Victorian Madness
The notion of madness has always been a focal topic. In the Victorian era, it sparked a world of controversy. ... Many see her depicted as a “Victorian villainess” who uses madness to obtain her place in society. ... Then after finding out the truth, she “brooded horribly upon the thought of my mother’s madness” (Braddon 343). ... From that point, the only thing she had to look to inheriting from her mother was madness. ... But “breaking out” of this world was no easy task and it seemed to threaten Victorian society. ... Such multiple identities help her move through the Victorian class structure with ease. It was something that the Victorian public would have both desired and feared. ... Thus, she can be accounted for only through the discourse of madness. ... When Robert Audley openly challenges Lady Audley with deceiving her husband about her past, she responds by threatening to charge him with madness. ... That leads me to a third point in the disputed claim of madness. ... There is no madness in that. ... There is no madness there. ... There is no madness in that” (Braddon 370). ... There was no madness to it. ... Lady Audley knew exactly what she was doing without madness every step of the way. ... The lady may have been a dark woman, but madness never once threw a shadow upon her evil. ... She gave the Victorian public something to think about regarding their contemporary notions of insanity. ... Well, that’s just simply madness.