Classic Authors: Emily Bronte
© Susan Jensen
Emily Jane Bronte was born on July 30, 1818, at Thornton in Yorkshire, England. She became the fifth, and oddest, child of Patrick and Maria Bronte. Perhaps her parents recognized her uniqueness even at birth, for Emily was the only one of the children to carry a middle name. When Emily was two years old, her father accepted a position as permanent curate in Haworth, and the family moved to the small village on the moors. It was here that Emily grew up and remained for the majority of her life. In 1821, Maria Bronte died of cancer, leaving Patrick the responsibility of rearing his six children. Maria's sister, Elizabeth Branwell, soon moved to the parsonage to care for her nieces and nephew.
Both of Emily's parents possessed literary skills–Patrick wrote four books as well as some poetry, while Maria published one essay--so perhaps it is not surprising that their children showed similar talents. Like her sisters, Emily began writing at a young age. She penned poems and created plays with her siblings. Emily spent little time away from home; she turned to her imagination for excitement and adventure. She and her sister Anne created an imaginary world, in which Emily became particularly absorbed. The fantasy land appears often in her early poetry.
Emily's education was scattered and often marred by ill health. She first attended the Cowan Bridge School, a facility for the children of impoverished clergy members, along with her sisters. During her time there, an epidemic broke out, which caused the deaths of her two older sisters. Emily and Charlotte both became ill and returned home to Haworth. When Emily was 17, she went to the Roe Head School, where Charlotte was a teacher. After three months there, her nerves became too much, and she found her way back to her beloved moors. Emily held two brief jobs as a teacher, but her health prevented her from keeping them for too long. She was clearly at peace only in Haworth.
In the Autumn of 1845, Charlotte found some of Emily's poetry and encouraged her to publish. Emily became angry, but eventually allowed the verses to be published. They appeared in a slim volume titled Poems by Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell(1846), along with work by Charlotte (Currer) and Anne (Acton). The book sold only two copies, a failure which frustrated the sisters so much that each of them began work on a novel. Emily's Wuthering Heights appeared the next year under her pseudonym, Ellis Bell. The novel shocked readers of the time. Most believed the writer to be a man since a woman surely wouldn't write something so titillating.
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