Elizabeth Gaskell: North And South

[Earnshaw]

I just finished Elizabeth Gaskell's North and South. It is one of the best stories I have come across. For those of you who love 19th c. Brit Lit, this one is a treasure.

The BBC adaptation was also splendid.

Is anyone as crazy about this book as I am?

 

[Stewart]

I read it at school since it was one of those texts pinned to the curriculum. I honestly can't remember a thing about it other than a tiny subplot about a character who is away at sea and doesn't really feature in the main story. But I bought it last year for a planned read of classics, although when that planned read is scheduled for I cannot say.

 

[Litany]

I preferred the BBC version. I found the book a bit of a boring struggle. Same with Wives and Daughters. Obviously they took a fair few liberties with the story, but they were mostly improvements. I think she could have done with a better editor, if indeed she had an editor at the time, to tidy up the story, but mostly it was her style of writing that did nothing for me and there's not a lot of editors that can fix that.

 

[silverseason]

I'm delighted to meet Elizabeth Gaskell enthusiasts. She was a contemporary of Dickens and with Charlotte Bronte. North and South is from the same period as Dickens' Hard Times and the contrast between the two books tells a lot about the authors. Also, just for fun, try Cranford, sketches of village life and its eccentrics.

One of the most moving biographies I have ever read is Gaskell's Life of Charlotte Bronte. Gaskell and Bronte knew each other and visited each other's families. After Bronte's death, Gaskell persuaded Bronte's father to let her write the Life. She interviewed Bronte's friends and had access to her letters, from which she quotes in the book. Later critics have picked at her emphases (no taste for family scandal), but how is that different from biographies today which have to reckon with family sensibilities? The Life is a warm-hearted book which gives an unforgettable picture of Charlotte Bronte the woman.

 

[Earnshaw]

I have to admit, the BBC version was better. Thank God for BBC.

Silverseason,

I will definately try Cranford. What you said about Gaskell's biography on Bronte was very interesting. (Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights rank pretty high among my favorites!)