Hidden Rivalries in Victorian Fiction

The book explores the interactions among Victorian novelists, focusing on how they read and responded to each other's works during the 19th century. Jerome Meckier introduces the concept of the "Victorian realism wars," where authors like Trollope, Gaskell, and Eliot sought to establish their credibility as realists by challenging Charles Dickens. Through parody and critique, these writers navigated a literary landscape shaped by the need to assert their own voices. This study reshapes the understanding of notable novels by highlighting their interconnectedness and the competitive dynamics of realism in Victorian literature.