The Sublimation of Unfitness in Victorian Fiction

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Inspired by Erving Goffman’s understanding of stigma management, Stefani Brusberg-Kiermeier examines the representation of Otherness and transgression in Victorian fiction across various dimensions, including social, moral, and physical aspects, as well as gender and mentality. In response to contemporary disability studies, she introduces the term ‘unfitness’ as a more comprehensive concept for analyzing Victorian texts, suggesting that it loomed over the Victorians like a sword of Damocles. Brusberg-Kiermeier contends that unfitness encompasses diverse afflictions that writers addressed in their works, contrasting with previous interpretations of disability in Victorian studies. The study posits that while the eighteenth century focused on cataloguing nature to tame the grotesque, the nineteenth century saw the scientific categorization of humans and the domestication of the human grotesque, reflected in the era's literary genres. The investigation draws from the Victorians’ fascination with classification, revealing how cultural constructions of the time shaped their views on unfitness. Unlike studies centered on Gothic themes or enfreakment, this work highlights the inclusive strategies within texts, often driven by reformative ideas. The authors employed the concept of sympathy, initially a biological notion established by Darwin, as a means to unify society. However, this concept evolved and became corrupted with the ris