A Study Of Public Opinion In The Warden

The Warden（1855）is the masterpiece of English writer Anthony Trollope（1815-1882）.Set in nineteenth-century England,this novel tells a story about the public opinion of Hiram’s Hospital’s funds which has occurred in Barchester.It not only exposes the maladies in the church out of the historical reasons,but also warns people not to ignore the selfishness which hides behind the seemingly righteous public opinion.Since its publication,The Warden has drawn the attention from domestic and foreign scholars.Their studies mainly focus on Trollope’s dialectical view,narrative features,characters,etc.However,little attention has been given to public opinion in The Warden.Public opinion,an important topic in The Warden,provides a proper perspective to understand the change of politics,thought and industry in the 19th century.Based on the rise,dissemination and influence of public opinion,this thesis points out the features of times that are manifested in the development of public opinion.Meanwhile,the thesis further explores the author’s attitude to the social changes in the 19^th century.This thesis consists of four chapters in addition to Introduction and Conclusion.The introduction mainly presents the life and literary achievements of Anthony Trollope,the plot of The Warden,and the literature review on The Warden and the author home and abroad.The first chapter mainly introduces the concept of public opinion.It firstly presents the evolvement of public opinion in the western cultural context.At the macro level,it elaborates on the definition of public opinion by different scholars,especially the study of public opinion by Walter Lippmann.Secondly,it explains the development of public opinion in England before the 19^th century,and analyzes the social conditions which result in public opinion.The second chapter mainly analyzes the social background in which public opinion in The Warden is generated.Firstly,the deepening of individualism is the thought foundation of the rise of public opinion.Secondly,the parliamentary reform provides a good political environment for the generation of public opinion.Lastly,the improvement of the printing industry makes newspapers and novels become the main media for disseminating public opinion.Trollope pays close attention to the changes and development in the 19^th century.He writes about the public opinion in Barchester against the context of the times.The third chapter mainly explores two factors that influence the dissemination of public opinion in The Warden.The first one is the varied stances of major participants in public opinion.Different characters criticize the case of the Hospital according to their interests,which reveals the irrationality of public opinion.The second one is the manipulation of public opinion by the newspaper and other media.The Jupiter makes a personal attack aimed at the warden,which unveils the manipulability of public opinion.The fourth chapter mainly focuses on the influence of public opinion in The Warden.It analyzes the negative effect on the community and individuality.For the community,the hospital declines day by day,and the twelve bedesmen lose the past tranquility.For the individual,Mr.Harding has endured mental suffering under the pressure of public opinion.He finally chooses to resign.This chapter expresses the author’s attack on the simplistic morality in the public opinion and shows his praise for the individuals’adherence to the moral line in the changing world.The conclusion points out that the public opinion in The Warden is the miniature of social changes.It expresses Trollope’s reflection on the changing society and his focus on the individual’s fate in public opinion.Although public opinion manifests differently in different periods,the public opinion in the 19^th century still has enlightenment to the contemporary people.It is necessary to be on guard against the one-sided voice in public opinion and insist on the moral line to avoid being the victim of public opinion.