RAILWAYS AND RAILWAYMEN IN MUGBY JUNCTION

Year 2019, Volume: 6 Issue: 2, 402 - 425, 22.10.2019

Zeynep Harputlu Shah

Abstract

This paper examines the impact of the Victorian railways on railwaymen in relation
to labour and social economy, the industrialisation of travel, and urban modernity in
three short stories: “The Engine-driver” by Andrew Halliday, “The Engineer” by
Amelia Edwards and “The Travelling Post-office” by Hesba Stretton in Mugby
Junction, edited by Charles Dickens in 1866. Regarding the history of the railway,
emphasis has shifted from the cultural and social aspects to psychological
interpretations of the influences of science and technology on individuals. These
stories provide an insight as to how the machine ensemble played a critical role in
altering railway workers’ physical, emotional and psychological states, and
transformed them into haunted “modern” subjects. The representations of mystery,
death, crimes and spectral images in these stories not only address deep anxieties
and a changing mode of life, but also acknowledge the reader about how the
Victorians reacted to the rapid expansion of the railway network within and beyond
the British Isles. 

Keywords

Victorian railways, railwaymen, Mugby Junction, mystery, railway stories

Supporting Institution

King's College London

MUGBY JUNCTION'DA DEMİRYOLLARI VE DEMİRYOLU ÇALIŞANLARI

Abstract

Bu makale, 1866 yılında Charles Dickens'ın editörlüğünde demiryollarını konu alan
Mugby Junction sayısındaki Andrew Halliday'ın “The Engine-driver”, Amelia Edwards'ın “The Engineer”, ve Hesba Stretton’ın “The Travelling Post-office” adlı
kısa hikâyelerinde Viktorya dönemi demiryollarının çalışanlar üzerindeki etkilerini,
çalışma ekonomisi ve sosyal ekonomi, seyahatin endüstrileşmesi ve kentsel
moderniteyle ilişkilendirerek incelemektedir. Demiryolu tarihiyle ilgili olarak, son
yıllarda çalışmalar kültürel ve sosyal yönlerden bilim ve teknolojinin bireyler
üzerindeki psikolojik etkilerine kaymıştır. Söz konusu hikâyeler, demiryolları
sisteminin çalışanların fiziksel, duygusal ve psikolojik durumlarını etkilemede kritik
bir rol oynamasını ve onları sorunlu “modern” bireylere dönüştürmesini ele alır. Bu
öykülerdeki gizem, ölüm, suç ve korku öğeleri, yalnızca derin kaygılara ve değişen
yaşam tarzına değinmekle kalmaz, aynı zamanda okurları, Viktorya dönemi
insanlarının Britanya adaları ve çevresindeki demiryolu ağlarının hızlı bir şekilde
genişlemesine tepkileri konusunda da bilgilendirir. 

Keywords

Viktorya dönemi demiryolları, demiryolu çalışanları, Mugby Junction, gizem, demiryolu hikayeleri

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