Victorians were surrounded by death due to the lack of
modern medicine and technology. They were exposed to death a lot more than we
are today, when a family member was sick, they were often left to die in the
house as there was nothing the hospital would be able to do. Death was an
everyday occurrence, and this is what fuelled their obsession with it.
Queen Victoria sort of set this trend- her husband, Albert,
died at the age of 42. For the next 40 years, Victoria froze her household by
demanding the servants lay out her husband’s clothes each day as normal. She
wore black every day after his death to show her mourning. This set mourning
trends and women were expected to wear black for at least 2 years after a
death, depending on the relation. They were not allowed to celebrate any
holidays as it as seen as disrespectful. All mirrors were covered and pianos
were locked as music was not allowed to be played.
They went to great extents to remember the dead, some even
went as far as propping them up for a final family photo once they had died.
The Victorian era was a very dark time due to the
subconscious reactions to death- this is how ‘Gothic horror’ became so popular
and the Victorian era was the perfect setting.
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