The first novel by English writer Elizabeth Gaskell, Mary Barton was published in 1848. It tells of the plight of the lower class in Manchester during the 1830s and 1840s. Contrasting the gap between rich and poor, the first half of the novel tells of the humble lives of the Barton and Wilson families, the extreme poverty of the Davenports and the luxurious life of the Carsons. Symbolically, John Barton receives five shillings for selling most of his worldly possessions; Henry Carson has this as loose change in his pocket. ...
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The first novel by English writer Elizabeth Gaskell, Mary Barton was published in 1848. It tells of the plight of the lower class in Manchester during the 1830s and 1840s. Contrasting the gap between rich and poor, the first half of the novel tells of the humble lives of the Barton and Wilson families, the extreme poverty of the Davenports and the luxurious life of the Carsons. Symbolically, John Barton receives five shillings for selling most of his worldly possessions; Henry Carson has this as loose change in his pocket. The second half of the novel comes to grips with a plot to murder.
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If you like period pieces about England, you will love this author. She writes much like Bronte, Dickens etc. and was one if not the first to be published in England in the early 18 hundreds quite an accomlishment for a woman in those days.
a1b2c3
Jan 28, 2010
Mary Barton
This is an old-fashioned book written about the appalling conditions workers in the Lancashire cotton mills faced. There were no unions to protect the working men and women; being laid off meant scrounging for everything and living in sub-standard dwellings. I enjoyed the style of the book and learned a lot about the history of the cotton mills as well.