The Brontës: Romantic Passion and Social Justice

by Deborah Morse

Charlotte, Emily, and Anne Brontë created some of the greatest works of 19th-century English literature. How did these three young women, born into a humble parsonage on the isolated moors of Northern England, write such striking work? What influenced them? How did they get their stories out into the world? Why do their novels continue to grip readers to this day?

These and other questions are what you will explore in The Brontës: Romantic Passion and Social Justice. With Brontë scholar Deborah Denenholz Morse, you will look at the lives of the three Brontë sisters, their family life, experiences, beliefs, motivations - and their many tragedies. As you look closely at the literary and real-world influences that shaped them, you will get a deeper understanding of the astonishing talent and deep drive that pushed these three sisters to write novels like Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall. These stories - often full of wind-swept drama and tinged with both personal and Romantic darkness - have gone on to influence the Western literary tradition far beyond what the Brontës themselves could have ever predicted.

The Brontës were deeply influenced by the world around them. Looking into their lives and work, you will get insight into the causes and events that shaped these phenomenal writers - not only their religious and Romantic influences, but also the social justice movements of their age, from women’s rights and anti-poverty campaigns to slavery abolition and early efforts to curb animal cruelty. You will see how their work transcended mere social commentary or embellished autobiography and left their mark on the social and literary trends that would emerge after them.

Genres: Audiobook, Nonfiction, Biography, European History, British Literature, History

6 pages, Audiobook

Published January 1, 2021

Reviews

[Ewelina Trojanowska · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.75

Wonderful lectures!
Really fascinating & enjoyable.

[Leah Agirlandaboy]

This was incredibly…soothing? I guess that’s the right word for what I felt. This is a series of lectures by a lit professor, and to listen to a scholar share interesting details about something (someones!) in her low-stakes area of expertise just felt…luxurious? Please, tell me more about how word choice in “Jane Eyre” tells us not only about the author’s relationship to her siblings but also about the abolition movement in nineteenth-century England! I don’t know why I found this so…cozy(?), but I guess that tells you how I felt about getting a BA in English. (It was a dream; I felt like I’d cheated the system into letting me just read and discuss books all day.)

[Antonella · Rating 5 out of 5]

fantastic lectures on the private and professional life of the Bronte sisters!!

[Toni · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up.

Great revisit of the Brontës life in a fast forward lecture. I've read a few of the reference materials which are fantastic and if this lecture whets your appetite, then I highly recommend Charlotte Brontë: A Fiery Heart by Claire Harman as well as the novels by Juliet Barker.

Also, the BBC/PBS tv program "To Walk Invisible: The Brontë Sisters." is amazing to watch and covers the same material in this lecture.

[Georgia Swadling · Rating 3 out of 5]

good for providing a preliminary foundation on the brontës and their works but boring for someone with a decent knowledge of them already - especially if you’re already familiar with each of their best known novels (wuthering heights, jane eyre and tenant of wildfell hall) as a lot of time is spent explaining plots to provide basic analysis

[Justine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting lectures on the Brontës, their lives, their works and the link between the two. The author mostly focuses on themes that are important to the sisters and thus features heavily in their works.
There were some repetitions from lecture to lecture, mostly about Jane Eyre , and I had a bit of a hard time with the final two lectures, maybe because I have not read these books. But, otherwise, I had a good time and learnt a lot!

[Jola Cora · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely wonderful

[Catherine Puma · Rating 5 out of 5]

This lecture series is a fascinating look into Charlotte, Emily, and Anne Brontes' published works and the ways they were influenced by and engaged with the social issues of their day. Whether that is women's rights, poverty, slavery abolition, or animal welfare, the Brontes were aware of these intense problems and used their creative expression to demonstrate the cruelties of injustice and horrors of domestic violence. Bronte scholar Deborah Morse mentions classic interpretations of "Jane Eyre" and "Wuthering Heights" while also supplementing my high school knowledge with hew insights.

I loved connecting the Brontes' intellectual upbringing with Wordsworth, Coleridge, and Sir Walter Scott. What a great representation of how important it is to allow young minds free rein of our libraries, rather than censoring books. I also loved hearing those connections between these authors and historical figures speaking publicly about some of these themes during their lifetimes, such as Frederick Douglass.

I am inspired to read Emily's early poetry as well as Anne Bronte's body of work. I am so glad I read this, especially for Women's History Month March 2023, and will be recommending to many.

[Nandini Reddy Dayal · Rating 4 out of 5]

The biography delves deep into the lives, inspirations, and times that the three Bronte sisters lived in. Charlotte, Emily and Anne Bronte brought more than unforgettable stories. They wrote commentaries of the age they lived in, poured their personal dreams, ideas, and frustrations into their characters. Each one a symbolism of the laws, social edicts, suppressed emotions and trauma that each of them endured.

When you read their stories without context you can enjoy them but knowing context, motivation and causes offers a much deeper meaning. The women in literature who were defiant of every social norm of their time were definitely the Bronte's. They never played it safe with their stories or characters and that is what makes their works memorable and relevant.

Absolutely loved this discourse on Audible and I do enjoy exploring the variety of options of stories that I have come across.

[♥️Annete♥️loves❤️books♥️ · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book about the tragic Bronte sisters is always a gurantee for me. Anything that concerns their immortal work and tragic lives is always a must read for me.
My first acquaitance with them was when i read "Jane Eyre" back in my teens, my most beloved and cherished novel of all time. Through Charlotte i was introduced to the wild imagination of Emily and her dark "Wuthering heights". Last but not least, i was acquainted with sweet and virtuous Anne and her "Agnes Grey" and "The tenant of Wildfell Hall".
All three were talented, gifted and profound authors, with books full of passion, fierce writing and social critique. Their work is characterized by deep pathos and love for anything romantic.
These were some excellent lectures upon the Brontes and society around them in general
4 stars undoubtedly!

[Stephanie Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

After finishing all of the books by the Bronte sisters, I thought this might be a nice way to wrap everything up. And since I've studied 3 of Charlotte's books for school, this was a good chance to get an academic viewpoint for all of the Bronte books I didn't get to study. Since I've read "Jane Eyre" 4 times (3 of those times were for school), I didn't think there was a whole lot left for me to learn about that particular text, but Morse surprised me by bringing up a few points I had never heard of or considered before. I didn't feel the final chapter in this series was entirely necessary, but overall this was an interesting and informative listen.

[T.R. Preston · Rating 4 out of 5]

As interesting as this could be at times, my biggest issue is that these lectures go out of their way to spoil many of the Bronte's books that I have not read yet. I had to skip past some chunks because of this.

Even with that annoyance, it's always enjoyable to hear or read more about those three sisters. It's a shame they all died so young. Imagine what other literary masterpieces we could've gotten from them if they had only stuck around longer.

[A.M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wait up - the only three siblings that are this successful - is that true? wracks brain trying to think of three other siblings ….

This was super interesting. I had not thought about how rare it was for the three sisters to have themes that reflected their life interests so clearly in abolition of slavery, and supporters of animal welfare, and women’s rights.

And fine, I may have more of an appreciation of Wuthering Heights. [everyone is just awful - everyone]

4 stars

[Joedy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A terrific set of lectures on the works and lives of the Bronte sisters. It will make the listener/reader want to go back to reread Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights as well as other lesser known works of the sisters, who were pioneers with respect to a range of social justice issues. They would have been at the vanguard of many of the issues facing the world today.

[Ana Costa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Há anos que não leio nada das irmãs Bronte. Ou um livro que não seja ficção. Mas gostei imenso deste. Deu-me uma perspetiva completamente diferente sobre as obras. Muito curto e extremamente fácil de ouvir enquanto se cozinha ou está no trânsito. Curiosamente insightful. Gostei mais do que antecipei! Deixou-me com vontade de rever as obras

[Michelle Boyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a huge fan of the Brontes and this was a great lecture series! Very informative, well paced, and it goes over a good selection of topics. Definitely worth listening to if you love the Brontes or if you're just a bit interested in their work.

[Matthew Gurteen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really great course for anyone who wants to know more about the Brontës and their work. This course is specific rather than all-encompassing. Nevertheless, it is approachable and engaging. I would recommend it to anyone, regardless of academic level.

[Tabitha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very listenable and interesting with a diverse range of themes explored in the whole Bronte collection. Some repetition and some lectures which I felt were more summary of the stories rather than exploration of themes, context and critical analysis.

[adoresbylaures · Rating 4 out of 5]

As much as I’m not a fan of Jane Eyre, the lectures are very insightful and interesting, and will make you want to read more from the Brontë sisters.

[Marci · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting lectures. Clear presenter. Would recommend for anyone interested in the subject matter and has a few hours to fill with an audiobook.

[Joanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoy this on my little before ans after work listen. Easy to listen too and pick up

[Esther · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my favorite great course. Hard to finish despite my admiration for the Brontës.

[Melanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great lectures, just too short.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed it. It is just a bit repetitive in a few places.

[Jean · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent! And interesting! I highly recommend these lectures.

[Danica is Booked · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable but repetitive.

[teacupsandunicorns · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting lecture on the brontes sisters and how they used romanticism and gothicism and sentimentality alongside feminism and social justice, challenging social norms about race and class.