Alternative Victorian Religion and the Recuperation of Women's Voices

Abstract What is Victorian “religion” and how might we define the “alternative” in “alternative religions” of this time period? Dealing with these questions affirms why analyzing so‐called peripheral religions in the Victorian period is necessary to understanding the Victorian cultural landscape. “Alternate” may refer to the proliferation of non‐mainstream forms of belief; the concept that change and difference are inherent to the very structures mainstream of Victorian religions; the range of methods and theories needed to study Victorian belief properly; and the disparate perspectives such studies make available to our engagements with Victorian literature and culture. Recent feminist recuperations of female writers and their alternate understandings, voices, and critique provide enriched readings of Victorian faith. These voices may become available through strong “critical empathy,” belief, and alternative research methodologies.