Bazaar Literature: Charity, Advocacy, and Parody in Victorian Social Reform Fiction

Bazaar Literature reorients our understanding of Victorian social reform fiction by reading it in light of the literature generated for charity bazaars. These bazaars were organized and run by women, and were a key method women used to intervene in political, social, and cultural affairs. Bazaar Literature remedies these misconceptions by demonstrating how the literature written in conjunction with bazaars shaped the social, political, and literary movements of its time.

Format: Hardback
Length: 288 pages
Publication date: 15 December 2022
Publisher: Oxford University Press

Bazaar literature is a groundbreaking approach to understanding Victorian social reform fiction, by examining the vast array of literature produced for charity bazaars. These bazaars were a ubiquitous feature of nineteenth-century society, serving as a vibrant response to the rapid industrialization of the time. Typically organized and run by women, charity bazaars were known as fancy fairs due to their specialization in ladies' hand-crafted fancy work. However, their conventional purpose of raising money for charity has often led to their being overlooked and misunderstood.

Bazaar literature seeks to rectify these misconceptions by demonstrating how the literature written in conjunction with bazaars shaped the social, political, and literary movements of its time. This study draws upon a diverse range of texts printed for sale at bazaars, including works by renowned authors such as Robert Louis Stevenson, Harriet Martineau, and Elizabeth Barrett Browning, as well as fictional depictions of fancy fairs by Charlotte Yonge, George Eliot, Frances Trollope, and Anthony Trollope. By analyzing these texts, Bazaar literature offers a revised understanding of the larger literary market in social reform fiction, revealing a parodic, self-critical strain that is paradoxically intertwined with strident political activism and its realist sensibilities.

In conclusion, Bazaar literature provides a fresh perspective on Victorian social reform fiction, shedding light on the overlooked role of charity bazaars in shaping the literature and cultural movements of the time. By examining the literature produced for these bazaars, we can gain a deeper understanding of the complex interplay between social reform, political activism, and realism in nineteenth-century literature.

Weight: 624g
Dimension: 240 x 163 x 20 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780192866882