English1816–1855Victorian · 1832–1901 →

Charlotte Brontë

“I am no bird; and no net ensnares me.”

The life

A clergyman's daughter from Haworth who taught, governessed, and outlived all five of her siblings. She published as Currer Bell and was accused of coarseness for writing a plain heroine.

She gave the first-person novel an interior voice that refuses to be flattered.

Gender Class Identity

Annotated here2 texts

NovelVictorian

Jane Eyre — Opening

Charlotte Brontë · 1847

A plain, poor governess who says exactly what she thinks.

Gentle · 3 minRead→

NovelVictorian

Villette

Charlotte Brontë · 1853

A plain, brilliant, furious woman makes a life on her own terms.

Demanding · Study guideExplore→