The Selfish Giant

The Victorian era has become synonymous with strict or even rigid morality. While this view of Victorian Britain is something of a caricature, certain values were important to the average Victorian. Christianity was by far the predominant religion, with the Church of England as the primary denomination in Britain. In this atmosphere, charity was a key concern. Charity as a Christian tenet is not limited to material aid—rather, it entails pure selflessness and love for one’s neighbor—but it does encompass it. Consequently, philanthropy and philanthropic groups were particularly popular in the Victorian era, and organizations like the Charity Organization Society and the Salvation Army provided aid while also spreading the message of the Bible.

Other systems founded on the principle of helping those in need, such as workhouses and orphanages, expanded during the philanthropic boom of the Victorian era. However, these organizations were also influenced by another distinctly Victorian principle: self-reliance. With the Industrial Revolution, the rise of the middle class, and the birth of modern capitalism, principles of hard work and the self-made man gained popularity. A common belief was that truly helping someone meant teaching them to help themself. This is a recurring theme in Victorian literature, where writers like Charles Dickens, Anthony Trollope, and Elizabeth Gaskell explore both the benefits and costs of self-reliance versus reliance on community.

The high Victorian regard for charity and kindness is at the heart of “The Selfish Giant.” The Journey of Contrition, Penance, and Redemption that the Giant undergoes involves recognizing how selfish it was to close his garden, and spring returns only when he shows Christian charity toward the children. Wilde also examines the relationships among Selfishness, Selflessness, and Self-Reliance, suggesting that the Giant only learns to be selfless when he is surrounded by his neighbors.

It was also during the Victorian era that the value and rights of children were first seriously considered. The Victorians believed that children were born innocent; what’s more, as future members of society, their education and entertainment came to seem matters of utmost importance. Though child labor was still prominent, the 19th century brought some of the first legislation aimed at curtailing it, or at least rendering it safer. Victorian Britain also saw the expansion of schooling to a wider range of classes. This contributed to the growth of both children’s literacy and literature throughout the 19th century, with many books catering specifically to young audiences—including The Happy Prince and Other Tales.