The doctrine of survivals, the great mutiny, and Lady Audley's secret

Christopher Herbert*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalShort surveypeer-review

2 Scopus citations

Abstract

The key principle of Victorian cultural anthropology, the doctrine of obsolescent "survivals," had as its Gothic counterpart the implication that atavistic residues of early human stages could persist in modernity and might at any moment unexpectedly resurface. One crystallizing event in the evolutionary history of this theme was the Indian Mutiny of 1857, and one text that translated this lesson of the Mutiny most powerfully for popular thinking was Mary Elizabeth Braddon's famous sensation novel Lady Audley's Secret (1861-62).

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)431-436
Number of pages6
JournalNovel
Volume42
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 2009

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Literature and Literary Theory

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