Nineteenth Century Literacy

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Popular media in the nineteenth century mainly consisted of pamphlets and newspapers; however, during this time, there was an increase in novel production. By the mid-1800s, literacy rates throughout Europe soared. Not only had reading proficiency improved, but also novels became more easily accessible to the general public. Books transformed from traditional, well-produced thick volumes to smaller and cheaper installments, which appealed to a wider audience. As novels’ external structures changed, so did the content. In the nineteenth century, novels were not only forms of entertainment but also outlets for various social criticisms, especially for authors like Jane Austen and Charles Dickens.
Prior to the nineteenth century, the general public had limited access to books because of monetary issues and, most importantly, literacy issues. The highest literacy rates were found in the major European cities. However, in the mid-1800s that began to change. In France, almost half of the male population and around thirty percent of the female population were able to read. In 1850 Britain, male literacy reached about seventy percent and female literacy reached about fifty-five. Germany, in 1871, was around eighty-eight percent literate. By …show more content…
Dickens’ uses a satirical tone in the passage, to prove his point when he says, “They made a great many other wise and humane regulations … “ and when he writes that they “kindly” split couples up. In the second chapter, he also writes of the “experimental philosopher” that had the theory about a horse being able to live without eating. He continues writing about how the woman caring for Oliver implemented this theory. In telling this, Dickens shows that the workhouses generously provided the poor with an opportunity to starve slowly with charitable living quarters instead of quickly starving on the

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