The Hand of the Arch-Sinner: Two Angrian Chronicles of Branwell Brontë. A Reader's Edition

by Branwell Brontë, Robert G. Collins (Editor)

For almost 150 years, the writings of Branwell Brontë, the tragically self-destructive brother of Charlotte, Emily, and Anne, have remained largely inaccessible, scattered in incomplete manuscript form across the world's libraries and private collections. This is the first publication of two
of the longest of Branwell's surviving manuscripts, The Life of...Northangerland and Real Life in Verdopolis . A prolific writer, Branwell's work took the form of chronicles detailing the activities of his central character, Alexander Percy, revolutionary leader and ruthless statesman. These two
Angrian Chronicles , newly transcribed, reconstructed, and annotated under the editorship of Robert G. Collins, reveal the dramatic world of the Brontës' Angria, not from the more sentimentalized viewpoint of Charlotte, but focusing instead on the lawless and brutal society of Branwell's robber-king,
statesman and self-proclaimed Lucifer. The stories suggest a detailed psychological description of Branwell's own tragic life, and indicate a significant influence on the work of his more celebrated sisters. Read for its own narrative interest, its biographical relevance, and for the many ways in
which it reflects significant aspects of the novels his sisters later wrote, The Hand of the Arch-Sinner reveals an astonishing and neglected talent in the fourth Brontë.

Genres: Fiction

306 pages, Hardcover

First published May 27, 1993

About the author

Patrick Branwell Brontë (1817-1848) was a painter and poet. Born as the fourth of six children and the only son of Patrick Brontë & Maria Branwell Brontë and the brother of the writers Charlotte, Emily and Anne. Branwell Brontë was rigorously tutored at home by his father, and earned praise for his poetry and translations from the classics.

Reviews

[James Kelly]

This is an interesting volume but, alas, can only give a flavour of Branwell's writing as the editor, Robert Collins, had adapted the text and filled in blanks. As the originals are not reproduced, it is impossible to tell which lines belong to Branwell and which to Collins. Nevertheless, anyone interested in Branwell's writing could do worse than beginning here.

[Amber Elby]

This is probably the easiest to read of Branwell's juvenilia.