Anne Brontë, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall

Lindsay Sullivan (Cardiff University)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.07: English Writing and Culture of the Victorian Period, 1837-1901.
Vol. editors: Gillian Fenwick (University of Toronto), Grace Moore (University of Otago)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1848

Places

England (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Novel
Romance

Resources

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall was published in June 1848 by T. C. Newby. In an attempt to capitalise on the success of Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre, the unscrupulous Newby advertised The Tenant of Wildfell Hall as being by the same author, “Currer Bell”. This move angered both Anne and Charlotte; the latter had promised her next novel to Smith, Elder & Co. at Cornhill. In an unprecedented move, Anne and Charlotte travelled to London by overnight train to convince Smith, Elder & Co. that they had separate identities.

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall attracted negative criticism for its subject matter; it was described as “disagreeable” in Athenaeum, and “revolting”, “coarse” and �…

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1617 words

Citation: Sullivan, Lindsay. "The Tenant of Wildfell Hall". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 11 January 2005 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=7906, accessed 26 November 2024.]

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