young, handsome gentleman that May encounters at her many parties and balls after her marriage to Mr. Cameron. Because Mr. Cameron is significantly older than May, and because he is indulgent of her every whim, May often demonstrates too much affection for her friend Captain Mountsteven. While the friendship remains nonromantic, society is left gossiping over the audacity of May and Captain Mountsteven.
When May realizes the gossip that she has caused, she is horrified. Captain Mountsteven's behavior is in keeping with the "passionate" nature of the stereotypical Irishman, for he has difficulty concealing his regard and respect (but not love for) May. In fact, his regard is often construed to be love by society who are not accustomed to the passionate Irishman.
While Hubback does seem to support the Irish stereotype, she resolves the conflict through the good intentions of Captain Mountsteven. When Mr. Cameron, who is convinced that his wife is having an affair with the Captain, boards a train to leave his wife, he ends up in a cabin with none other than the Captain. Captain Mountsteven is oblivious to Mr. Cameron's belief of an affair, and he behaves very cordially to Mr. Cameron. When Mr. Cameron's behavior is much less cordial, Captain Mountsteven discovers the rumors. He attempts to persuade Mr. Cameron that he is not in fact in love with May, nor are they having an affair. Mr. Cameron is not convinced, either because of the Irish nationality of the Captain, or because he is the supposed lover (I would have to suspect the latter). Mr. Cameron does doubt the Captain's assertion, but curious by his testimony, Mr. Cameron begins to investigate. He discovers that his wife did remain faithful to him, while the villain was Mr. Cameron's steward, an Englishman named James Wildey who started the rumors, rather than Captain Mountsteven, an Irishman. In fact, when Mr. Cameron dies a short time later, May does not marry Captain Mountsteven, who finds a wife of his own.
Hubback may support some of the stereotypes of the Irish, but the resolution of her novel attempts to reverse the stereotype, claiming that the negative characteristics associated with the Irish can only be attributed to individuals rather than cultures.
Sources
Hubback, Catherine Anne. May and December. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1855.
Mitchell, Sally. Daily Life in Victorian England. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1996.