This extremely readable book sets out to describe the conditions--psychological, physical, emotional, legal, social, economic--under which more than half of the population of the United Kingdom (and also the United States) lived during the sixty-four years of social adventure which was the Victorian era.

Anatomy of prudery -- The gold lace hats -- The middle three -- Young ladies -- The newly discovered regions -- All the fault of the factories -- The Exhibition year -- Crinolines and bloomers -- Help from the Beetons -- One of the chief social movements of the day -- This wild disturbance of the female mind -- The girl of the period -- Pretty horse-breakers and others -- Mrs Butler's crusade -- The revolt of women -- The great depression and the baby question -- An ideal of service -- Women's work -- The new daughters of propriety.