Talk: Courtship and Engagement in Victorian England

Maggie Kalenak will talk about love, courtship and engagement in nineteenth century England, considering sources such as love letters, diaries, etiquette manuals, periodicals, novels and the stories of individual couples. For middle-class Victorians finding a spouse was a highly ritualised and high-stakes process.

Maggie is a 3rd year PhD student in History at Girton College, University of Cambridge. She received an MA in Museum Studies from Newcastle University and a BA in History from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Her current research focuses on romantic and nuptial culture in 19th century England, specifically the period of engagement, with emphasis on gender dynamics, material culture and representations in literature and history of emotions.