Product Description Combining a sensational story of a man's physical and moral decline through alcohol, a study of marital breakdown, a disquisition on the care and upbringing of children, and a hard-hitting critique of the position of women in Victorian society, this passionate tale of betrayal is set within a stern moral framework tempered by Anne Brontë's optimistic belief in universal redemption. It tells the story of the estranged wife of a dissolute rake, desperate to protect her son from his destructive influence, in full flight from a shocking world of debauchery and cruelty. Drawing on her first-hand experiences with her brother Branwell, Brontë's novel scandalized contemporary readers and still retains its power to shock today. The new introduction by Josephine McDonagh sheds light on the intellectual and cultural context of the novel, its complex narrative structure, and the contemporary moral and medical debates about alcohol and the body with which the novel engages. Based on the authoritative Clarendon text, the book has an improved chronology, an up-to-date bibliography, and many informative notes.
Customer Reviews: Historically significant as well as a good read!September 11, 2009 K. A. Kegley(Little Elm, TX United States) 7 out of 7 found this review helpful
Although Anne Bronte seems to be the least-known of the Bronte trio and only published two novels, this book has a more fascinating history to me than its more famous 'cousins', Wuthering Heights (Emily) and Jane Eyre (Charlotte). Not only was Wildfell the one to blow the lid on the male "Bell" pseudonyms the sisters had been writing under, but it's considered to be one of the world's first feminist novels, before that term existed. It was so controversial at the time of publication it was banned in many areas of Europe.
Written as one long letter - and a diary within a letter, like Kostova's The Historian - from protagonist Gilbert Markham to his brother-in-law on how he met his wife, Helen, most of the actual story is presented in diary form by Helen herself. Initially presented to the reader as a mysterious widow who arrives in a small English village (where she first meets Gilbert), she becomes, very much against her will, a source first of endless curiosity, and then a target of malicious gossip.
It then lays bare all of the shameful undercurrents of marriage in the Victorian age, particularly for a woman who was unwise or just unlucky enough to seriously misjudge the man she married. If you think it's a tough mistake to make now, only imagine its consequences in an age where divorce was rarely an option and you were almost always stuck with what you got, no matter how repugnant, immoral or tyrannical. Everything is here: adultery, alcoholism, abuse, alienation and humiliation.
At the time, Bronte was apparently skewered by hypocritical moralistic critics who felt she shouldn't have exposed this underbelly of Victorian society's mores - or more precisely, its lack of compassion or even recognition of what women were expected to endure. Helen's character, a religiously devout woman but also a fighter who refused to accept the worst of the abuses or allow her son to be corrupted, was lambasted as an evil influence on women and girls. It's gratifying to know that as history's hindsight and passage tells us now, this novel ended up going a long way towards shaking up 19th century morals and and bringing about the first stirrings of women's rights.
Like most Victorian novels it runs long and the modern reader might feel that it drags when compared to the quicker pacing of contemporary fiction, but I really enjoyed it and felt transported to another time.
"Oh Helen, if I had listened to you, it never would have come to this!"December 4, 2009 starry79(Korea) 4 out of 4 found this review helpful
**** slight spoilers. nothing drastic *******
This story is about a young lady of a good family in England 1827. Her name is Helen and her buyer's remorse after marrying for love. She ends up marrying a swine in Arthur Huntington. You can see Arthur H's in any bar or pub. The scenes of his abuse are well done. There are times when his wife, the main protagonist, is being abused by one of his friends and he sits back in drunken reverie, laughing foolishly.
The novel itself is told in the epistolatory style, meaning it is told in a series of letters. The effect comes off well and it comes off as if you're reading the private lives of someone, getting their most intimate thoughts. If you like that style, I recommend the very different but very well done dangerous liasons.
In the story, Helen's suffering is well portrayed. The reader gets a good sense of how and why she does what she does. Time and time again, I'm amazed at how resourceful and knowing she is for a woman of her age (early 20's I believe). But as she said to her illicit would be lover later on, young in years but old in tears. I can feel the cruelty of the world around her. It is as if everyone is perfectly conscious of her sufferings but no one dare acts (although this changes later, as you'll find out).
The other protagonist, Gilbert Markham, is sort of a pompous fool. At one point he nearly kills Helen's brother. He's spellbound by love, yes, but I got the feeling that he just wasn't the kind and gentle type that you want Helen to end up marrying. Luckily most of the book revolves around Helen who is far more interesting because of how she handles her problems and her sheer resourcefulness.
The reason why I closed the book and felt that I profited from it is because the imagery of the scenery and Helen's steadfastness in the face of such hardship impressed me. There's a point in the book where her hopes are literally shattered and burned up and yet she still carries on. An ordinary woman, with few friends and little to look forward to carrying on with life despite such serious setbacks. Now that to me is heroism. I'll take that over Batman or any other comic book hero any day.
Shocking and Sadly timelySeptember 1, 2009 A. M. Wagner(AZ USA) 2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Anne Bronte wrote a book, the main purpose was to instruct. Firstly, she wanted to warn young women AGAINST attempting to "change" a dissolute, charming rogue (read: A real-life Heathcliff or Rochester) through their love and moral example. Secondly, she wanted to present an alternative to the different and not equal education for girls and boys. The toughest, and most needed, change in the late Regency - to - early Victorian England was the raising of the legal and financial status of women. Through it all, Anne's hope of a better, brighter future for men and women shines.
That said, this was the book which "tipped the hand" of the sisters' asexual psuedonyms. The women jump out of the pages in many dimensions; the men are largely two-dimensional foils (the exception being the wicked antihero, Arthur Huntingdon, Sr.). The author had to be a woman! Tsk, tsk tsk, the conventionally-moral reviewers said. Anne would be happy that many women who married a wastrel like Huntingdon found solace and understanding in her book.
This was despite that fact that Charlotte killed an authentic second edition from *her* larger, more influential publisher. Instead, an American edition, cut and rearranged to fit in a pocket size book, was the standard edition. TToWH suffered from the fact that there was no international copyright law in effect until the 1890s.
And then, in 1994 or -5, a hand-corrected "galley proof" (printer's rough draft) was located and authenticated. Finally, a version of the book very similar to what Anne intended, was printed -- and, in turn, birthed a good TV adaptation. Anne's book had sweet vindication.
historically interesting presentationFebruary 22, 2010 Pamela J. Murphy(Vancouver, Washington) In some ways, it's surprising that both this Bronte novel and sister are not as well known as the Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights and Charlote and Emily Bronte respectively. Social issues, including martial breakdown, alcoholism, adultery, divorce, women's rights, child custody,and comparison of Protestant sects such as Calvinism versus Universalism, are boldly confronted. Excellent character and setting development throughout the story provide another strong part to the story. This Oxford edition's note section also enhances understanding of the 1820-1840 era, with fascinating tidbits such as the new German dance, the waltz, was then viewed as amoral, while homemade ale was considered virtuous. One wonders how much is based on various actions of several Bronte family members. These components make The Tenant of Wildfell Hall a very worthwhile read. The only shortcoming is the long drawn portion near the end--very repetitous and tedious for about a 100 pages; otherwise this would be a 5 star novel.
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