Andrew Stodolny – The Brontë Sisters: Lives and Legacy

Charlotte, Emily and Anne Bronte form a remarkable English literary family. Daughters of a Yorkshire country parson, they overcame significant odds to become published authors. Building on the extraordinary talent they had developed as children, they seized control of their own destiny at a time when most women faced restricted lives predetermined by patriarchal societal expectations and lack of financial agency. Charlotte’s Jane Eyre was an overnight sensation when it was published in 1847 and remains much loved by readers today. Emily’s Wuthering Heights (1847) is one of the most iconic novels in English literature; it shocked contemporary critics and remains controversial to this day. In her later novels, Charlotte perceptively addressed the treatment and status of women in Shirley (1849), while in Villette (1853) she provided a window into inner consciousness, seen by some as a precursor to James Joyce’s Ulysses. Anne’s Agnes Grey (1847) gives social historians a valuable insight into the experiences of a governess; her second novel The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, is considered by many critics to be the first sustained feminist novel. This lecture will examine how the Brontes’ lives, personalities and experiences influenced their works, and the significance of where they lived and wrote, the village of Haworth, on the edge of the West Yorkshire Moors.

-----------------------------------------------------

On leaving school Andrew Stodolny was awarded an Exhibition scholarship to read Modern History at Oriel College Oxford. After graduating, he studied Education at the University of Exeter and entered the teaching profession. He taught in secondary schools in Devon and London before spending most of his career at Leeds Grammar School, a leading boys’ independent school, which has now merged with Leeds Girls High School to form the Grammar School at Leeds. He specialised in 19th century British and European History in the first part of his career, before becoming Head of Government and Politics. On retiring from his main career, his fascination with the Brontes and their works led to him volunteering at the Bronte Parsonage Museum in Haworth before joining the staff as an educator. He currently organises and presents talks and guided walks about the Brontes to visiting school, university and adult groups and conducts private tours of the house. His work covers the lives and works of all Bronte sisters and includes occasional comparative talks with the Elizabeth Gaskell House Museum in Manchester.