It is interesting to note that most contemporaries associate theories of evolution with Darwin, when there were others who were talking about evolution and natural selection before him. This is especially important to point for a discussion of "In Memoriam" because Darwin's On the Origin of Species was actually published nine years after Tennyson's poem. Before Darwin's book the more prevalent texts on theories of evolution--both human and the world--were Charles Lyell's Principles of Geology and Robert Chambers Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation.

Christina Rosetti’s poem “Goblin Market” can be linked to the opium and laudanum addictions of the Victorian era. Laudanum, an opium derivative, was sold in common markets to all members of the public, often alongside products such as fruits and vegetables. Laudanum was endorsed by doctors as a miracle cure for nearly all ills. However, there was a growing awareness also in the medical profession of the addictive nature of the drug.

Motivation to change comes through many means. In regards to political and social change, it comes with not only resistance but polarized opposition. There is evidence of this throughout history. Today, people arguably have more social liberties than ever before. However, people continue to fight for more freedoms as they have for centuries. In Victorian England, power between the monarchy, the prime minister, parliament, and the people was still trying to find balance.

Post-colonialism refers to the effects on any given culture after their civilization has been colonized by a separate cultural group. Throughout history, England has been known to colonize many parts of the world in order to benefit from unique resources. In the Victorian era, England had few rivals and insignificant competition for maintaining strongholds in many parts of the world since Napoleon had been defeated. England held land and processed resources as if it were part of England in parts of Europe, Asia, Australia, and the Americas.

In Vicotrian era Britain, people were coming to recognize the importance of science and psychology. Though England at the time was filled with deep thinkers, writers, and philosophers, only a few pioneers began to dedcate themselves to the study and observation of the sciences.George Henry Lewes was one such man who began as a philosopher who developed theorys regarding people's health, specifically, thier mental health. Throughout the early part of the Nineteenth-Century, Lewesbegan tests and studies using live animals to experiment nervous systems and refelxes.