ISBN:
9780226640785
Language:
English
Pages:
1 online resource (393 pages)
Parallel Title:
Erscheint auch als Otter, Chris The Victorian eye
DDC:
303.483
Keywords:
Visual perception
;
Great Britain ; Social life and customs ; 19th century
;
Lighting ; Great Britain ; History ; 19th century
;
Lighting ; Great Britain ; History ; 20th century
;
Lighting ; Political aspects ; Great Britain ; History
;
Lighting ; Social aspects ; Great Britain ; History
;
Optical engineering ; Great Britain ; History ; 19th century
;
Visual perception
;
Electronic books
;
Großbritannien
;
Beleuchtung
;
Geschichte 1801-2000
;
Großbritannien
;
Beleuchtung
;
Geschichte 1801-2000
Abstract:
During the nineteenth century, Britain became the first gaslit society, with electric lighting arriving in 1878. At the same time, the British government significantly expanded its power to observe and monitor its subjects. How did such enormous changes in the way people saw and were seen affect Victorian culture? To answer that question, Chris Otter mounts an ambitious history of illumination and vision in Britain, drawing on extensive research into everything from the science of perception and lighting technologies to urban design and government administration. He explores how light facilitated such practices as safe transportation and private reading, as well as institutional efforts to collect knowledge. And he contends that, contrary to presumptions that illumination helped create a society controlled by intrusive surveillance, the new radiance often led to greater personal freedom and was integral to the development of modern liberal society. The Victorian Eye's innovative interdisciplinary approach-and generous illustrations-will captivate a range of readers interested in the history of modern Britain, visual culture, technology, and urbanization.
Abstract:
Intro -- The Victorian Eye -- Contents -- Illustrations -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction: Light, Vision, and Power -- ONE The Victorian Eye: The Physiology, Sociology, and Spatiality of Vision, 1800-1900 -- TWO Oligoptic Engineering: Light and the Victorian City -- THREE The Age of Inspectability: Vision, Space, and the Victorian City -- FOUR The Government of Light: Gasworks, Gaslight, and Photometry -- FIVE Technologies of Illumination, 1870-1910 -- SIX Securing Perception: Assembling Electricity Networks -- Conclusion: Patterns of Perception -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index.
Note:
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