Customer Reviews

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (Oxford World's Classics)

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Although Anne Bronte seems to be the least-known of the Bronte trio and only published two novels, this book has a more fascinating history to me than its more famous 'cousins', Wuthering Heights (Emily) and Jane Eyre (Charlotte). Not only was Wildfell the one to blow the lid on the male "Bell" pseudonyms the sisters had been writing under, but it's considered to be one of the world's first feminist novels, before that term existed. It was so controversial at the time of publication it was banned in many areas of Europe.

Written as one long letter - and a diary within a letter, like Kostova's The Historian - from protagonist Gilbert Markham to his brother-in-law on how he met his wife, Helen, most of the actual story is presented in diary form by Helen herself. Initially presented to the reader as a mysterious widow who arrives in a small English village (where she first meets Gilbert), she becomes, very much against her will, a source first of endless curiosity, and then a target of malicious gossip.

It then lays bare all of the shameful undercurrents of marriage in the Victorian age, particularly for a woman who was unwise or just unlucky enough to seriously misjudge the man she married. If you think it's a tough mistake to make now, only imagine its consequences in an age where divorce was rarely an option and you were almost always stuck with what you got, no matter how repugnant, immoral or tyrannical. Everything is here: adultery, alcoholism, abuse, alienation and humiliation.

At the time, Bronte was apparently skewered by hypocritical moralistic critics who felt she shouldn't have exposed this underbelly of Victorian society's mores - or more precisely, its lack of compassion or even recognition of what women were expected to endure. Helen's character, a religiously devout woman but also a fighter who refused to accept the worst of the abuses or allow her son to be corrupted, was lambasted as an evil influence on women and girls. It's gratifying to know that as history's hindsight and passage tells us now, this novel ended up going a long way towards shaking up 19th century morals and and bringing about the first stirrings of women's rights.

Like most Victorian novels it runs long and the modern reader might feel that it drags when compared to the quicker pacing of contemporary fiction, but I really enjoyed it and felt transported to another time.

**** slight spoilers. nothing drastic *******
This story is about a young lady of a good family in England 1827. Her name is Helen and her buyer's remorse after marrying for love. She ends up marrying a swine in Arthur Huntington. You can see Arthur H's in any bar or pub. The scenes of his abuse are well done. There are times when his wife, the main protagonist, is being abused by one of his friends and he sits back in drunken reverie, laughing foolishly.

The novel itself is told in the epistolatory style, meaning it is told in a series of letters. The effect comes off well and it comes off as if you're reading the private lives of someone, getting their most intimate thoughts. If you like that style, I recommend the very different but very well done dangerous liasons.

In the story, Helen's suffering is well portrayed. The reader gets a good sense of how and why she does what she does. Time and time again, I'm amazed at how resourceful and knowing she is for a woman of her age (early 20's I believe). But as she said to her illicit would be lover later on, young in years but old in tears. I can feel the cruelty of the world around her. It is as if everyone is perfectly conscious of her sufferings but no one dare acts (although this changes later, as you'll find out).

The other protagonist, Gilbert Markham, is sort of a pompous fool. At one point he nearly kills Helen's brother. He's spellbound by love, yes, but I got the feeling that he just wasn't the kind and gentle type that you want Helen to end up marrying. Luckily most of the book revolves around Helen who is far more interesting because of how she handles her problems and her sheer resourcefulness.

The reason why I closed the book and felt that I profited from it is because the imagery of the scenery and Helen's steadfastness in the face of such hardship impressed me. There's a point in the book where her hopes are literally shattered and burned up and yet she still carries on. An ordinary woman, with few friends and little to look forward to carrying on with life despite such serious setbacks. Now that to me is heroism. I'll take that over Batman or any other comic book hero any day.

Anne Bronte is often the forgotten sister among the Brontes. But she may be the most courageous in her writing. She weaves a tale of a woman who leaves her abusive husband, taking her child, and traveling to an unknown location to make her living by painting. This is unheard of in 19th century England. The wife, her children, and all her material goods belong to the husband who can do with them as he wishes. Anne Bronte is ahead of her time in saying that this is wrong and makes her heroine both courageous and compassionate. It is my favorite of the Bronte sisters' stories. If you haven't read it, I recommend it highly.

This is not my first time reading a Brönte novel. The Tenant of Wildfell was a gripping novel, rich in religion, duty, and morality. When I think of Helen, I think of her as the reflection of the moon in a lake at night. She, a beautiful glowing object of virtue (yet human in motives), amidst black evil; watery shallow souls. Her husband is her personal devil who constantly tries her and tempts her, which leads to Helen's separation from him (thus introducing us to Gilbert and his townsfolk). Brönte elegantly works the story backwards through Helen's journal; she gives it to Gilbert to read (doubtlessly because it is painful to speak about). As a teen, I feel sorry that my generation has Facebook, cell phones and texting, unable appreciate the deep, enrapturing literature that is so available to them. By the way, this is NOT a feminist novel (as Amazon puts on the tags for people writing a review for this). Beauty is abundant, but the fruit remains untouched. Please read this masterpiece.

Of all classic novels, this one is an all time favorite. Anne Bronte was a visionary of her time. This book was not originally published under Anne's name. Actually, readers did not know if the author was male or female. This is a book that can be read over and over again and different passages will connect with you. Highly recommend!

Anne Bronte wrote a book, the main purpose was to instruct. Firstly, she wanted to warn young women AGAINST attempting to "change" a dissolute, charming rogue (read: A real-life Heathcliff or Rochester) through their love and moral example. Secondly, she wanted to present an alternative to the different and not equal education for girls and boys. The toughest, and most needed, change in the late Regency - to - early Victorian England was the raising of the legal and financial status of women. Through it all, Anne's hope of a better, brighter future for men and women shines.

That said, this was the book which "tipped the hand" of the sisters' asexual psuedonyms. The women jump out of the pages in many dimensions; the men are largely two-dimensional foils (the exception being the wicked antihero, Arthur Huntingdon, Sr.). The author had to be a woman! Tsk, tsk tsk, the conventionally-moral reviewers said. Anne would be happy that many women who married a wastrel like Huntingdon found solace and understanding in her book.

This was despite that fact that Charlotte killed an authentic second edition from *her* larger, more influential publisher. Instead, an American edition, cut and rearranged to fit in a pocket size book, was the standard edition. TToWH suffered from the fact that there was no international copyright law in effect until the 1890s.

And then, in 1994 or -5, a hand-corrected "galley proof" (printer's rough draft) was located and authenticated. Finally, a version of the book very similar to what Anne intended, was printed -- and, in turn, birthed a good TV adaptation. Anne's book had sweet vindication.

Every ounce the creative literary genius that her sisters were, Anne Bronte is too often the unsung Bronte sister. `Agnes Grey' is certainly a solidly written work of Anne's, full of many interesting details to enjoy; but since I first found and read `The Tenant of Wildfell Hall' a number of years ago (in my search for all writings Bronte), I couldn't understand why that story of the mystery tenant wasn't every ounce the classic hit that `Jane Eyre' and `Wuthering Heights' had become. I don't mean to diminish the stellar writing styles and heights of either Charlotte or Emily Bronte, it's just that I simply cannot understand why Anne's equally marvelous writing has been so very overlooked, over time.

I realize that some of the `other' (what some might call lesser) Bronte works don't quite have the romantic punch of `Jane Eyre' and `Wuthering Heights', but `The Tenant of Wildfell Hall' surely does. (And a little tweaking by a good movie maker could make most Bronte works, work as romance dramas anyway.) Anne's `Tenant' tale is along the same lines as `Eyre' and `Wuthering', though perhaps not quite as melodramatic as those two classic stars by Charlotte and Emily. One thing that I find so compelling about `Tenant' is the realistic look at a substance-addicted selfish cheating abuser, and Anne writes that scenario as if she lived it closely and personally. (yes, her brother lived something like that kind of self-indulgent life and surely she drew from his sad example, and she did work around other people whom she might have drawn bad or good examples from, but she was a spinster who died young) Beyond the `gritty for those times' part of the story, there is enough of the romantic in `Tenant' to make any romantically inclined woman swoon. The `Tenant' has the romantic goods: the lady, her hero, and their true love story. `Tenant' has quickly become one of my top favorite novels, alongside `Eyre' (which has been a cherished favorite of mine for more than forty years) and several Jane Austen novels that are favorites to many women.

There is such amazing writing in most (if not all, as far as I can recall) the Bronte Novels: many sentences that I must stop to read at least twice because they are so perfectly done. Even though I'm much more wired to be focused on the character-driven details rather than anything that remotely approaches purple prose or flowery fiction; the Bronte sisters' descriptives that paint scenes with skillful choices of words, make me stop and repeat for at least the second read through. But then again, I reread many of the Bronte sisters sentences. I am often thoroughly amazed at their skill with the English language. And then there is French and German in some of their prose as well (perhaps only Charlotte and Emily's). Yes, beyond their innate creative genius, they were definitely well educated (primed for the higher class governess trade, or to teach in better schools). I can confidently say that all three of the Bronte sisters win my utmost admiration for their highest levels of literature, and Anne Bronte stands as a true equal to her sisters in her winning effort of `The Tenant of Wildfell Hall'.

`The Tenant of Wildfell Hall' audio book is a wonderful way to read the novel (in particular by Alex Jennings, who reads the first and last parts of the `Tenant' story: the narration of the main man - the hero in the story, as in letters of his `love story' to his friend and brother-in-law). The large mid-section of the story is not my favorite to read over and over again, likely for obvious reasons once you read it for yourself (it can become a bit depressing, you could say), but Jenny Agutter does fine with it. My own personal favorite parts of the audio book are the first and last sections when Alex Jennings is reading. I think that it takes at least a good actor to read fiction well, but from my relatively limited experience, I have found very few actor readers that read well enough that I want to listen over and over again. I have become a recent fan of well-done audio books, because it is an easy way to read favorite books in-between actually reading them yourself. When you can't read (the old fashioned way - or even an ebook on a tablet) for a variety of reasons (driving, working, exercising, resting your eyes, or, like me all too often: laying awake at night with crazy-making insomnia - too tired to do anything, including focusing for reading), it is great to be read to by a masterful reader. I have gradually chosen a number of favorite audio book readers (amazing actors whom I wish would read more of my favorite books so that I can just kick back and listen all my favorite books), and Alex Jennings is among the very top. His is a soothing voice that is pleasant to listen to anytime (even when on the edge of sleep but not quite crossing the sandman bridge to sleeping). Beyond his pleasing tonality, he possesses a genius for playing the different characters. As far as I have heard thus far, not many men can pull off numerous women convincingly and without distraction or irritation of any kind (and vice versa - it is perhaps even tougher for a woman to read the men characters without coming off sounding weirdly feminine or fake deep voiced). I seldom am able to suspend my disbelief when men read women and women read men, but there are a very few extremely talented readers who have been able to pull that off convincingly, and Alex Jennings is one of them. When Mr. Jennings is speaking for a woman, I tend to forget that a man is narrating, and he does numerous women equally well, while they are each still well differentiated - from the pleasant to the shrill. He also voices many men equally well, from youthful fellows to the love-interest hero, to cranky or daft old men as well. I can imagine that reading a novel with many characters is no small task, even for some of the best actors, and I dare say that it takes a certain genius to pull it off as well as he does.

Kerri Bennett Williamson, Author

In some ways, it's surprising that both this Bronte novel and sister are not as well known as the Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights and Charlote and Emily Bronte respectively. Social issues, including martial breakdown, alcoholism, adultery, divorce, women's rights, child custody,and comparison of Protestant sects such as Calvinism versus Universalism, are boldly confronted. Excellent character and setting development throughout the story provide another strong part to the story. This Oxford edition's note section also enhances understanding of the 1820-1840 era, with fascinating tidbits such as the new German dance, the waltz, was then viewed as amoral, while homemade ale was considered virtuous. One wonders how much is based on various actions of several Bronte family members. These components make The Tenant of Wildfell Hall a very worthwhile read. The only shortcoming is the long drawn portion near the end--very repetitous and tedious for about a 100 pages; otherwise this would be a 5 star novel.

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall - Anne Bronte
4stars
Audio version performed by Alex Jennings and Jenny Agutter

Published in 1848, Anne Bronte's second and final novel continues to provide powerful food for thought. I knew this book had been called an early feminist novel, so I was fascinated to find that she began telling the story in a male voice. It begins as a letter from Mr. Gilbert Markham to his brother-in-law and later shifts to diary entries written in the voice of Helen Graham Huntington. It is set between Regency and Victorian times and tells the grim story of Helen's marriage to the abusive, alcoholic Arthur Huntington.

This book was very interesting to me from an historical perspective. Anne Bronte defied the conventions of her time when she created Helen. She spoke openly of alcoholism and abuse. She gave her character the means to leave her husband while depicting just how precarious Helen's life becomes as a married woman living apart.

As a novel, I felt the book was uneven. The heavy religious overtones slowed the narrative. It was never completely clear to me why Helen had such limited options. It was hard to believe that she had sufficient backbone to leave her husband, but would not ever speak to her Aunt and Uncle about her situation. Most of all, there never seemed to be sufficient reason for the development of the romance between Gilbert and Helen. In a way, I felt that Anne Bronte gave Helen an acceptable husband in her book, but in reality she preferred to do without one herself.

This audio production was very well done. The structure of the book reminded me of The Woman in White. It was perfect for two readers. Jennings and Agutter gave believable, interesting, voices to Gilbert and Helen.

Very interesting "righteously" judgmental novel on being rich and alcoholic and proud of it vs. "it is well for me that I am doing my duty," said I, with a bitterness I could not repress, "for it is the only comfort I have; and the satisfaction of my own conscience, it seems, is the only reward I need look for!". Page 428. Actually, I agreed with the book on all counts. Alcoholism, money, patriarchal powered legal system, powerless women and children, and false morality can lead to officially sanctioned slavery and depravity and suffering under the name of Family Privacy and Christian Values. The problem with the book was every character and situation for 500 pages follow similar victims and victimizers. The outrage is legitimate, however the single note scream of agony is wearing on the nerves. I was happy to see there were nice guys and guys who became reformed, as well as depraved rich women among the depraved men. While Dickens provided some psychological pinnings for his characters, there was little background provided here other than that of Free Will or Choice once grown, though a strong case was made through little Arthur that teaching a child of three to swear, drink alcohol and partake of sexual games was the main reason for wild mean young men. Still, an interesting novel.