Challenging Victorian ideals? Masculinity and domesticity in Elizabeth Gaskell's Manchester novels

The main purpose of this study is to investigate Elizabeth Gaskell's Mary Barton and North and South within the framework of critical masculinity studies with the purpose of pinning down the author's portrayals of masculinity in an industrial setting. The analysis shows that Gaskell designs the ideal masculinity as not only successful in the market but also domestic in Victorian terms. By doing so, she also offers a solution to the problem of the condition of the working class in England in the form of reconciliation between classes. Although Gaskell's novels have received much praise for being reformist in terms of masculinity portrayals, it is argued in this study that her masculinity portrayals do not deviate from the masculinity norms of the Victorian period. Moreover, her solution to the said problem is not viable but merely an attempt to preserve the existing social system without allowing for any radical or fundamental changes. In this sense, Gaskell's novels are propagandist in favor of the Victorian social system.