Concetti Chiave
- The Bronte sisters, Anne, Emily, and Charlotte, were educated at home by their father and later published significant novels in 1847 under pseudonyms.
- Charlotte Bronte's "Jane Eyre" was successful due to its blend of Romantic and Victorian themes, while her other works, "Shirley" and "Villette," followed later.
- Emily Bronte's "Wuthering Heights" was initially criticized for its complex narrative and dark themes but later gained recognition for its literary quality.
- "Wuthering Heights" uses a unique narrative structure with dual narrators and non-chronological storytelling, emphasizing themes like death as spiritual liberation.
- The novel presents a contrast between two families, reflecting differing characters and traditions, illustrating complementary yet opposing qualities.
Bronte sisters, their lives and novel
Anne, Emily and Charlotte Bronte were educated at home, by their father, Patrick Bronte, who had a very big influence on them. He was an Anglican clergyman who was assigned a parish church in Haworth, where his family moved from Thornton, in 1820.The next year Bronte’s mother, Maria Branwell, died of cancer and the ladies and their brother were grown by their aunt in an isolated village.
After their studies in Roe Head school in 1831 and their experience as tutors, each one of them published a novel in 1847: Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights and Agnes Grey.
They used pseudonyms, like many other female writers: Charlotte was Currer, Emily was Acton Bell and Anne was Ellis.
Only Jane Eyre was successful, maybe because Romantic elements such as nightmares, unknown past and origin, the presence of a Byronic hero, dark and gloomy atmosphere, unexplainable episodes are wisely mixed with Victorian themes like the orphan’s sufferings, the harshness of boarding schools, crave for independence, social class barriers and an happy ending.
These elements made the novel in line with the taste of times.
As a matter of fact, Charlotte wrote two other novels: Shirley in 1849 and Villette in 1853 but The Professor, which was her first novel but was rejected continuously, was published posthumous in 1857.
Charlotte died while pregnant with her first child in 1855 because of pneumonia while Emily died on December 1848 because of tuberculosis, one year before Anne’s death from the same illness as Emily’s.
Wuthering Heights’ narrative technique and themes
When the novel was firstly published (and this will be the one and only accomplished Emily’s novel), critics were annoyed both by its structure that was compared to a matryoshka doll and a cruel, brutal and exaggerated (in some parts) description of physical and mental deviance.As a matter of fact, it was thought that Wuthering Heights (whose toponyms in the reality is speculated to be the ruins of Top Withens or Sunderland Hall) was written by Charlotte Bronte as her fist and not so refined novel (in the same year she published her own real novel, Jane Eyre) but then the literary quality of Wuthering Heights was reevaluated starting from intellectuals like Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Matthew Arnold and George Henry Lewes.
Nowadays it is considered the best novel among the three sister’s works and it is also compared to the Shakespearian King Lear and Victor Hugo’s literary works.
Wuthering Heights’s narrative technique is very complex: it has two narrators, the first one is an outsider, and the other one is involved in the story.
The narration isn’t in chronological time, in fact it starts from the end of the story, and there are a lot of flashbacks.
One of the most important themes of the novel is death, and it is seen as a liberation of the spirit.
The novel is based upon contrast between the families: Wuthering Heights reflects the nature of Heathcliff, heavily influenced by the local traditions; Thrushcross Grange reflects Catherine’s character, full of respect and stability. Though opposed, they are complementary.
Domande da interrogazione
- How did the Bronte sisters' upbringing influence their literary careers?
- Why did the Bronte sisters use pseudonyms for their publications?
- What elements contributed to the success of Charlotte Bronte's "Jane Eyre"?
- How was "Wuthering Heights" initially received by critics, and how has its perception changed over time?
- What are the key narrative techniques and themes in "Wuthering Heights"?
The Bronte sisters were educated at home by their father, Patrick Bronte, an Anglican clergyman, which greatly influenced their literary pursuits. Their isolated upbringing in Haworth, after their mother's death, also contributed to their unique perspectives and themes in their novels.
The Bronte sisters used pseudonyms—Charlotte as Currer, Emily as Acton Bell, and Anne as Ellis—to publish their novels, a common practice among female writers of the time to avoid prejudice and ensure their works were taken seriously.
"Jane Eyre" was successful due to its blend of Romantic elements like nightmares and Byronic heroes with Victorian themes such as orphan struggles, social class barriers, and a happy ending, aligning well with the tastes of the time.
Initially, "Wuthering Heights" was criticized for its complex structure and brutal themes, but over time, its literary quality was reevaluated and is now considered the best among the Bronte sisters' works, comparable to Shakespeare and Victor Hugo.
"Wuthering Heights" employs a complex narrative technique with two narrators and non-chronological storytelling. Key themes include death as a spiritual liberation and the contrasting yet complementary nature of the families, Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange.
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