Victorian Living Magazine

The theme of our project is cultural trends and their personification of the past, as a means of commenting on the present.

An online magazine-style blog, our project attempted to answer, through the exploration of modern day literature and art, these two questions:

Does Victorian Cool offer any sort of critique on the present, in regards to its aesthetics, principles, and technologies?

and

Does the nostalgia embodied in Victorian Cool suggest an optimistic view or a pessimistic view of the future of mankind?

At the end of our investigation, we decided that the prevalency of Victorian culture in the 21st century suggests that Victorian Cool is a means of teaching, through example, the folly of innovation without consideration. The Victorians were obsessed with science and materialism. Their lack of concern for the future of the planet has resulted in our current problem of Global Warming. They looked to the future, in regards to scientific discovery and material goods, but failed to acknowledge the consequences of such endeavors. In addition, we concluded that nostalgia, in Victorian Cool, offers an optimistic view of the future because, by reflecting on and learning from the past, we are able to improve on our present-day situation and prevent the re-occurrence of past mistakes.


We hope that you have fun looking at our blog, while learning something new about the 19th century.

Enjoy! :-D

Steamboy: Steampunk Culture at its Best

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by Mabel Ho





An Overview - Food for Thought

The anime begins in 1863, where scientists Lloyd Steam and his son Edward have succeeded in discovering pure mineral water to be harnessed as an unimaginable power source for steam engines, contained in a ball-like apparatus. However, the discovery is not without a cost, as a horrific accident severely injures Edward. Three years following the incident, Edward’s son – Ray Steam – is caught in the center of a political struggle to attain the third and last “steam ball”. Torn between the O’Hara foundation which Edward sided with and Lloyd’s personal endeavour to keep the ingenuity of science from being extorted for imperial gain, Ray is kidnapped from Manchester, whereupon he briefly encounters the heiress to the O’Haran foundation, Miss Scarlett O’Hara. Subsequently, Ray is forced to witness a series of eye-opening events from both sides of the field. This includes physically removing the ball from both parties at the slightest sign of misuse. Gradually, he arrives at the understanding that no matter whose hands the “steam ball” falls into, the result is never an unadulterated pursuit for scientific discovery and knowledge, but rather a full-blown arms race to further each respective nation. The movie draws to a close with all three balls destroyed in a climactic explosion that claims the gargantuan Steam Tower. The physical veneer of London returns to normalcy shortly after. But with the public eye forever marred with the breath-taking yet destructive power of mechanized science, alongside the forever present desire for imperial wealth and dominance, the portal for science-wrought havoc will never be fully closed.


Questions for Consideration – An Appetizer

As stated in the blog introductory:

Does Victorian Cool offer any sort of critique on the present, in regards to its aesthetics, principles, and technologies?

Does the nostalgia embodied in Victorian Cool suggest an optimistic view or a pessimistic view of the future of mankind?


Prevailing Themes – A Three-Course Meal

1. Gender Roles:

The first subject up for consideration in Katsuhiro’s “Steamboy” deals primarily with softer domestic issues, working from the often ill-credited center of power at home, and influencing its way into masculine-dominated politics of the arena (Ogden). In one scene, Ray reflects back on his mother whom he was kidnapped from days earlier. Scarlett, being the pampered heiress that she is, tartly remarks: “[You’re] a real mama’s boy. Do most kids so want to see their mothers? I’ve got five mothers. The one who cooks for me. The one who buys clothes with me. The one who teaches me. One for when I go riding, and one for bedtime stories. Big deal! I'm not writing to my mothers saying I want to go home” (Katsuhiro). And without so much as a backwards glance, Ray quietly replies that “those aren’t mothers” (Katsuhiro). This is representative of a viewpoint that transcends time eras, be it Victorian or present day. Although a mother is indeed responsible for the listed tasks, there is a childhood instinct that responds to the detachment of these tasks from motherhood, and assigning them to various individuals. In a way, this is a critique on the upper class of any era, in that wealth and prosperity can only reap so many benefits. It also shows the exemplified duties of a housewife through a Steam Punk lens.

Childhood & Doubleness:
















Amidst the chaos of heavy machinery and residual fog from thousands of steam-powered engines, a certain silver-lining of childhood innocence manages to pervade the characters and dialogue. During an intense segment of the film, Lloyd and Edward exchange words that touch upon both the notions of doubleness and blissful childhood ignorance (Ogden):

Edward: “Are weapons not part of that, Father?”
Lloyd: “Fool! Science should reveal universal principles, not assist humanity in its folly.”
Edward: “By universal principles, do you mean that children's funfair of yours? What is science for? To make all humanity equal!”
Lloyd: “Equal? Don't abuse that word. All this is meant for profit!”
(Katsuhiro)
The tenets of this argument are later emphasized just as the Steam Tower is about to crash into the river, where Lloyd’s off-beat carnival equipments and rides surface on the exterior of the tower before collision. This paradoxical trait along with the notion of universal equality can in some aspects be traced back to a child-like sense of fair play. The idea that science should reveal universal principles rather than contribute to mankind’s burdens is one that continues to this day, all of which straddles the fence between religious and armed conflicts.


2. The Empire:


















Nationalistic pride and the desire to become an irrefutable world power is a subtly sublimated trait of the present, but for all intensive purposes, is heightened and escalates into an arms race in “Steamboy”. The Admiral serving the British Empire in this Steam Punk endeavour clearly announces that “wars are not won by machines,” which then leaves the obvious alternative that it is the quality of a man (specifically implied – British soldiers) which separates victory from defeat. In a decisive moment where Ray escapes the clutches of the Steam Tower and is rescued by Mr. Stephenson who backs the British Empire, he is faced with the decision of whether or not he should surrender the steam ball. So he tests Mr. Stephenson with the question: “Inventions and science, what are they for?” (Katsuhiro) Cautious not to tip the balance of power, Mr. Stephenson assures Ray that “science exists to make people happy” (Katsuhiro). However, as soon as the steam ball is passed into their possession, he adds that “while science exists to make people happy, the basis of that happiness, the nation, must be preserved. There is no happiness without the nation” (Katsuhiro). Similarly, this is a typified critique on nations of today. Although happiness is a universally sought-after sensation, ideals of The Empire and the desire to cling to stability, uniformity and authority quickly becomes synonymous with happiness itself.

Another notable theme is when Lloyd and Ray stumble upon a hidden stash of modified weapons inside the Steam Tower. Here, the subject of warfare and ethics are touched upon and shadowed by the ever-present national agenda as Ray is awe-stricken by the advancements made by technology:

Ray: “What are these?”
Lloyd: “Weapons of war. The devil's handiwork, made to kill men by the thousands.”
Ray: “Golly! This would slaughter an enemy!”
Lloyd: “You young fool! Who's the enemy? Prussians? French? English?”
Ray: “Well, that would depend on the war.”
Lloyd: “Listen to me. Arrogance and self-interest creates enemies in your own mind. Our first forefathers knew neither enemy nor ally. They want to make commerce out of human stupidity.”
(Katsuhiro)
Lloyd’s words attack the very basis of nationalism in an empire, and suggest that all conflicts begin with a faceless enemy whose features are carved distinctly by the tenacity of a nation’s personalized agenda. It is a controversial undercurrent that can be related on one platform or another to most modern-day warfare. An example of creating commerce from warfare can be found in the business of selling war bonds during either of WWI or WWII, and the creation of new job opportunities at munitions factories.


3. Technology & Science
















There can be no doubt that technology and science constitute the backbone to the main thematic devices used in “Steamboy”. The most ostentatious quotation taken from the anime in this field, that “from risk comes progress” (Katsuhiro), is a belief that is reflected in numerous segments of dialogue that re-emerge frequently throughout the film. A commonality that this Steam Punk anime shares with the modern pursuit of scientific advancement and knowledge is the hope that “man will be freed from long, hard labour and will prevail over even nature’s greatest disasters” (Katsuhiro). Much like the invention of the wheel, the initial use was to increase the mobility of heavy loads. Only later on did the concept turn to chariot wheels for deliberate warfare.

But technology and science often teeter on the slim divider separating clinical detachment for the purpose of advancing in the field from moral and ethical considerations, all of which are elements drawn heavily upon by religious institutions. In one scene where Edward is dramatically poised on the terrace of his Steam Tower, he curtly informs Ray that “science isn't an occult art like alchemy. It’s not secrets for the use of the well-born, deep in their palaces and churches. Science exists as a power to be used in reality. What use is it, if not for everyone? The entire world awaits its blessings” (Katsuhiro). In a metaphoric sense, Edward has polarized science and religion with its ethics in two separate places on the spectrum. It creates a sense almost where an individual can have one or the other, but never two at the same time. The association of religion and other “unscientific” endeavours to members of the upper class and nobility signifies the rift between the classes during the Victorian era, and highlights how science was proposed as a mediator to bridge the gap and become universally applicable for all members of any caste. At present, science and technology does indeed transcend nearly every boundary regarding class. On the other hand, Lloyd is ardent in informing Ray that Edward is “a fool who's sold his scientist's soul to capitalists,” and that “an invention with no philosophy behind it is a curse” (Katsuhiro). Imminently, it appears to blend what began as two opposite beliefs. This suggests that even up to this day science must be taken with a grain of salt, that being some measure of ethical consideration, to prevent becoming a vessel for imperialistic gain.


Past Meets Present – Dessert

To address the main questions specifically on the introduction of the blog, Victorian Cool does indeed offer a critique on the aesthetics, principles and technologies of the present. It carries forth certain timeless qualities embedded in gender roles, childhood simplicity and the latent theme of doubleness in its execution, and proposes solutions to remedy the voracious appetite of an expanding empire and its subsequent desire to further itself technologically and scientifically. In regards to nostalgia, “Steamboy” specifically exaggerates the situation and technology so as to demonstrate an extreme circumstance where science has breached its boundaries of normalcy to create a catastrophe. With that, the intention is to create an aversion to extreme actions shown in the anime, so that we can learn from our mistakes before we even begin to make them.


Works Cited

Steamboy. Dir. Katsuhiro Otomo. Sony Pictures Entertainment, 2005.

"Steamboy Script - transcript from the screenplay and/or Katsuhiro." Drew's Script-O-Rama: free movie scripts and screenplays, baby! Ed. Drew. 20 Mar. 2009. http://www.script-o-rama.com/movie_scripts/s/steamboy-script-transcript-katsuhiro-otomo.html.

Ogden, Stephen. English 206 Lecture. Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC. 2009.