Elizabeth Gaskell (full name Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell) was born on September 29, 1810 in London, England. She was an English novelist and short story writer during the Victorian era best known for her biography of
Charlotte Bronte.
Biography and Career :
Her mother's name was Eliza Holland and she passed away when Elizabeth was a child. Her father, William Stevenson, was a Unitarian minister, a writer and remarried after his wife's death.
Elizabeth spent most of her childhood in Knutsford with an aunt, Mrs. Lumb, but also spent some time in Newcastle upon Tyne and Edinburgh.
In 1832 she married William Gaskell, the minister at Cross Street Unitarian Chapel in Manchester, who also had a literary
career. They decided to live in Manchester.
Elizabeth Gaskell was known as Mrs. Gaskell. She met Charlotte Bronte in 1850 and had a great friendship. After Charlotte's death her friend wrote his biography.
She was conscientious, sociable and had a special sense of worse and good. Even if she was an orphan and suffered many losses she thought in a positive way, had energy and was a good wife and mother.
"Mary Barton" was her first novel published in 1848 and in "North and South" (published in 1855) she described her life. The pain that comes-out from her novels is touching. They say Gaskell wrote the novels advised by her husband because he was worried for her. Their son passed away when he was only ten months. He wasn't the only child, the family also had four daughters.
"Ruth" written in 1853 had a theme considered scandalous at that time: the awake of human conscience in front of prostitute.
All of her works were written in a professional way and for money, that's why the author said: "I don't think I cared about literary fame, I don't even think it's something you should ever care about. It comes and the disappears…".
Elizabeth Gaskell died on the 22nd of November 1865 in Hampshire, England, United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Ireland, at the age of 55.
Important Works :
1848 "Mary Barton"
1853 "Cranford"
1853 "Ruth"
1855 "North and South"
1857 "The Life of Charlotte Bronte"
1865 "Wives and Daughters"
Elizabeth Gaskell Image : zam.it
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