Emilia Bronte: biography, date of birth, family, interesting facts from life. Roman E. Bronte "Wuthering Heights"

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Emilia Bronte (1818-1848) - English writer, famous for her single work. The fate of her novel Wuthering Heights, which was written in 1847, was not easy - only after the death of Emilia did it become a bestseller and almost at the same time was declared a masterpiece by both readers and literary critics. It was also considered innovative for its time.

Emilia Bronte is known today both as a poetess and as an author of short literary essays, but still much less so. Truly Brontë the novelist overshadowed her other talents. In addition, Emilia is also known as the sister of two other equally famous writer sisters: Charlotte Bronte and Ann Bronte.

This article provides a biography of Emilia Bronte. We will also talk about the circumstances of the family and personal life of the writer. About how the famous novel was written, about the facts of entering the "bigliterary scene" and its further fate, we will summarize.

Birthplace

So, the full name of the writer is Emilia (Emily) Jane Brontë. She was born into the family of a country priest in the summer of 1818 in the village of Thornton, West Yorkshire, England. The village was quite decent - 15 thousand people, streets and stone houses. In this place, in 1815, pastor Patrick Bronte received a parish and settled with his wife and two daughters at 74 Market Street. Patrick's other children Charlotte, Branwell, Emily and Ann were born in this house.

By the way, the classic, ordinary, unremarkable Yorkshire village of Thornton, thanks to this glorious family, has become a cult tourist attraction. No wonder: three famous English novelists were born here at once, as well as their brother, the artist and poet Patrick Branwell Bronte.

However, the family of Reverend Patrick Bronte did not live long in this house and soon moved to another, also Yorkshire village, Hoert. In both of these villages today there are houses-museums of the Bronte sisters, and both of these places, which is funny, are considered their homeland. However, it was in Hoert that the writer spent most of her life.

God knows how picturesque were the views from the windows of the rooms in which the little sisters and brother Bronte played - peat bogs and heather fields. And the family lived very poorly. After the birth of her sixth daughter, Ann, her mother died. And the heroine of our story was then only three years old.

Childhood

UnhappyPatrick, who himself, of course, was not able to cope with the children, had to send little Emily and Charlotte Brontë to school. It was a charity school for the daughters of the clergy in the nearby village of Cowan Bridge. The girls stayed there for some time, and when the epidemic broke out at the school, they had to move. Emily's two older sisters - Elizabeth and Maria - died from this disease, which could not but become a great emotional shock for the girl.

Emilia's further education and residence took place either in one of the other Yorkshire schools, Row Head (but she did not take root there and soon fell ill), or at home.

There was, however, another trip: in 1842, together with his sister Charlotte, they went to study in Brussels. After all, a young woman with an education at that time was destined for one road - to become a teacher or governess. But the strange girl Emilia, wild, uncomfortable in communication, closed, could not fully get used to this profession. After a bad experience, she soon returned to her father's house in Hoert, never to leave again.

Emilia's character

These and subsequent misfortunes of the Bronte family certainly affected the character of Emilia: according to many contemporaries, she was not distinguished by sociability, rather she was secretive, silent and prone to mysticism. In this, Emilia Bronte and her sister Charlotte were complete opposites - she, according to the recollections of many, was cheerful, energetic, sociable and loved to start all sorts of games.

Emilia was persistent andcourageous, albeit stubborn, character. She attended church only occasionally and did not go to church Sunday school at all when she was a child. Her best friends were books, and her closest sister was her younger Ann.

Charlotte Brontë told how Emilie was once bitten by a dog that was apparently rabid. Remaining completely calm, Emilia went to the kitchen and cauterized the bite wound with a red-hot iron. The same Charlotte characterized her sister with these words:

Stronger than a human, simpler than a child, her nature is to always be alone…

By the age of fifteen, Emilia Bronte had grown into an attractive, rather tall girl - after her father, she was the tallest in the family. One of Charlotte's friends described Emilia:

Emily was a tall, slender girl. Her hair lay naturally and very beautifully, although the curls were too tightly curled. The girl has very expressive eyes, but she constantly lowered them and tried not to look at you. The color of her eyes changed depending on her mood: it was either dark gray or blue. Emily spoke very little and was inseparable from her sister Ann.

Besides, Emilia, apparently, almost did not write letters (not a single one reached us) and was very fond of pets - many of her drawings of cats and dogs have been preserved.

Life

Emilia spent her time writing, doing housework and caring for her brother. Probably to say that it was not easy for her is to say nothing. Branwellgradually became an inveterate drunkard, in addition, he was a drug addict and used opium. His behavior was characterized by fits of rage and debauchery - naturally, life with him in the same house sometimes turned into a real hell. Gradually, he fell ill with tuberculosis and finally fell ill.

The personal life of Emilia Bronte was not destined not only to develop, but simply to arise - her circle was limited only by her family: an aging father, a drinking brother and a younger sister Ann, who also rarely left her native nest. Emilia Brontë had no children. Actually, like all young Brontës.

A separate portrait of Emilia Bronte has not come down to us - there is only a sketch made by Brother Branwell, in which he depicted his three sisters. She is in the middle in this picture. This is the only authentic image of her.

And of course we don't have a photo of writer Emilia Brontë. The art of photography was just in its infancy, so, alas, we cannot provide pictures of our heroine.

Death

Emilia looked after her brother until the very last day - in September 1848, Patrick Branwell died. At his funeral, Emilia caught a bad cold and also fell ill with consumption. Her death occurred already in December of the same year.

Emilia Bronte lived a very short life, in July she was only thirty years old. Not much survived her brother and sister and the youngest of the Bronte family - Ann. She died the following spring, 1849.

The Brontë sisters and brother lie together in the family vault in Hoert.

Literary experiments

Emilia began writing her first short stories and poems as a child, barely learning to read and write. In the early period of creativity, the girl, together with her younger sister Ann, invented and described the magical world of Gondal, composed poems for it. Unfortunately, the "Chronicles of Gondal", although it is known that they existed (they are mentioned in one of Ann's diary entries), have not survived to this day. There is evidence that for some reason they were destroyed after the death of Charlotte's younger sisters, but it is not known for certain.

1846 was marked by the release of the collection "Poems by Carrer, Ellis and Acton Bell" (after all, tradition did not allow women poets and writers into the world). It was a joint literary work of sisters and brother Brontë. The poems of Emilia Bronte in this collection were published under the name of Ellis Bell. They were praised by the literary critics of the time.

Although the poems were appreciated only because they were published under male pseudonyms. It is well known that at one time Charlotte Bronte was in correspondence with the poet of the Lake School, the famous Robert Southey. She sent him her poems and asked for his advice. The master answered her something like this:

…women are not made for literature and should not devote themselves to it. The more busy they are with their urgent duties, the less time they find for literature, even if it is a pleasant pastime and a means of self-education.

But along with romanticworks of Blake and Shelley, today's literature pays tribute to the poetry of Emilia Bronte - in particular, such poems as "The Prisoner", "Remembrance" and some others.

From the literary heritage of Emilia, we also know small essays written in Brussels, several so-called "diary papers", which were created in pair with those from her sister Ann.

As already mentioned, Emilia's correspondence was either lost (which is unlikely), or the girl did not like to write letters - but this in a purely epistolary era could only testify to the girl's dislike for communication. Only a couple of her very brief notes to a friend of Charlotte's named Ellen Nussie have survived.

Most of the surviving papers are now in the Bronte Sisters Museum.

Romance

In 1847, Emilia Brontë decided to publish Wuthering Heights. Of course, he came out under the male pseudonym - Ellis Bell. However, the first edition of the book was not successful - only two copies were sold. Yes, and criticism of the novel did not praise at all. So Emilia had reason to be upset.

And only a few years later, when Emilia was no more, Charlotte Bronte, being a famous writer, took up this seemingly hopeless enterprise again - she published her sister's novel, but under her real name. And this time, the book of Emilia Bronte instantly gained popularity, and later became one of the classic examples of English literature.

True, there was a smallan incident that once again proves how unfairly fate de alt with Emilia. The fact is that initially the authorship (perhaps by the intention of the publishers) was attributed to Charlotte herself, whose famous novel "Jane Eyre" had already been released by that time and became a favorite of the public. So Charlotte then had to prove the authorship of Emilia Bronte.

The work has caused and still causes a wide variety of opinions among connoisseurs of literature and ordinary readers. Due to the general painful atmosphere, the novel was called a "devil's book" and "an unthinkable monster", although, in fact, all the actions and passions of the heroes are the result not so much of their whims as of the incredible, almost in the ancient Greek spirit, tragedy and evil fate that hover over them.

English essayist, art critic and main ideologist of aestheticism W alter Pater noted that in "Wuthering Heights" by Emilia Bronte

…the spirit of romanticism found its true embodiment in the Yorkshire moors… Hareton Earnshaw, Katherine Linton and Heathcliff, who digs up Catherine's grave and breaks open the side of her coffin to truly rest beside her in death, these figures, filled with such passions, but woven against the backdrop of the discreet beauty of the heather expanses, they are typical examples of the spirit of romanticism.

Storyline

Emilia Brontë's "Wuthering Heights" summary is rather verbose, mainly due to the large number of characters and the many ups and downs of their relationships and life circumstances.

The work tells about the fate of two families from Yorkshire - Linton and Earnshaw. Their story is told by a young stranger, Lockwood, who stayed at Starling Grange and visited nearby Wuthering Heights.

Charlotte Brontë noted in her sister's novel the "terrifying, great gloom" that was the basis that permeated the entire work about the Lintons and Earnshaw and their "evil genius" Heathcliffe. Of course, this novel was still fully Gothic, albeit with reservations, as literary critics of that time noted.

The novel "Wuthering Heights" is about love, but about tragic love. The daughter of the eldest Earnshaw Catherine and Heathcliff are connected by a special kind of love feeling - this is a demonic, rebellious passion, an obsession. But on earth, this feeling cannot prevail, and lovers are united only after death.

Key characters

The novel's central figure is Heathcliff, a true type of so-called Byronic hero. Once upon a time, the old owner of the Wuthering Heights estate, Mr. Earnshaw, picked up a boy freezing in the street and saved him from hunger.

Heathkilff is a very sinister character, and his origin is shrouded in mystery, and this mystery remains unsolved until the end of the book.

According to the text, Heathcliff has a gypsy appearance - he is brunette with dark skin and dark hair.

As a child, he was most friendly with the daughter of the eldest Earnshaw - Katherine. Then they fell in love with each other. Moreover, Heathcliff's love was of a special kind - he was obsessedCatherine. His character, like the temper of an evil genius, is cruel and vengeful. Heathcliff's wife Isabella in the novel even asks: is he really a man?

Katherine Earnshaw is a girl whose character is characterized by independence and love of freedom, as well as selfishness and spoiledness. She loved Heathcliff very much, but, thanks to the prudence, which she also has, considered him not a suitable candidate for a prosperous future. Heathcliff has not received a suitable education, he has no weight in society, and besides, he is poor. So Katherine married Edgar Linton, one of her friends. She has a secret hope that her marriage will help poor Heathcliff achieve something in life, somehow move forward. However, her plans are not destined to come true: her husband and lover hate each other. Moreover, this obvious hatred affects her so strongly that, being already pregnant, she falls ill, goes crazy and, in the end, dies.

Edgar Earnshaw. This is a calm, devoid of such a stormy temperament as Katherine, a gentle and patient person. He bears his wife's outbursts of discontent and the rudeness of her character. Sometimes it seems to Katherine that Edgar is completely unable to defend his position under the pressure of Heathcliff. In the course of events, Edgar Earnshaw proves himself to be an excellent father and a noble person.

Isabella Earnshaw is a young lady in love with Heathcliff. She is attractive, elegant and graceful. And completely reckless. True, having gone with Heathcliff to Wuthering Heights, she soon realized what gloomy prospects her life together with thisman, and fled from her husband to London. There she gave birth to a son and soon died.

Katherine has a brother. His name is Hindley Earnshaw. From childhood, he was jealous of his own father, the owner of the estate, to the foundling Heathcliff who grew up in the family. Hindley suspected that the elder Earnshaw was paying too much attention to him, forgetting about his children. After the death of his father, he shows his hatred to the fullest. Let him - and Heathcliff could get a good education, and there, you see, Catherine would have looked differently at an alliance with him. But Hindley couldn't let that happen.

In the course of events, this character successfully married and is quite happy in marriage. But suddenly his wife fell ill and died of consumption, and Hindley took to drink. One day he sat down at a card table and lost Wuthering Heights, which he inherited, to Heathcliff.

Ellen Dean (Nellie). This is the housekeeper in the house on the Starling Manor. It is she who tells the whole story to Lockwood, because not only was she an eyewitness, but she herself grew up in the Earnshaw house, next to Heathcliff and Catherine - the main characters of this story.

The fate of the novel

Wuthering Heights is one of the most popular works of English literature. The novel has been filmed many times, including by such directors as Luis Buñuel and Jacques Rivette. Wuthering Heights remains the top romance of all time, according to the latest UK TV poll.

Most often, which is understandable, the directors take for the screen incarnation. just part of the novel. Still a classic role modelHeathcliff is the work of Laurence Olivier, brilliantly performed in 1939.

The last film adaptation took place relatively recently - in 2011. It was carried out by one of the British film studios. The role of Heathcliff this time went to a black actor.

In 1978, the British singer-songwriter, who works at the intersection of pop music and rock, recorded the song Wuthering Heights ("Wuthering Heights"). The song was written by 19-year-old Kate, influenced by the impressions left after watching the movie of the same name (1939).

The interest in the novel multiplied when the American writer Stephenie Meyer admitted in an interview that some of the motifs from Wuthering Heights were used by her when writing her famous Twilight. In addition, the novel was mentioned by her as the favorite book of Bella and Edward, the main characters of the vampire saga.

Books by Emilia Brontë still continue their successful march around the world. In world literature, there are many "continuations" of destinies and branches of storylines written by various, including modern novelists.