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A review by sarah1984
Agnes Grey, the Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Brontë
4.0
Really enjoyed Agnes Grey, the first story in this 2 in 1 book. It was surprisingly funny, especially some of the exchanges between Agnes and Rosalie and Agnes internal thoughts about Rosalie.
I don't understand why Bronte made such a production of hiding the locations in the book. She (or he, at the time) always said it was a work of fiction, why bother to hide the location if nothing in the story is real? For example Bronte writes that her father dies and her mother moves to the seaside town of A_____ to establish a school. Does anyone have a reasonable answer for why she writes it this way?
I'm currently about 3/4 of the way through the second story in the 2 in 1 book The Tenant of Wildfell Hall and the confusion continues in the way that she censors some of the (very slightly) coarse language and not other examples of it. In one instance she would write d__n (for damn) and in another she would write damned. What's the difference, why does one need to be censored and not the other? In fact I was surprised to find the use of the word damn (or any of its variations), censored or not, in the book at all. From previous books I've read set in the era (if not written in the era), I got the impression it would be practically illegal for a woman to use any form of swear word, let alone use it in a published novel.
I was surprised recently, when I learned how harsh Charlotte Bronte's criticism of both The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, and her sister in general, was, going so far as to prevent The Tenant of Wildfell Hall from being re-published after her death. Then when she died while on a trip to Scarborough with her sister, Charlotte decided not to have Annes' body taken back to be buried with the rest of the family in Haworth and had a very impersonal inscription written on her tombstone. I get the feeling that they weren't close, which is also surprising as I have read that their main contacts were with their own family, they hardly ever saw anyone outside of the household.
Have now finished The Tenant of Wildfell Hall and was pleasantly to find that I actually enjoyed it. Usually when I start to read a book written in a similar era to this one (late 1700s, 1800s or early 1900s) I go in with the only expectation that I'll find it 'interesting.' I was pleasantly surprised because I found I really enjoyed it. I had no trouble with the language, as I have had with previous books (Jane Eyre when I was younger, Persuasion within the last year et al). As most readers would probably agree, I had a bit of trouble sympathising with Helen regarding her husband, Arthur. Living in the current era I can't imagine putting up with Arthur's behaviour for so long and I certainly can't imagine going back to him while he is dying only to have him continue to verbally abuse me. I would have thrown the cooling washcloth at him and left him to his own devices, but then I'm as far from religiously motivated as you can imagine.
I don't understand why Bronte made such a production of hiding the locations in the book. She (or he, at the time) always said it was a work of fiction, why bother to hide the location if nothing in the story is real? For example Bronte writes that her father dies and her mother moves to the seaside town of A_____ to establish a school. Does anyone have a reasonable answer for why she writes it this way?
I'm currently about 3/4 of the way through the second story in the 2 in 1 book The Tenant of Wildfell Hall and the confusion continues in the way that she censors some of the (very slightly) coarse language and not other examples of it. In one instance she would write d__n (for damn) and in another she would write damned. What's the difference, why does one need to be censored and not the other? In fact I was surprised to find the use of the word damn (or any of its variations), censored or not, in the book at all. From previous books I've read set in the era (if not written in the era), I got the impression it would be practically illegal for a woman to use any form of swear word, let alone use it in a published novel.
I was surprised recently, when I learned how harsh Charlotte Bronte's criticism of both The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, and her sister in general, was, going so far as to prevent The Tenant of Wildfell Hall from being re-published after her death. Then when she died while on a trip to Scarborough with her sister, Charlotte decided not to have Annes' body taken back to be buried with the rest of the family in Haworth and had a very impersonal inscription written on her tombstone. I get the feeling that they weren't close, which is also surprising as I have read that their main contacts were with their own family, they hardly ever saw anyone outside of the household.
Have now finished The Tenant of Wildfell Hall and was pleasantly to find that I actually enjoyed it. Usually when I start to read a book written in a similar era to this one (late 1700s, 1800s or early 1900s) I go in with the only expectation that I'll find it 'interesting.' I was pleasantly surprised because I found I really enjoyed it. I had no trouble with the language, as I have had with previous books (Jane Eyre when I was younger, Persuasion within the last year et al). As most readers would probably agree, I had a bit of trouble sympathising with Helen regarding her husband, Arthur. Living in the current era I can't imagine putting up with Arthur's behaviour for so long and I certainly can't imagine going back to him while he is dying only to have him continue to verbally abuse me. I would have thrown the cooling washcloth at him and left him to his own devices, but then I'm as far from religiously motivated as you can imagine.