Quote:
Originally Posted by issybird
...And while I'm on the subject, it was flatly unbelievable he didn't destroy her diary after he read it, or even more to the point, keep it under lock and key for evidence.
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Agreed - it was a stretch. It was also completely unbelievable that Gilbert would send such a deeply private document to his friend twenty years later.
I can see how the book would be considered feminist, judged within the time and culture that produced it. Helen had many flaws, but she was definitely a strong woman. She refused to allow her husband, the law and religious teaching to determine her fate. And it’s telling that Charlotte didn’t want it republished after Anne’s death, because she thought the subject matter unsuitable.
In terms of Helen’s return to her husband, it wasn’t consistent with Helen’s character, or the plot. But
Catlady raises an interesting possibility; Bronte may have sent Helen back to stave off objections from readers, or even her sister Charlotte.
Or maybe Brontė’s own pious notions of duty got in the way, and she ‘needed’ Helen to try and save Arthur from damnation. Personally, I found the theological worldview of the book suffocating, and completely lacking in insight.
That said, I still found the book entertaining enough to want to see what happens, and was rooting for them to get together.