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The Letters of Charlotte Brontë
The Letters of Charlotte Bronte selects 280 letters from the more than one thousand letters in the original book. The selection principle mainly considers two 1. indicating Charlotte as a writer; 2. indicating Charlotte as a person. The latter focuses on expressing her ideas and also involves the major events in her life, her study, work, family, making friends, love and marriage.
Audio CD
First published January 1, 1979
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About the author
Charlotte Brontë
2,218 books19.2k followersCharlotte Brontë was an English novelist, the eldest out of the three famous Brontë sisters whose novels have become standards of English literature. See also Emily Brontë and Anne Brontë.
Charlotte Brontë was born in Thornton, Yorkshire, England, the third of six children, to Patrick Brontë (formerly "Patrick Brunty"), an Irish Anglican clergyman, and his wife, Maria Branwell. In April 1820 the family moved a few miles to Haworth, a remote town on the Yorkshire moors, where Patrick had been appointed Perpetual Curate. This is where the Brontë children would spend most of their lives. Maria Branwell Brontë died from what was thought to be cancer on 15 September 1821, leaving five daughters and a son to the care of her spinster sister Elizabeth Branwell, who moved to Yorkshire to help the family.
In August 1824 Charlotte, along with her sisters Emily, Maria, and Elizabeth, was sent to the Clergy Daughters' School at Cowan Bridge in Lancashire, a new school for the daughters of poor clergyman (which she would describe as Lowood School in Jane Eyre). The school was a horrific experience for the girls and conditions were appalling. They were regularly deprived of food, beaten by teachers and humiliated for the slightest error. The school was unheated and the pupils slept two to a bed for warmth. Seven pupils died in a typhus epidemic that swept the school and all four of the Brontë girls became very ill - Maria and Elizabeth dying of tuberculosis in 1825. Her experiences at the school deeply affected Brontë - her health never recovered and she immortalised the cruel and brutal treatment in her novel, Jane Eyre. Following the tragedy, their father withdrew his daughters from the school.
At home in Haworth Parsonage, Charlotte and the other surviving children — Branwell, Emily, and Anne — continued their ad-hoc education. In 1826 her father returned home with a box of toy soldiers for Branwell. They would prove the catalyst for the sisters' extraordinary creative development as they immediately set to creating lives and characters for the soldiers, inventing a world for them which the siblings called 'Angria'. The siblings became addicted to writing, creating stories, poetry and plays. Brontë later said that the reason for this burst of creativity was that:
'We were wholly dependent on ourselves and each other, on books and study, for the enjoyments and occupations of life. The highest stimulus, as well as the liveliest pleasure we had known from childhood upwards, lay in attempts at literary composition.'
After her father began to suffer from a lung disorder, Charlotte was again sent to school to complete her education at Roe Head school in Mirfield from 1831 to 1832, where she met her lifelong friends and correspondents, Ellen Nussey and Mary Taylor. During this period (1833), she wrote her novella The Green Dwarf under the name of Wellesley. The school was extremely small with only ten pupils meaning the top floor was completely unused and believed to be supposedly haunted by the ghost of a young lady dressed in silk. This story fascinated Brontë and inspired the figure of Mrs Rochester in Jane Eyre.
Brontë left the school after a few years, however she swiftly returned in 1835 to take up a position as a teacher, and used her wages to pay for Emily and Anne to be taught at the school. Teaching did not appeal to Brontë and in 1838 she left Roe Head to become a governess to the Sidgewick family -- partly from a sense of adventure and a desire to see the world, and partly from financial necessity.
Charlotte became pregnant soon after her wedding, but her health declined rapidly and, according to biographer Elizabeth Gaskell, she was attacked by "sensations of perpetual nausea and ever-recurring faintness." She died, with her unborn child, on 31 March 1855.
Charlotte Brontë was born in Thornton, Yorkshire, England, the third of six children, to Patrick Brontë (formerly "Patrick Brunty"), an Irish Anglican clergyman, and his wife, Maria Branwell. In April 1820 the family moved a few miles to Haworth, a remote town on the Yorkshire moors, where Patrick had been appointed Perpetual Curate. This is where the Brontë children would spend most of their lives. Maria Branwell Brontë died from what was thought to be cancer on 15 September 1821, leaving five daughters and a son to the care of her spinster sister Elizabeth Branwell, who moved to Yorkshire to help the family.
In August 1824 Charlotte, along with her sisters Emily, Maria, and Elizabeth, was sent to the Clergy Daughters' School at Cowan Bridge in Lancashire, a new school for the daughters of poor clergyman (which she would describe as Lowood School in Jane Eyre). The school was a horrific experience for the girls and conditions were appalling. They were regularly deprived of food, beaten by teachers and humiliated for the slightest error. The school was unheated and the pupils slept two to a bed for warmth. Seven pupils died in a typhus epidemic that swept the school and all four of the Brontë girls became very ill - Maria and Elizabeth dying of tuberculosis in 1825. Her experiences at the school deeply affected Brontë - her health never recovered and she immortalised the cruel and brutal treatment in her novel, Jane Eyre. Following the tragedy, their father withdrew his daughters from the school.
At home in Haworth Parsonage, Charlotte and the other surviving children — Branwell, Emily, and Anne — continued their ad-hoc education. In 1826 her father returned home with a box of toy soldiers for Branwell. They would prove the catalyst for the sisters' extraordinary creative development as they immediately set to creating lives and characters for the soldiers, inventing a world for them which the siblings called 'Angria'. The siblings became addicted to writing, creating stories, poetry and plays. Brontë later said that the reason for this burst of creativity was that:
'We were wholly dependent on ourselves and each other, on books and study, for the enjoyments and occupations of life. The highest stimulus, as well as the liveliest pleasure we had known from childhood upwards, lay in attempts at literary composition.'
After her father began to suffer from a lung disorder, Charlotte was again sent to school to complete her education at Roe Head school in Mirfield from 1831 to 1832, where she met her lifelong friends and correspondents, Ellen Nussey and Mary Taylor. During this period (1833), she wrote her novella The Green Dwarf under the name of Wellesley. The school was extremely small with only ten pupils meaning the top floor was completely unused and believed to be supposedly haunted by the ghost of a young lady dressed in silk. This story fascinated Brontë and inspired the figure of Mrs Rochester in Jane Eyre.
Brontë left the school after a few years, however she swiftly returned in 1835 to take up a position as a teacher, and used her wages to pay for Emily and Anne to be taught at the school. Teaching did not appeal to Brontë and in 1838 she left Roe Head to become a governess to the Sidgewick family -- partly from a sense of adventure and a desire to see the world, and partly from financial necessity.
Charlotte became pregnant soon after her wedding, but her health declined rapidly and, according to biographer Elizabeth Gaskell, she was attacked by "sensations of perpetual nausea and ever-recurring faintness." She died, with her unborn child, on 31 March 1855.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
December 6, 2013
This is one of the best books I've ever read. One can really get into the head of this brilliant author. How she suffered as a governess, how she suffered from the loss of her siblings. What she felt at the time when she wrote each novel made me read them again in a new light.
May 19, 2016
Delightful!
August 14, 2020
A favorite author deserves a closer look.
September 28, 2017
Up until this year I have failed to read any of the books by the Bronte sisters. I had the impression that they were romance novels and I am not a big fan of that genre. I have come to learn that the romance elements of the books is only a small part of the books -- and that these sisters were very modern, intelligent and strong women. They were feminists and they were rich in talent. The books are complex and intricate and beautiful, and the women fascinate me. So when I saw this recording on playster I immediately downloaded it and I am so glad that I did. These letters illustrate the love Charlotte had for both her family and her craft. They let me have a tiny glimpse into her personality. I only wish it were much longer.
December 17, 2020
This is a charming collection of Charlotte Bronte's letters, which exude her intelligence, humor, writing prowess, and love for her siblings. Reading something like this always makes me feel a little melancholy that women like Charlotte were born in a time when their options in life were much more limited.
“I am neither man nor woman. I come before you as an author only. It is the sole standard by which you have a right to judge me – the sole ground on which I accept your judgment.”
–Charlotte Bronte
“I am neither man nor woman. I come before you as an author only. It is the sole standard by which you have a right to judge me – the sole ground on which I accept your judgment.”
–Charlotte Bronte
December 12, 2017
.....AMAZING!
April 4, 2019
Three words: absolutely, completely brilliant
October 11, 2023
A lovely collection of letters. It would have been great to have a forward or epilogue about the author.
December 30, 2020
This is a dear little listen / read and is available on Spotify.
Her love and relationship with her sisters is so wonderful and ultimately heartbreaking.
Her love and relationship with her sisters is so wonderful and ultimately heartbreaking.
August 5, 2016
I picked this one up because Imogen Stubbs performed it. I had already listened to The Secret Diaries of Charlotte Bronte, or sort of did. I slept through the middle part, and can't remember it. Anyway, I thought I would give the letters a go, especially with Imogen reading them. I love Imogen, who's a British actress, that sadly doesn't do much TV or film, which made this find an extra special treat.
The combination of Imogen and Charlotte was magic. I was hanging on every word. She captured Charlotte's spunk and passion. I found that this time I was able to really connect with Charlotte, and so appreciate being able to see/hear her side of dealing with the business of writing. Loved all of it, even through her on going loss. Beautiful.
The combination of Imogen and Charlotte was magic. I was hanging on every word. She captured Charlotte's spunk and passion. I found that this time I was able to really connect with Charlotte, and so appreciate being able to see/hear her side of dealing with the business of writing. Loved all of it, even through her on going loss. Beautiful.
August 6, 2016
These are real letters from a real life, and by rights we really shouldn't be reading them. But I'm glad to have had the privilege. They restore a third dimension to a brilliant, playful, sharp-witted woman 160+ years gone.
Whatever her eventual place in history, and wherever you stand on her novels, the oldest Brontë's feelings of aimlessness, introspection, joy, grief and emotional uncertainty should feel comfortingly familiar to any reader.
Whatever her eventual place in history, and wherever you stand on her novels, the oldest Brontë's feelings of aimlessness, introspection, joy, grief and emotional uncertainty should feel comfortingly familiar to any reader.
March 8, 2015
Stars: 5
Wow this book was amazing. I gained more respect and love for Charlotte Bronte. If you love Jane Eyre or any of her other books is a must read. :)
Wow this book was amazing. I gained more respect and love for Charlotte Bronte. If you love Jane Eyre or any of her other books is a must read. :)
July 11, 2016
This collection is greatly abridged, but the letters that are there provide terrific insight into the author and the woman.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews