Shirley by Charlotte Brontë

First published: 1849

Type of work: Novel

Type of plot: Comedy of manners

Time of plot: 1811-1812

Locale: Yorkshire, England

Principal characters

• Shirley Keeldar, a financially independent young woman
• Caroline Helstone, a dependent young woman
• Mr. Helstone, rector of Briarfield, Caroline’s uncle, and a High Tory
• Robert Moore, a textile manufacturer
• Louis Moore, Robert’s brother, a tutor
• Hortense Moore, their sister
• Mr. Hall, vicar of Nunnely
• Mr. Yorke, gentleman of Briarmains, a radical
• Mrs. Pryor, Caroline’s long-lost mother
• The Sympsons, Caroline’s aunt, uncle, and cousins
• Mr. Donne, ,
• Mr. Malone, and
• Mr. Sweeting, the curates

The Story:

Three self-centered Yorkshire curates are interrupted at dinner by Reverend Helstone, who is concerned about the dangers of sabotage. England is at war with Napoleonic France, and manufacturers have been confronted with the Orders in Council, developed by the British government to impose control and taxation on trade with Europe and America, greatly curtailing business. Moreover, the Industrial Revolution is well underway in England, resulting in the loss of jobs as machines make it possible to produce the same amount of goods with fewer laborers. Roving bands of men are destroying the machines they see threatening their way of life. Reverend Helstone, acting like a soldier, takes arms to protect a shipment of frames being delivered to Robert Moore’s textile mill. He is unsuccessful, however, and the frames are destroyed.

Meanwhile, Caroline Helstone, an orphan, has been taken in by the reverend, her uncle. He provides for Caroline but shows her no affection. Caroline falls in love with Robert Moore, but he is so focused on making a success of his business that he cannot allow himself to love Caroline. Seeing this, Caroline resolves not to marry and to distract herself from grief by doing good works. The narrator comments on the “old maids” and the problem of what women can and cannot do while living in a “man’s world.”

Caroline, as is proper for a young woman, suffers in silence, but she knows she has to change her life. She tells her uncle that she wishes to leave his home and to earn a living since she herself is penniless. Caroline plans to become a governess, but her despair makes her ill. Distraction from her unhappiness is provided by Shirley Keeldar, a wealthy young woman who has just moved to Fieldhead, her property in Yorkshire. Both physically and emotionally, Shirley is Caroline’s opposite, yet they become fast friends. Caroline also meets Mrs. Pryor, Shirley’s former governess who still lives with her as a companion. Shirley owns Robert’s mill, and she and Robert often consult about business. Seeing them together, Caroline resigns herself to the probability that they will marry.

Another attack on Robert’s mill is repelled by Robert, Mr. Helstone, and a group of soldiers. Robert leaves the area to search out the rioters and bring them to justice. Caroline contracts a fever and becomes seriously ill; her illness is exacerbated by her hopeless love for Robert. Mrs. Pryor comes to nurse her and, in desperation because Caroline has no desire to live, tells her a secret: Mrs. Pryor is Caroline’s long-lost mother. Her maternal love makes Caroline want to live, and she gradually gets better.

Shirley, who has been traveling with her uncle, aunt, and cousins, returns to Fieldhead, and her own secret is divulged: For some years, Shirley has been in love with Louis Moore, Robert’s brother and her cousin Henry’s tutor. Louis once tutored Shirley, and their relationship developed beyond that of teacher and student. However, because she was an heir while he was nothing more than an educated employee, they had to hide their feelings from society. Moreover, Louis’s poverty and dependence upon Shirley’s Uncle Sympson for his living affronts his pride and prevents him from loving Shirley. Meanwhile, Shirley’s wealth has motivated other suitors for her hand. Shirley spurns them all, much to her uncle’s disgust and anger. He feels that her independence is unwomanly and that she must be married.

When Robert returns, everyone assumes he will marry Shirley. He tells Mr. Yorke that he did propose to her, not because he loved her but because of her money; she turned him down. Because business is so bad, Robert plans to emigrate to America, but he is shot by someone who hates the mill owners. Robert survives and marries Caroline, and Shirley convinces Louis that money should not keep them apart. The English defeat Napoleon’s army in Spain, and the repeal of the Orders in Council spurs a major growth in business. The double wedding of the Moore brothers with Caroline and Shirley concludes the novel.

Bibliography

Craik, W. A. The Brontë Novels. London: Methuen, 1968. Sees Shirley as Brontë’s “least successful novel.” Discusses the failure of the male characters and the third-person point of view.

Edwards, Mike. Charlotte Brontë: The Novels. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1999. Part of the Analysing Texts series; different aspects of the novel are discussed, as well as their counterparts in Brontë’s other novels. A particularly useful source for students.

Gilbert, Sandra M., and Susan Gubar. The Madwoman in the Attic. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 1979. In a chapter devoted to Shirley, the authors focus on Brontë’s handling of women who are imprisoned and accepting of self-denial because of their gender.

Ingham, Patricia. The Brontës. New York: Oxford University Press, 2006. Part of Oxford’s Authors in Context series; discusses how Shirley reflects concerns with social class as well as the governess “problem.”

McLaughlin, Rebecca A. “’I Prefer a Master’: Female Power in Charlotte Brontë’s Shirley.” Brontë Studies 29 (November, 2004): 217-222. Sees the novel as a subversive depiction of the power of women in a male-dominated world.

Torgerson, Beth. Reading the Brontë Body: Disease, Desire, and the Constraints of Culture. New York: Palgrave, 2005. Describes how Brontë uses disease and illness as a metaphor for issues of class and gender.