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Emily Jane Bronte


 




       


       

      1818-1848

      Who Was She?

       


      		Emily Bronte was a writer who lived during the nineteenth century. She came from a family of writers, and her two sisters are also famous for their work, but it is both Emily's life and work which stand out as being visionary and inspiring. Emily lived almost all her life at her family's home, Haworth Parsonage, near the Yorkshire Moors in northern England. She loved this bleak and stormy landscape and much of her writing was inspired by her home. When Emily was very young, her mother and two eldest sisters died of terrible illnesses. She was deeply affected by their deaths and would always feel the pain of their loss in her life. However, Emily had two other sisters and a brother, and the four of them were very close during their childhood.As children they created a very detailed imaginary world for themselves, inspired by a gift of toy soldiers from their father, who always encouraged his children in their creativity and artistic goals. 
      Haworth Parsonage, Emily's life-long home

      Emily would continue to live in this imaginary world even when she was an adult and her siblings had long outgrown such "childish" games. Her fantasy world was called "Gondal" and it was a source of great inspiration and strength for her in her life and work. "Gondal" was a world ruled by a woman who was always in control of herself and her life. It was a place in Emily's mind where she could always be herself and where she lived her life as she wanted to, and not as others told her to. As Emily grew up into a young woman, she realized there were many things wrong with her society, and especially for women. There were very strict rules for how women and young girls should behave, and they were allowed very little freedom or independence. Emily loved having her own freedom and she refused to be the proper "lady" her society demanded she be. She would spend her entire life in rebellion against the limitations placed on her just because she was a woman. Because of her strength of character, many people thought of her as rude, strange, and a misfit.
       

      Rather than try to "fit in" or appear more acceptable to society's standards, Emily insisted on remaining as she was. She would not allow for her personality and thinking to be influenced or changed by other people's opinions. Emily was a very private person, and she could be very shy towards strangers. Most strangers were not very nice to her and almost always misunderstood her because she could not be stereotyped as many other women of her time were. The three sisters eventually decided to publish their writing together, all under male names since they would not be taken as seriously if the world knew they were women.Emily felt that this was how she could become involved with the world. 
      Through writing she could openly speak her opinions about what she thought was wrong with the world and how humans might be able to change and become better people.
      Anne, Emily and Charlotte Bronte

      Her Vision and Accomplishment
    Emily saw both the good and bad in people, and her vision was about human suffering, and also how humans could heal if each of them found their own strength within themselves. Emily believed humans could survive the cruelty of their world by relying on their own courage and standing by their own individual faith. She believed that since we all suffer together, all of us are alike, and no one should be judged by their gender, class or physical appearance. She also expressed that we are all capable of doing great good in the world as well as great harm, and the greatest goal for all of us is to place equal value in all life on earth, whether it is human, animal, or part of nature. Emily's vision was all about the presciousness of life and the power of the human soul to survive and surpass the hardships and pain that each of us experience as a part of our lives. Emily's greatest accomplishment was to write the novel, Wuthering Heights. This was the only novel she ever wrote, but through it she was able to speak her own mind, make clear the power of her voice, and reveal her entire vision of humankind to the world. It has been 150 years since Wuthering Heights was first published, yet it is still a widely-read book and is studied in many schools. Emily Bronte's story of two childhood companions who are unable to remain together once they are adults is powerful and moving. It reminds each of us, no matter who we are, that we are often left alone in the world, and that we all long to be a part of something more than ourselves, but that it is only through love of ourselves that we can truly find love with others. The story is written in one of the most unforgettable, original voices ever heard, and almost everyone who has read this novel has been deeply affected by it. Emily died at the age of thirty, only a year after Wuthering Heights was published, but she still speaks to us through her writing.
      What We Can Learn From Her
      Emily Bronte's entire life and work teaches us much about how one person's voice can help us see the world as it is, and how it is also capable of change. Emily was a courageous and strong-willed person who always remained true to herself and her vision, even up until her very last breath. She was very ill when she died, suffering from a severe lung infection, but she refused to give in to her illness and continued to live as she always had: believing her own strength would help her endure and survive and ultimately overcome the physical limitations of her life. Emily Bronte's life and death of courage and independence is a lasting example to us all. No matter how much the world tries to keep us trapped by its labels and wrongful misjudgments, each of us can survive and grow and make our unique voices heard as long as we believe in ourselves and remain strong in who we are.
       
       


      "No Coward soul is mine...No trembler in the world's storm-troubled sphere...I see Heaven's glories shine...And Faith shines equal arming me from Fear...Thereis not room for Death...Nor atom that his might could render void...Since thou art Being and Breath...and what thou art may never be destroyed..."

      ~ Emily Bronte

      Click here to view other web sites on Emily and her family:


       






















      Suggested Reading:

      P. Bentley, The Brontes. Thames & Hudson, 1986.

      E. Bronte, Wuthering Heights. Puffin Classics, 1994.

      R. Wilson, The Life and Private History of Emily Jane Bronte. Haskell House, 1972.

      This Page created by Hope Jennings

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