The Secret Diaries of Charlotte Brontë (51 page)
Read The Secret Diaries of Charlotte Brontë Online
Authors: Syrie James
Home it is not with me bright as of yore
Joys are forgot with me, taught to deplore
My home has ta’en its rest in an afflicted breast
That I have often pressed but—may
no more
.
Novels
Jane Eyre,
1847
Shirley,
1849
Villette,
1853
The Professor,
published posthumously, 1857
Published Poetry
Poems
by Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell, 1846
Early Writings
Listed chronologically; novelettes in italics. Most are tiny manuscripts composed in miniscule script, attributed to Charlotte’s pseudonym “Lord Charles Wellesley.”
There was once a little girl, c. 1826–8
The History of the Year, 1829
Two Romantic Tales: includes “A Romantic Tale” (The Twelve Adventurers) and “An Adventure in Ireland,” 1829
The Search After Happiness, 1829
The Adventures of Mon. Edouard de Crack, 1830
The Adventures of Ernest Alembert, 1830
An Interesting Passage in the Lives of Some Eminent Men of the Present Time, 1830
The Poetaster: A Drama in Two Volumes, 1830
Tales of the Islanders, 1829–1830
Young Men’s Magazine (including Blackwood’s Young Men’s Magazine), 1829–1830
Albion and Marina: A Tale, 1830
The African Queen’s Lament, 1830?
Something About Arthur,
1833
The Foundling: A Tale of our own Times,
1833
The Green Dwarf: A Tale of the Perfect Tense,
1833
The Secret and Lily Hart: Two Tales,
1833
A Leaf from an Unopened Volume, Or The Manuscript of An Unfortunate Author,
1834
High Life in Verdopolis, Or The Difficulties of Annexing a Suitable Title to a Work Practically Illustrated in Six Chapters,
1834
Corner Dishes, 1834
The Spell, An Extravaganza,
1834
My Angria and the Angrians, 1834
The Scrap Book: A Mingling of Many Things, 1835
Passing Events,
1836
Roe Head Journal (Fragments), 1836–1837
Julia,
1837
Mina Laury,
1838
Stancliffe’s Hotel,
1838
Henry Hastings,
1839
Caroline Vernon,
1839
Farewell to Angria,
1839
Unfinished Novels
Ashworth,
1841
Willie Ellin,
1853
Emma,
1853 (twenty-page fragment. The book was later finished by author Clare Boylan and released in 2003 under the title
Emma Brown
.)
Wuthering Heights
, by Emily Brontë, 1847
Agnes Grey
, by Anne Brontë, 1847
The Tenant of Wildfell Hall,
by Anne Brontë, 1848
The Secret Diaries of Charlotte Brontë
DISCUSSION POINTS
- Discuss the Brontë family dynamics. Describe Charlotte’s relationship with her sisters, Emily and Anne. Why was Charlotte so devoted to her father? How did her relationship with her brother Branwell evolve and change over the years, and what influence did he have on her life?
- What secrets did Charlotte and her siblings each keep, and why? Whose secret had the most devastating impact on the family? How did Charlotte’s secret affect her life and her work?
- Who are your favorite characters in the novel, and why? Who is your least favorite character?
- What are your favorite scenes in the novel? What was the saddest scene? The happiest? The most uplifting? Did any scene make you laugh or cry?
- Discuss Charlotte’s relationship with Mr. Nicholls. When does he begin to care for Charlotte? How does he quietly go about pursuing her? How does the author maintain romantic tension between the two? Do you think Mr. Nicholls changes and grows over the course of the story?
- In Chapter Five, Charlotte tells Ellen Nussey, “I am convinced I could never be a
clergyman’s
wife.” She lists the qualities she requires in a husband. How does Mr. Nicholls measure up to these expectations? What are his best and worst qualities? Why is Charlotte reluctant to accept Mr. Nicholls’s proposal? What does Charlotte learn about herself—and her husband—after she marries? Do you think he turns out to be the ideal match for her? - What impact did Charlotte’s experience at the Clergy Daughters’ School have on her life and her work? How different was her experience at Roe Head School? In what ways did it change her life?
- What was it about Monsieur Héger that endeared him to Charlotte, and made such a life-long impression on her? Why do you think he cut off all communication with her? Discuss the ways in which Charlotte’s experience in Brussels changed her, and influenced every one of her novels.
- Did hearing the story of Charlotte’s life in the first person enhance the reading experience for you? What are the benefits of telling this story from the main character’s perspective, rather than the third person? What are the limitations?
- How does Charlotte’s dream imagery serve the story?
- Discuss the ways in which the Brontës’ financial circumstances, unique childhood, education (or lack of it), and environment—living as the only educated family in a remote village, surrounded by the moors—affected their lives, their personalities, and their writing.
- Why were Emily, Charlotte, and Anne all so insistent on keeping their writing ambitions a secret? Why did they
choose an androgynous pseudonym? Once published, how did the reality compare to the dream for each of them? How did Charlotte’s life change when she was no longer able to “walk invisible”? - How did Charlotte feel about a woman’s role in Victorian England, when domesticity and motherhood were considered to be a sufficient emotional fulfillment for females? Would you consider Charlotte a feminist in today’s terms? Do you think Charlotte’s views affected her feelings about marriage?
- Strict laws at the time gave a husband ownership of his wife’s body, her property and wages, and custody of their children. Discuss other conditions in Victorian England, with regard to women—i.e., health, sanitation, food, travel, career opportunities, courtship, sex, and conventions of feminine beauty. How did they differ from our lives today? In what ways are things still the same? Given the choice, would you wish to live in Charlotte’s era?
- Branwell was initially considered the brightest artistic hope in the Brontë family. What personal, educational, and societal factors contributed to his demise? How did Charlotte’s feelings for Monsieur Héger affect her opinion of the way Branwell handled his affair with Mrs. Robinson?
- What examples of irony can you find in the story? For example, why is it ironic that Emily’s novel,
Wuthering Heights,
was so poorly received during her lifetime? Discuss the fates of Mr. Nicholls, Patrick Brontë, Charlotte, and her siblings; in what ways are they all ultimately both tragic and ironic? - Has
The Secret Diaries of Charlotte Brontë
changed your perception of Charlotte or the other people in her life? Did
you learn anything that surprised you? - Examine the many ways in which Charlotte dramatized her own life experiences in her novels. How many people, places, and events from her real life can you identify in
Jane Eyre
? In
Shirley
?
Villette? - Compare and contrast Charlotte Brontë and her fictional creation, Jane Eyre, in terms of physical appearance, personality, romantic sensibilities, and psychological desires. How successful is each woman in rising above the societal limitations placed upon her? Do they each ultimately remain true to themselves?
- How successfully does the author capture Charlotte Brontë’s voice? Did the novel inspire you to read or reread Charlotte’s works, or the works of her sisters?
I would like to acknowledge the following people, whose contributions have proven invaluable to me in the writing of this novel. First and foremost, I am indebted to my husband Bill, for his daily support of my chosen profession, which keeps me locked away at my computer for days on end, and then still wrapped in a creative fog for many hours after I finally resurface. A grateful thank you to my sons Ryan and Jeff, who stayed up reading into the wee hours of the morning to give me their valuable feedback and insight. (Thank you, Ryan, for pointing out the significance of Emily’s middle name!) Thanks to Yvonne Yao, for offering much-appreciated assistance at a time of need. Thanks to my agent Tamar Rydzinski, for her tireless support, and for always knowing exactly which paragraphs need to be cut. Thanks to my editor Lucia Macro, for her shared love of all things Brontë, and for reminding me to give the novel the focus it required; and to the entire staff at Avon, who always do such a great job with my books. Thanks to my eagle-eyed copyeditors, Sara and Bob Schwager, for their enthusiastic comments, and for meticulously double-checking every word of the text in their unequivocal quest to guarantee verisimilitude. Thanks to Ann Dinsdale, the Collections Manager at the Brontë Parsonage Museum, Haworth, for her kind welcome during my visit, and
for allowing me a private viewing of original letters, manuscripts, and other documents written by Charlotte and all the members of the Brontë family; and thanks to Sarah Laycock, the museum’s Library and Information Officer, for sharing all those wonderful details about Charlotte’s wedding dress, veil, ring, night-shirt, honeymoon dress, and other clothing, as well as providing me with comprehensive descriptions of a variety of garments in the museum collection. I wish to thank Steven Hughes, Chief Executive of Hollybank Trust, for graciously giving my husband and me an unforgettable, attic-to-cellar tour one rainy afternoon of the Hollybank School in Mirfield, West Yorkshire—the former Roe Head School, whose setting and original structure still, remarkably, look very much as they did in Charlotte’s day—and for sharing the stories of their resident ghost. I am greatly indebted to the works of many Brontë scholars, including Juliet Barker, Winifred Gérin, Christine Alexander, and Margaret Smith, and to both Smith and Clement Shorter for their edited editions of Charlotte Brontë’s letters, without which this novel could never have been written. I owe a great debt to the novels and poetry of the Brontë sisters, for the window they opened onto their world. And finally, perhaps most importantly, I am grateful to Charlotte Brontë herself, to whose extraordinary spirit and talents I strove to remain true; I do hope that she would have approved.
SYRIE JAMES
is the author of the best-selling novel
The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen
, which was named a Best First Novel of 2008 by
Library Journal
. A member of the Writers Guild of America, Syrie is also a screenwriter and lecturer. Syrie received a B.A. in English and Communications from the University of California, where she was awarded a departmental citation for outstanding accomplishment in English. Syrie lives with her husband and their two sons in Los Angeles. She welcomes visitors and messages at her website www.syriejames.com.
Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins author.
for
Syrie James
and
THE LOST MEMOIRS OF
Jane Austen
“Tantalizing, tender, and true to the Austen mythos.”
—
Library Journal
(*Starred Review* Best First Novels 2008)
“Witty, deft, and impeccably researched,
The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen
will pique the most jaded Austen palette…. So deftly done that it’s hard to tell where the history ends and invention begins.”
—Lauren Willig, author of
The Seduction of the Crimson Rose
“Utterly charming and remarkably authentic in creating Jane Austen’s voice, Syrie James’
The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen
made me want to pull out all my Jane Austen novels and read them again.”
—Deborah Crombie, author of
Where Memories Lie
“James stays in perfect pitch as Jane Austen in this vivacious fiction. Fans of romance will love it.”
—T. Jefferson Parker, author of
The Renegades
“If I hadn’t seen the word novel on its cover, I would have sworn this enchanting ‘memoir’ was the real thing. At last, the designated spinster wins an earthmoving kiss and all Jane-ites everywhere (and who isn’t?) get a delicious book.”
—Mameve Medwed, author of
Of Men and Their Mothers
“Deserves front-runner status in the saturated field of Austen fan-fiction and film.”
—
Kirkus Reviews
“James doesn’t disappoint—she is a fine story-teller, with a sensitive ear for the Austenian voice and a clear passion for research.”
—Joceline Bury,
Jane Austen’s Regency World
Magazine
“A new and provocative look at one of the world’s most beloved authors. This compelling novel should delight Austen fans far and wide.”
—John Shors, author of the bestselling
Beside a Burning Sea
