The literary creations of Elizabeth Gaskell have had an irrefutable legacy that, from the mid-twentieth century, marked her out amongst critics as one of the most important and esteemed writers of the Victorian era. Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of her literary career was that she seemed to just fall into it at the age of 38. After the tragic death of her infant son William, her husband, also named William, suggested she start writing as a means of distraction from her grief. Thus, her first novel was conceived; Mary Barton. This novel showcased the main theme that her work became known for, and her name became synonymous with social commentary and particularly social grievances. Gaskell wrote from what she saw and experienced whilst living in a heavily industrialised Manchester during the 1840s. Although her novels often depicted the realities of decaying social conditions for the working classes, she blended this beautifully with wit and an engaging writing style. As an ardent advocate for equality, she took criticism of her writing on the chin and with understated elegance, as she once nonchalantly claimed “I know you despise me; allow me to say, it is because you do not understand me.”
Gaskell’s upbringing also had a profound effect on her depiction of women and how she interacted with the world around her. She was born in London, and her mother died when she was a young child which led her bewildered father to send her to live with her aunt in Knutsford, Cheshire. Here, Gaskell enjoyed a happy childhood and received an excellent education including Classics, and was well-read by the time she entered adulthood. As a result of this, she was bright and talented and took a keen interest in literature, particularly that of one of her idols, Jane Austen. After she married her husband William Gaskell, a prominent unitarian minister and charity worker, they settled in 84 Plymouth Grove in Manchester (incidentally very close to the University campus) and they began socialising in famous contemporary circles. She became very close friends with Charlotte Bronte and Charles Dickens. Many letters between Gaskell and the aforementioned writers still exist today and are housed at the John Rylands Library and in her residence at Plymouth Grove, which is now a museum dedicated to her life and can be visited by the public. Her second novel, Cranford, a fictional town based on Knutsford, is arguably her most famous. The episodic novel describes the everyday life of a group of middle to lower-class women during Victorian Britain, navigating the tightrope between keeping up appearances and abiding by the strict social customs of Victorian culture. Again, she adopts themes of social commentary alongside satirical and comedic flourishes which differentiated her work from being either entirely sociological research, or complete fiction.
Much like Gaskell herself, her characters and heroines are portrayed as very independent and headstrong, something which was not in accordance with how women were perceived at the time. They are often very family-orientated, as she was, however, they are not restricted to this domesticity because they socialise and travel and are in control of their own destiny, much like a man was. Therefore, Gaskell’s novels show a new and contrary view of Victorian womanhood, which challenged the social norms of the time and shows how Gaskell was a feminist ahead of her time.
She was also very highly regarded by her contemporaries. In 1855, Patrick Bronte asked her to write a biography of his daughter, esteemed writer and close friend Charlotte Bronte who had recently passed. Gaskell agreed to write her biography, which was published posthumously in 1857. To honour her legacy, Gaskell depicted a very romanticised saga of Bronte’s life, and left out many of the tragedies and scandals of her life that may have tarnished her reputation. Charlotte visited Gaskell’s house on Plymouth Grove on many occasions and was full of praise for her novels, hence why she was trusted to author her biography. Unfortunately, Gaskell died suddenly of a heart attack in 1865 aged 55, whilst away purchasing a house in Hampshire. Her unfinished book Wives and Daughters was published in early 1866, and is noted to be her most polished literary novel, with a strong focus on independent women at the centre of the storyline, going against the grain of societal standards.
To summarise the main themes in her writing; the revolution of class boundaries, the rapid industrialisation of Britain and the impact of this on working conditions for the people in cities, religion, and women’s issues in the Victorian era are the most prominent. It is important to remember that she wrote from what she saw and experienced living in Manchester, and that connection and humanitarian compassion resonates strongly in her novels. She presents women in an unapologetic and radical way, as being capable of engaging in all aspects of the public sphere, with integrity, poise and independence. Her work is undoubtedly seminal in influencing the later suffragette movement of the early twentieth century which had strong roots in Manchester with advocates such as Emmeline Pankhurst.
I would highly recommend visiting her house on Plymouth Grove where her legacy lives on, a 5-minute walk from Brunswick Park, and Knutsford where she is buried alongside her husband William, less than an hour from Manchester.