Charlotte Bronte

Charlotte Bronte is widely known as one of the most famous authors in history, and with good reason. Bronte was an English novelist and poet who set a new precedent for women writers with her works. Bronte wrote several timeless and beloved works during her short lifetime, including Jane Eyre, and Wuthering Heights. Her writing style has been studied, praised, and emulated for centuries.

Bronte was born on April 21, 1816 in Yorkshire, England. She was the youngest of six children, born to Patrick Bronte, an Anglican clergyman, and Maria Branwell. Her mother passed away when she was five years old, and her Aunt Elizabeth moved into the Bronte home to help raise the family. Bronte attended Cowan Bridge School, a boarding school which inspired many aspects of the hard life depicted in her novel Jane Eyre.

From a young age, Bronte dreamed of becoming a writer, and her siblings Emily and Anne shared her ambition. Together, they wrote stories and poems, often collaborating on projects and providing encouragement to one another. Charlotte eventually published her first novel The Professor, but unfortunately it was rejected by several publishers and only achieved success posthumously.

Luckily, Bronte’s luck changed when she wrote and published Jane Eyre in 1847. The novel was met with overwhelming success, and quickly gained notoriety among readers. Bronte’s careful exploration of social challenges such as gender roles, class struggles, and the place of women in society have earned Jane Eyre critical acclaim. The novel is still one of the most frequently read and studied works of Victorian literature today.

Bronte’s next major publication was Villette, her third and final novel. Published in 1853, it follows the story of a female protagonist in a foreign country and explores the struggles of finding love in a hostile world. Although it is not as popular as Jane Eyre, its themes are just as relevant and its intricacies of analysis have earned it a place as a classic work.

Bronte's real masterpiece though was her final work published in 1847, Wuthering Heights. It focuses on the complex relationship between two characters, Catherine and Heathcliff, and Bronte’s intricate use of characterization and narrative structure set standards for future works of fiction.

Charlotte Bronte's works remain influential to the literary world today. Her novels are beloved for their ability to capture the struggle of individuals under the pressures of society. Bronte wrote timeless works that will likely be studied for many more centuries to come.