The tenant of Wildfell Hall, by Anne Bronte and Mrs. Humphry Ward: Mary Augusta Ward ( 11 June 1851 - 24 March 1920)

ISBN-13: 9781533020598 / Angielski / Miękka / 2016 / 266 str.

Anne Bronte; Mrs Humphry Ward

Opis

The daughter of Patrick Bronte, a poor Irish clergyman in the Church of England, Anne Bronte lived most of her life with her family at the parish of Haworth on the Yorkshire moors. She also attended a boarding school in Mirfield between 1836 and 1837.The Tenant of Wildfell Hall is the second and final novel by the English author Anne Bronte. It was first published in 1848 under the pseudonym Acton Bell. Probably the most shocking of the Brontes' novels, it had an instant and phenomenal success, but after Anne's death her sister Charlotte prevented its re-publication.Her second and last novel, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, which is considered to be one of the first sustained feminist novels, appeared in 1848. The Tenant of Wildfell Hall is the second and final novel by the English author Anne Bronte. It was first published in 1848 under the pseudonym Acton Bell. Probably the most shocking of the Brontes' novels, it had an instant and phenomenal success, but after Anne's death her sister Charlotte prevented its re-publication. The novel is framed as a series of letters from Gilbert Markham to his friend and brother-in-law about the events leading to his meeting his wife. A mysterious young widow arrives at Wildfell Hall, an Elizabethan mansion which has been empty for many years, with her young son and servant. She lives there in strict seclusion under the assumed name Helen Graham and very soon finds herself the victim of local slander. Refusing to believe anything scandalous about her, Gilbert Markham, a young farmer, discovers her dark secrets. In her diary, Helen writes about her husband's physical and moral decline through alcohol, and the world of debauchery and cruelty from which she has fled. This novel of marital betrayal is set within a moral framework tempered by Anne's optimistic belief in universal salvation.The Tenant of Wildfell Hall is mainly considered to be one of the first sustained feminist novels. May Sinclair, in 1913, said that the slamming of Helen's bedroom door against her husband reverberated throughout Victorian England. In escaping her husband, Helen violates not only social conventions, but also English law.Part One (Chapters 1 to 15): Gilbert Markham narrates how a mysterious widow, Mrs Helen Graham, arrives at Wildfell Hall, a nearby mansion. A source of curiosity for the small community, the reticent Mrs Graham and her young son Arthur are slowly drawn into the social circles of the village. Initially Gilbert Markham casually courts Eliza Millward, despite his mother's belief that he can do better. His interest in Eliza wanes as he comes to know Mrs Graham. In retribution Eliza spreads (and perhaps creates) scandalous rumours about Helen. With gossip flying, Gilbert is led to believe that his friend Mr Lawrence is courting Mrs Graham.