The Life of Charlotte Bronte (Penguin Classics)

Most people associate the name Elizabeth Gaskell with the novel North and South. The fact that Mrs Gaskell was an excellent novelist is indisputable, however, this work proves she was also talented biographer. Vanity Fair's Thackerary wrote of Gaskell's biography "In the whole of English literature there is no book that can compare in wide-spread interest with "Life of Charlotte Bronte" by Mrs Gaskell." The book is certainly worthy of the praise, however, it is not without flaws.Gaskell's biography was the first biography to be written on Bronte with the consent of her father, Patrick Bronte. Although Mr Bronte consented to the biography due to the fact that Mrs Gaskell was a close friend of his daughter. Mr Bronte and Charlotte's husband decided it would be better for the public to read about Charlotte from someone who held Charlotte in such high esteem. However, the book was not without controversy.Gaskell somewhat embellished Mr Bronte's stern character and his treatment of his daughters and wife. Letters unpublished in this book prove Charlotte and her sisters loved their father dearly. Mr Bronte was quite astonished to read his cold demeanor towards his children.The strongest controversy came from other people, such as Lady Scott who threatened legal action due to Gaskell's mention of her affair with Charlotte's brother, Branwell. (The affair proved to be a total fabrication by the Bronte sisters.) William Carus, who founded the Clergy Daughters School at Cowan Bridge also expressed displeasure with the details of the school.Regardless of the controversy, the biography gives an excellent portrait of Charlotte the woman. If you are looking for information on the Heger affair in Brussels, look elsewhere. Mr Heger's name is nonexistant in this book. Very little information is provided about Charlotte's courtship with Arthur Bell Nicholls. The majority of the biography consists of letters either written by Charlotte or to Charlotte. What better way to learn about an author than from her own words?This biography not only describes Charlotte and her relationship with family and friends, but it also provides a wonderful portrayal of Haworth and the society that existed there before and after the Brontes arrived. Gaskell also describes Patrick Bronte's introduction to Charlotte's mother and many other descriptions of all Brontes from childhood to adulthood.While many may call Charlotte Bronte a brilliant novelist, her life was anything but brilliant. Charlotte grew up without a mother and also lost two older siblings at a young age. Charlotte had to assume the role of woman of the house at an early age. The beloved author of Jane Eyre lived a life of isolation a very little joy. As the years went by, she watched each of her siblings die one by one. Mrs Gaskell provided many letters which make Charlotte's grief come to life to today's readers.This biography is mostly a portrait of Charlotte the woman. There are few references to Charlotte the novelist. The introduction goes as far as to say that Mrs Gaskell did not particularly care for Charlotte's novels. The writing of this biography was not an easy task for Elizabeth Gaskell, who loved Charlotte so dearly. However, after her death, numerous articles appeared which urged the Brontes to write something to counter those who were attempting to tarnish the name of one who was so gentle and caring.

This is the first biography of Charlotte Bronte , which was written in the 19th Century. As with most 19th Century works, it does not read as easily as a contemporary one. It is packed densely with details; however, it is in those dense details, many from her own surviving letters, that we see a true portrait of Charlotte's personality. The beginning starts out slowly, with excruciating details about the region of North England in which she was raised. Although this section is tedious to plow through, it gives a background to the manners of life and history which shaped her. It helps explain why she lived such a quiet, secluded life. Also, unlike a modern author, Gaskell had a full understanding of the times because she lived in them. There are many excerpts from Charlotte's actual letters, so you are able to hear her personal voice. And through that voice, you also hear who her sisters were. You will not hear any speculation about unrequited, secret loves, but you will see the kind of person she was, up until her final hours. Anyone interested in a truly personal and historical perspective will treasure this book. The only reason I give it four out of five stars is because of some of the tedious details, especially at the beginning of the biography.

While the definitive overall Brontes biography is Juliet Barker's 'The Brontes', and the various Bronte-related works of Edward Chitham are invaluable in their own right, this still stands as an important contribution to understanding the Brontes, and Charlotte above all.Despite its flaws, and I agree with other reviewers, that this is a rather dark picture of events, Elizabeth wrote a detailed and very sympathetic account of Charlotte's life and her relationship to her family. Her inclusion of letter content, epecially in relation to Ellen Nussey, was somewhat self-edited, and the lack of references to the romantic friendship that so clearly existed between the two women, was probably Elizabeth's attempt to protect them.For anyone who is interested in the truth of their passionate relationship, I highly recommend Elaine Miller's detailed essay 'Through All Changes and Through All Chances' from the book Not A Passing Phase, compiled by the Lesbian History Group. The letter excerpts that Elaine includes clearly indicate that Charlotte and Ellen not only loved each other, but that they jointly expressed a long-term desire to live together 'until Death'.When Ellen Nussey wanted to publish her own 'The Story of the Brontes' which would have included many excerpts from the hundreds of letters that Charlotte had sent her, Arthur Nicholls blocked permission, as he owned copyright to the contents of the letters, even though Ellen owned the letters themselves. Nicholls - Charlotte's husband of only nine months - also destroyed all of the literally hundreds of letters from Ellen to Charlotte, and even tried to insist that Ellen destroy all of Charlotte's letters to her, during Charlotte's lifetime.Elizabeth is clearly no fan of Nicholls, but that is hardly surprising in view of his destruction of so much of Charlotte's personal writing material.For an insight into the lives of Charlotte and her family and the Haworth area in that time period, this is still and always will be an important book.

This classic biography of Charlotte Bronte is in turns inspiring and heartbreaking and gives a great sense of what an extraordinary person and writer Charlotte Bronte was. Elizabeth Gaskell's work is the first biography of Charlotte Bronte, and establishes many founding myths about the Bronte family. Gaskell knows how to write a great story, but it has taken later generations of biographers to correct some perceptions about the Brontes, and to reinstate information which Gaskell omitted for reasons of Victorian propriety and to avoid lawsuits. Altogether the book is a fascinating and important contribution to Victorian literary history.

Great account of Charlottes life, written in the 1850’s, you get a great feel for the time

This is a splendid biography and a true classic in its own right. Read it if you like Gaskell or Bronte or biography or all three.

One of my favourite works. I've read it a couple of times in the past and thoroughly enjoyed Elizabeth Gaskell's insight into the Bronte family. Also loved the picture she painted of Haworth and its people. Bought as a Christmas present for a young Australian friend who recently came over and visited Haworth. She loves it too.

Good book but not yet finished reading