Books by Norman Vance

This book provides a fresh perspective on nineteenth-century life by examining the nature and context of 'Christian manliness' or 'muscular Christianity', an ideal of conduct that was widely popular with Victorian preachers and writers. It pays particular attention to Charles Kingsley (author of The Water-Babies) and Thomas Hughes (author of Tom Brown's Schooldays).

A full understanding of Irish Literature and the consciousness of Irish writers requires seeing them in the context of the issues that dominated the period in which they wrote. The questions of nationality, race and religion, the nature of Irish identity and efforts to develop a cultural consciousness, are examined here.