1. The Idealized City: The poem paints a picture of London, specifically the city's nighttime beauty. Tennyson uses evocative language to describe the "beautiful city" - a romanticized vision that stands in contrast to the harsh realities of Victorian urban life. This idealized view could be seen as a reflection of the Victorian fascination with the sublime and the beauty found in the midst of urban sprawl.
2. The Individual and the City: The poem's speaker contemplates his place within the city's vastness, feeling both overwhelmed and drawn to its power. This sense of personal insignificance within a larger, bustling urban environment was a common Victorian theme, reflecting the anxieties about individual identity in a rapidly changing world.
3. The Power of the Past: The poem also mentions historical figures like "Cæsar's legions" and "the King's high palace," reflecting the Victorian fascination with history and the weight of the past. This echoes the Victorian tendency to see themselves as inheritors of a grand tradition.
4. The Romantic Aesthetic: The poem's lyrical style and rich imagery reflect the Romantic literary tradition, which influenced Victorian literature. The focus on beauty, emotion, and the power of nature aligns with Romantic themes, even when applied to an urban setting.
5. The Melancholy Undercurrent: The poem's tone is tinged with a certain melancholy, a sense of longing and perhaps even isolation. This could be interpreted as a reflection of the Victorian anxieties about loneliness, alienation, and the spiritual cost of progress.
In summary: "Beautiful City" might not directly address specific Victorian issues like industrialization, poverty, or social inequality, but it does evoke a sense of the Victorian experience through its portrayal of the city as a place of both awe and unease, beauty and melancholy. The poem reflects the Victorian fascination with the past, the individual's relationship with the urban landscape, and the pervasive romantic sensibility that characterized the era.