The Brontë Sisters and George Eliot: A Unity of Difference

233 Pages·1988·57.885 MB·English

by  Barbara Prentis (auth.)

The Bronte Sisters
and George Eliot
A Unity of Difference
Barbara Prentis
M
MACMILLAN
PRESS
©Barbara Prentis 1988
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1988 978-0-333-40711-0
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First published 1988
Published by
THE MACMILLAN PRESS LTD
Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 2XS
and London
Companies and representatives
throughout the world
Typeset by Wessex Typesetters
(Division of The Eastern Press Ltd)
Frome, Somerset
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
Prentis, Barbara
The Bronte sisters and George Eliot: a
unity of difference.
1. Eliot, George-Criticism and
interpretation 2. Bronte sisters
I. Title
823' .8 PR4688
ISBN 978-1-349-08504-0 ISBN 978-1-349-08502-6 (eBook)
DOl 10.1007/978-1-349-08502-6

Contents
Principal Dates vii
Acknowledgements X
Preface xi
Introduction: Some Connections 1
1 The Child and Young Person: in Life and in Literature 12
2 Matters of Belief: Religious and Ethical Attitudes 37
3 The Self and the World 67
4 Love and Sexuality 87
5 The Woman Question 116
6 Tragedy, Death and Eschatology 149
7 Conclusion 169
Abbreviations 182
Notes and References 185
Bibliography 209
Index 213
v

Principal Dates
THE BRONTES
1813 Maria Bronte born at Hartshead, Yorkshire. Baptised 23
April1814.
1815 8 February. Elizabeth Bronte born at Hartshead.
1816 21 April. Charlotte Bronte born at Thornton, Yorkshire.
1817 26 June. Patrick Branwell Bronte born at Thornton.
1818 30 July. Emily Jane Bronte born at Thornton.
1820 17 January. Anne Bronte born at Thornton.
25 February. Bronte family move to Haworth.
1821 15 September. Mrs Maria Bronte dies, aged 38.
Aunt Bran well assumes care of Bronte family at Haworth.
1824-25 The sisters, Maria and Elizabeth and Charlotte and Emily,
attend Cowan Bridge School.
1825 6 May. Maria Bronte dies, aged 11.
15 June. Elizabeth Bronte dies, aged 10.
Autumn. Charlotte and Emily return home from Cowan
Bridge School.
1831 January. Charlotte commences at Roe Head School.
1835 Charlotte becomes assistant to Miss Wooler at Roe Head
School.
Emily commences as pupil, but soon returns home. Anne
attends as pupil.
1836 Emily becomes teacher at Law Hill School, Southowram
(period uncertain, but possibly only six months).
1838 Charlotte leaves Roe Head School.
1839 April. Anne goes as governess to Ingham family of Blake
Hall, Mirfield.
May-July. Charlotte governess to Sidgwick family,
Stonegappe.
19 August. William Weightman becomes curate to the
Reverend Patrick Bronte.
1840 Anne leaves Blake Hall.
1841 March. Charlotte goes as governess to White family,
Rawdon.
Anne becomes governess to family of the Reverend
Edmund Robinson, Thorp Green.
vii
viii Principal Dates
1842 February. Charlotte and Emily become pupils at
Pensionnat Heger, Brussels.
6 September. William Weightman dies, aged 27.
29 October. Aunt Branwell dies.
November. Charlotte and Emily recalled from Brussels.
December. Branw ell goes as tutor to son of the Reverend
Edmund Robinson at Thorp Green.
1843 January. Charlotte returns to Brussels alone.
1844 January. Charlotte comes home for good.
The Reverend Arthur Nicholls appointed curate at
Haworth.
The Bronte sisters plan to open a school. Issue circulars.
No replies.
1845 June. Branwell dismissed from Thorp Green in disgrace.
Anne returns home with him.
1846 The sisters publish their poems.
Charlotte offers The Professor to publishers. Rejected.
1847 October. Publication of JE under pseudonym of Currer
Bell.
December. Emily and Anne publish WH and AG
respectively under pseudonyms of Ellis and Acton Bell.
1848 Anne publishes TTWH.
24 September. Branwell dies.
19 December. Emily dies, aged 30.
1849 28 May. Anne dies (at Scarborough), aged 29.
26 October. Charlotte publishes Shirley.
1853 28 January. Publication of Villette.
1854 29 June. Charlotte marries the Reverend Arthur Nicholls.
1855 31 March. Charlotte dies, aged nearly 39.
1857 March. Mrs Gaskell's Life of Charlotte Bronte published.
Charlotte's The Professor published posthumously.
1861 7 June. The Reverend Patrick Bronte dies, aged 85.
GEORGE ELIOT
1819 22 November. George Eliot born (Mary Ann Evans) at
South Farm, Arbury, near Nuneaton.
1824-36 Sent away to boarding schools.
1836 3 February. Death of Mrs Christiana Evans.
Principal Dates ix
1840 GE's first published work (a poem in the Christian
Observer).
1841 Meets the Brays, and reads Charles Hennell's An Inquiry
Concerning the Origin of Christianity.
1846 15 June. Publication of translation of Strauss's Das Leben
Jesu.
1850 Joins John Chapman in the editing of The Westminster
Review.
6 October. Meets George Henry Lewes for the first time.
1854 July. Publication of translation of Feuerbach's Das Wesen
des Christentums.
20 July. Goes on holiday abroad with Lewes as his wife.
1856 Commences writing of fiction under pseudonym of
George Eliot ('Amos Barton').
Publishes articles 'The Natural History of German Life'
and 'Silly Novels by Lady Novelists'.
1858 Publication of Scenes of Clerical Life.
1859 Publication of AB.
1860 Publication of The Mill.
1861 Publication of SM.
1863 Publication of Romola.
1866 Publication of FH.
1868 Publication of poem The Spanish Gypsy.
1870 Publication of poem The Legend of ]ubal.
1871-72 Publication of Middlemarch.
1876 Publication of DD.
1878 30 November. Death of Lewes.
1879 Publication of The Impressions ofTheophrastus Such.
1880 6 May GE marries John Cross.
22 December. GE dies.