Record Number: 28558
Reading Experience:
Evidence:
Charlotte Bronte (as Currer Bell) to her publisher, W. S. Williams, 29 March 1848:
'You mention Thackeray and the last number of "Vanity Fair." The more I read Thackeray's
works, the more certain I am that he stands alone — alone in his sagacity, alone in his truth,
alone in his feeling (his feeling, though he makes no noise about it, is about the most genuine
that ever lived on a printed page), alone in his power, alone in his simplicity, alone in his self-
control. Thackeray is a Titan, so strong that he can afford to perform with calm the most
herculean feats [...] his is never the energy of delirium — his energy is sane energy,
deliberate energy, thoughtful energy. The last number of "Vanity Fair" proves this peculiarly.
Forcible, exciting in its force, still more impressive than exciting, carrying on the interest of
the narrative in a flow, deep, resistless, it is still quiet — as quiet as reflection, as quiet as
memory; and to me there are parts of it that sound as solemn as an oracle [...] Thackeray is
unique.'
1800-1849
Date:Between 1 Jan 1848 and 29 Mar 1848
Country:England
Timen/a
Place:n/a
Type of Experience(Reader):
silent aloud unknown
solitary in company unknown
single serial unknown
(Listener):
solitary in company unknown
single serial unknown
Reader / Listener / Reading Group:
Reader: Age:Adult (18-100+)
Gender:Female
Date of Birth:21 Mar 1816
Socio-Economic Group:Professional / academic / merchant / farmer
Occupation:Writer
Religion:Church of England
Country of Origin:England
Country of Experience:England
Listeners present if any:e.g family, servants, friends
n/a
Additional Comments:
n/a
Text Being Read:
Author: Title:Vanity Fair
Genre:Fiction
Form of Text:Print: Serial / periodical
Publication DetailsIn instalment.
Provenanceunknown
Source Information:
Record ID:28558
Source:n/a
Editor:James Wise and John Alexander Symington
Title:The Brontes: Their Lives, Friendships and Correspondence
Place of Publication:Oxford
Date of Publication:1980
Vol:2
Page:201
Additional Comments:
n/a
Citation:
James Wise and John Alexander Symington (ed.), The Brontes: Their Lives, Friendships and Correspondence, (Oxford, 1980), 2, p. 201, http://www.open.ac.uk/Arts/reading/UK/record_details.php?id=28558, accessed: 17 August 2024
Additional Comments:
None