Elizabeth Gaskell, Citizen of the World: Civic Lessons
Journal: Leicester Research Archive (University of Leicester)
Year: 2017

This thesis examines in what ways and to what extent Elizabeth Gaskell, with her Unitarian ‘citizen of the world’ perspective, used her knowledge about social aspects of life in England, Europe and America to teach her readers moral and social citizenship skills. Gaskell’s writing career encompassed major upheavals such as the revolutionary year 1848, the Crimean War, the American Civil War, the Lancashire Cotton Famine, and rapid industrial and social change, and her works are seen to interact