Elizabeth Gaskell

Of course as a lover of women's literature and of 19th century literature, I am a great fan of the Bronte sisters, especially Charlotte. But one of the benefits and joys of being privy to the 1970s "rediscovery" of many women authors was reading another great women author of that time period, Elizabeth Gaskell. Gaskell was quite well known during her own lifetime, but had been close to forgotten before this "rediscovery." She lived from 1810-1865, raised five children, knew many of the literary figures of the day such as Charles Dickens and John Ruskin, and - impressively - published several novels as well as many novellas, essays, and more. Her novels include "Mary Barton," which I taught in my women's literature classes because it was one of the few novels of that time period that portrayed poverty from a woman's point of view; "North and South"; "Wives and Daughters"; and my favorite, "Cranford." "Cranford" depicts a small village whose inhabitants are mostly older women. There is very little plot, but much about the small events of these women's daily lives. Gaskell is an excellent observer of human nature. She also gives us a touching picture of how these women formed a supportive community in which they looked out for and helped each other, without a lot of fuss and always preserving each other's dignity. BBC has adapted "Cranford" for television several times, most recently in 2007, starring the wonderful actors Judi Dench and Eileen Atkins. Gaskell is also known for her biography of her good friend Charlotte Bronte, a biography well worth reading still, even though later biographers have provided us with new information about Bronte.