ABSTRACT
Violence contributed to the formation and re-formation of nineteenth-century ideologies and identities. Reciprocally, changing material realities and cultural patterns influenced the ways that violence was perceived and understood. This chapter outlines the salient points of an emergent set of attitudes toward violence in nineteenth-century England, identify some of its key contours and languages, and suggest the influence of violence on identity, particularly in regard to the middle class. Civilization, like violence or brutality had neither a stable nor uncontested meaning. Nevertheless, repeated, reciprocal connections between savagery and civilization surfaced in reference to violence and social order. The class associations of the civilized mentality of violence were flexible, particularly as increasing concerns about savagery do not seem to have been related directly to changes in actual violence. The chapter also notes that there were limitations to civilizing thought, and mentalities of violence, like class identities, are typically incomplete and contradictory.
