Given her conviction that the members of this multi-talented family were so tightly knit Juliet Barker wrote her life as of the family rather than of individual members.
She makes the point that for the best part of a century and a half until her 1994 publication we had relied on Mrs Gaskell’s biased and misleading depiction of the Haworth parsonage; the father Patrick Brontë; and the brother, Branwell, which, with compelling evidence, she largely debunks.
As is my wont, I will attempt to avoid spoilers, by not revealing too many details, although I do show many of the chapter headings from my Weidenfeld & Nicholson paperback edition of 1995, complete with the author’s prose beneath them. It is most significant that the eldest two of the six siblings did not reach adulthood, and why and how they did not. The four who did were all competent artists as well as exceptional writers.
After the early death of his wife and mother of the children, Patrick did his best to bring up the siblings with the help of their maternal aunt. Barker contends that he was a far more caring parent than the one described by Gaskell.
Our author bases her work on letters, publications, and reported conversations of friends, relatives, and witnesses contemporary with the family members. She balances differing views and claims, whereas she contends that Mrs Gaskell’s informants are largely biased or untrue.
Juliet Barker sets the scenes that would have been familiar to the Brontës themselves and compares them to locations in the 1990s. Thus, “the fell hand of the twentieth century has destroyed most of the Dewsbury that Patrick Brontë knew. Its once proud and separate identity has been lost, swallowed up in the vast and characterless urban sprawl which oozes southwards from Bradford and Leeds. Today, its most dominant feature is the road system – a Gordian knot of flyovers, dual carriageways and underpasses apparently designed to prevent anyone either entering or leaving the town. The shabby remains of late Victorian municipal splendour are dwarfed by the concrete stanchions of modern bridges. Semi-derelict mills, empty warehouses and demolition sites are a depressing foretaste of the town centre. Dewsbury is a town which has lost its way; having obliterated its past it gives the impression it has no confidence in its future. Yet in December 1809, when Patrick arrived, Dewsbury was a distinct entity, a town with a venerable history and a prosperous future in the boom years of the late nineteenth-century wool trade.”
The historical context is also pinpointed by such as the Luddites battle against machines in 1812, the Battle of Waterloo in 1815, the coming of the railway in the 1840s, and the Great Exhibition of 1851.
The three surviving sisters and their brother Branwell spent their childhood years writing what Barker terms juvenilia in which they played out their own relationships in their creations of characters which continued into their young adulthoods, and “the attraction of such piquantly shocking characteristics in their creations was that they were so alien to the conventionality of life at the parsonage.” The Duke of Wellington’s victory at Waterloo made him a hero in these works given the fictitious character name.
Barker presents many balanced extracts from her source materials, including their groundbreaking novels, interpreting how the juvenile fantasies and the lives of the three major writers influence their mature works. In particular she considers the many contemporary attempts to identify the originals of many of the characters.
Relationships with publishers and reviewers are explored. In particular how they affect individual family members and how such relationships ebb and flow over the years, especially in an age when communication was mostly by long distance letter writing and subject to misinterpretation. People could not make an appointment by telephone, text, or e-mail; rather they may travel miles to turn up on a doorstep where they may or may not be welcome – indeed they may be too late to attend a deathbed or may not have known someone was even ill.
These are the front and back covers of my copy of the book. The portrait of the three sisters is by Branwell who erased himself from the central space.
The title page illustration is by Emily;
these selected chapter headings. The gallery, where the individual artists are named, can be accessed by clicking on any one of the images.
I closed my posting of this review before we dined on Jackie’s wholesome shepherds pie, parsnips, mushrooms, carrots, broccoli, mange touts, garden peas, and spinach, with which she drank Diet Coke and I finished the Malbec.
It must be a really interesting book: thanks a lot for the reading suggestion, dear Derrick!
Much appreciated, Luisa
Truly my pleasure ❦❦❦
This has me imagining what life was like in those days for them, so very different than our “modern” lives in the 21st century…
Quite so, John. Thank you very much
You are welcome! 🙏🏻
Another excellent review, Derrick. Very even-handed and informative.
Thank you very much, Pat
Thank you for your outstanding and thorough review, and for the wonderful ‘scans’ … your interesting article has me totally absorbed during breakfast time … I haven,t fed Frankie yet … 🐶🤗🌏📘
Your reading sounds fascinating and your dinner absolutely divine!
Thank you very much, Donna
I hope you’re feeling a little better today.
I think I will try and get hold of this book. Since I reduced my computer hours, I am spending more time reading.
We had planned on another visit to Haworth next week during the half term, it’s only 45 minutes away. We’ve visited the area and the Parsonage many times, yet we go back time and time again.
Thank you very much, Sue. That is fascinating
The book sounds like a fascinating work of scholarship!
Thank you very much, Liz. It certainly is.
You’re welcome, Derrick.
Very informative post!
Thank you very much, Jan
How hard it must be to piece lives together that were lived so long ago. Letters, of course, help, but we do not always project our true selves in letters. Still, I’m sure that a gifted writer can get a sense of lives so different from ours. To be able to do this is an art form in itself.
Thank you very much, Laurie
Derrick, I usually read in the WP reader, but since I’m behind, I read directly from your blog page. That made it easier to read the posts that I’ve missed and also to read and “like” older posts. I enjoyed them one and all.
The story of the Brontes is fascinating. There must have been enough conflicting information for the writer to take on this thesis. It sounds like a good read.
I’m glad you’ve had another preventative procedure, but sorry about the dreadful day or two after. I also noted the use of walking sticks. Is this a new exercise program? I’ve been hearing a lot lately about walking sticks.
I’m always happy to hear about the fine meals prepared by Jackie or eaten in your quaint town. I also enjoying seeing what your bring back from the tip for the garden. xo
Thank you so much, Alys. My knees, already replaced are now so bad that I can only walk a few minutes without a walking aid of some sort. Becky and Ian gave me the poles for Christmas and they have made a big difference.
I’m sorry about the bum knees, Derrick. I have several friends who’ve gone through that, and though better, things are never quite the same. I imagine natural ageing and arthritis can also play a role. Its good to hear that the poles are enabling longer walks and I imagine they add a sense of security, similiar to a stair railing. It’s there if you meed it! I’m recovering from my third surgery in 15 years. Ageing is not for the faint of heart.XX
XX Yes -balance is a good part of it
Congrats on completing the reading of Barker’s biography and for the review! I was so intrigued by the extent and depth of this work, I had to learn more about Juliet Barker, a British historian and literary biographer. Impressive.
Thank you so much, Rosaliene
It certainly sounds a worthwhile read.
Congratulations on finishing this bio in such a timely manner!
A fabulous review!
Also, love the portrait and the other illustrations.
From little girl on up, I’ve always enjoyed biographies, autobiographies, memoirs, etc. I love learning about people’s lives and times, joys and challenges.
(((HUGS))) and hope you will feel better over the next few days. ❤️❤️
Thank you very much, Carolyn. Getting there XX
I think I read everything the Brontes ever wrote..What an amazing family.
Thanks very much, Judy
Quite an undertaking to both read this book and write such a balanced review, Derrick. I’m very tempted to give the book a try 🙂
Thank you so much, Sandra
I had two cousins. In fact I still have one of them, with directly opposing views on the Brontës. One, a successful academic in the scientific world who idolised the Brontës, the other a bus driver on the Haworth route who couldn’t understand all the fuss about some women who wrote books. Me, I’m somewhere in between. Having read many of the classics as a teenager I am in no hurry to re-read them.
Thank you very much, Quercus. This book was something of a revision exercise for me
I enjoyed it, but have to admit I was reading it to learn about civil unrest in the West Riding rather than a literary phenomenon.
I’m glad I mentioned that then
🙂
You’ve written another excellent review. It’s good to see a careful scholar has written such a fine study and corrected earlier misinformation. I imagine now other scholars have drawn on Barker’s careful work.
I don’t see how it could be ignored. Thank you very much, Merril. Your opinion means a lot to me.
You’re very welcome, Derrick. xx
I enjoyed your excellent review, Derrick!
Thank you so much, Lavinia
Sounds a fascinating read
Thanks very much, Sheree