Abstract
Recent research explores the historical development of Victorian masculinity in relationship to British nationalism and imperialism. This article complicates these recent studies by exploring the cosmopolitan construction of masculinity in George Meredith’s novel, Vittoria (1866). Set during the 1848 revolutions in Italy, Vittoria imagines a complex geopolitical representation of Austrian, Italian, and English masculinities that does not fit into typical nationalist or imperialist analysis of Victorian masculine ideologies. This essay argues that the novel’s representation of the cosmopolitan patriot, who fights for humanity rather than nation or empire, destabilizes the relationship between males and masculinity through its heroic representation of its female protagonist and presents an alternative form of public masculinity focused on social duty and virtue rather than the private interests of financial gain, domestic authority, and manly self-discipline typically associated with Victorian masculinity.
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