Cultural Reflections of Time and Space that Contradict a Legacy in Anne Brontë’s Poetry

Krisztina Kodó

doi:10.1515/culture-2020-0142

Abstract

Abstract This article looks at Anne Brontë’s poetic development within a span of 11 years from 1838 to 1849. The selected six poems – The North Wind (1838), Bluebell (1840), To… (1842), Night (1845), The Narrow Way (1848), and Last Lines (1849) – highlight different stages of artistic development and personal reflection which Anne called the “pillars of witness.” The aim of this article is to present arguments that perplex the myth that was created around her persona after her early death. The article will focus on a close analysis of the above-selected poems aimed at exploring the ways in which the legacy created around Anne Brontë distorts the author’s insightful cultural reflections about her era.

Highlights

Mid-nineteenth-century Victorian England was still firmly anchored in its traditional past while moving forward toward scientific and technological developments, state reforms, woman’s suffragette movements, and education and housing reforms and becoming “the empire on which the sun never sets” (“British Empire”)
To what extent did this expansionist mentality of the monarchy influence the worldview and lives of its average citizens? Within the monarchy itself, life in the country differed from the buzzing pace of metropolitan London and the other larger industrial towns like Manchester and Birmingham
This article aims to examine the cultural milieu of the Brontë sisters, with a particular focus on Anne Brontë (1820–1849), the youngest, who is mostly referred to as “quiet, ‘meek and mild,’ the most physically

Summary

Introduction

Mid-nineteenth-century Victorian England was still firmly anchored in its traditional past while moving forward toward scientific and technological developments, state reforms, woman’s suffragette movements, and education and housing reforms and becoming “the empire on which the sun never sets” (“British Empire”) This well-known saying alludes to the vast and extensive territories of the empire that spanned multiple geographical areas so that the sun always shone on its territory. The Yorkshire moors were the alternative to city dwelling, and they were where the Brontë children lived out much of their lives This was the natural scenery that inspired the novels and poems of the Brontë sisters in general; one should not forget that their experiences at school, abroad, work, and in family life are integral factors that influenced their work. This article aims to examine the cultural milieu of the Brontë sisters, with a particular focus on Anne Brontë (1820–1849), the youngest, who is mostly referred to as “quiet, ‘meek and mild,’ the most physically

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The Real Anne Brontë

Writing as a Personal Reflection

Findings

Conclusion