Lady Audley's Secret, by Mary Elizabeth Braddon, is a novel of many elements. It has been placed in many different style or genre categories since its publication. I feel that it best fits under the melodrama or sensational genre, and under the subgenre of mystery. It contains significant elements of both types of writing, so I feel it is best to recognize both, keeping in mind that melodrama is its main device and mystery is a type of Victorian melodrama. In order to understand how the story fits into these categories, it is necessary to explore the Victorian characteristics of each, and apply them to the text. In addition to establishing the genres, it is important to explain why and how these genres fit into Victorian culture.

The term melodrama has come to be applied to any play with romantic plot in which an author manipulates events to act on the emotions of the audience without regard for character development or logic (Microsoft Encarta). In order to classify as a Victorian melodrama, several key techniques must be used, including proximity and familiarity to the audience, deceit rather than vindictive malice, lack of character development and especially the role

Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 98 (1998). [Computer program]. Redmond, WA: Microsoft Corporation.

A reader of Lady Audley's Secret might notice upon concluding the novel that he/she knows very little about the characters at hand. Instead of being fully developed into people who are easy to relate to, the characters in this novel are used more as symbols or pawns that are moved in order to bring attention to social or moral problems. This can best be seen in the character of Lady Audley. Lady Audley is not much of a person, rather she is nothing more than a representation of the threatening woman figure trying to make changes in a patriarchal world. Lady Audley evokes a fear of women's independence and sexuality. As a popular Victorian genre that trades on the power of the secret and frequently sexualized sins of its heroines, sensation fiction provides a resourceful perspective on the contradiction that frame these villainous victims who are simultaneously diseased, depraved, and socially and economically oppressed (Bernstein, 73). Lady Audley's ability to control the men in her life makes her a devilish figure. When she attempts to convince Sir Michael that Robert is insane with no proof and just her innocent looks, she is portraying the fears of many people in Victorian society: a woman with power is dangerous.

Another technique found in mysteries that Braddon uses is the Return. The device of the return was an excellent method for evoking reader sentiment, but equally important, it had sufficient energy to convey a moral. Invented as early back as the Odyssey, the return changed over time. During the Romantic period, the hero would retreat to nature in order to make sense of his life before returning to challenge civilized society once more (Reed, 216). Victorian writers often used the return as a traditional plot convenience. Something more is concerned in Braddon's novel though. The novel begins with George Talboys returning from a long journey in search of fortune. He is impatient to reunite with the wife he left many years ago. The expectation is clear: the husband returns, reunites with his wife, his joy should be great. Not so. Instead, he learns that his wife has recently died. Hence, the reader's emotions are wrung. This is an element that is important to both the mystery and the melodramatic aspects of Lady Audley's Secret.

Kalikoff, Beth. (1986). Murder and Moral Decay in Victorian Literature. Ann Arbor: UMI Research Press.

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Approximate Word count = 2581
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page double spaced)