I am imagining Charlotte, sitting so quietly…her tooth throbbing, the pain so severe that I am sure tears must have started in her eyes and rolled down her cheeks. Her dear father lying in the darkness beyond, and the hours crawling by. Then, that moment of moments, “There was no possibility of taking a walk that day…” I am in awe of her devotion and her tremendous strength. Such a tiny frame, those glowing eyes, the determination. Their return to Haworth must have been triumphant. Thank you for your wonderful videos.
Thank you for watching and I had very similar thoughts on poor Charlotte too. It must have been hard for her and watching her Father in such a helpless state too. I bet she was happy to get back to her own bed.
It must have given Charlotte solace and focus in her writing Jane Eyre, away from from the worry for Patrick's recovery, and her toothache.A bleak few weeks, yet creating one of the most well known and loved books. Thank you for the video and taking us to where it began. Patrick was very brave to undergo the cataract op.
I was so happy to see that you covered this topic, 2 years ago I had cataract surgery in both eyes and often thought of Patrick Bronte, and to top it off, the numbing drops sort of failed in one eye and for a few seconds I felt the sharp pain of the incision, I can only imagine Patrick's resolve. I have always had the greatest admiration for Patrick, he was an extraordinary man.
You made my eyes water all over again. Poor you, I hope you waved your arms about to make them stop. I have no idea how Patrick coped with this and he would have know before hand too how hard it was going to be. Thanks for watching and joining me.
Another well researched video that really proves your YT channel should be officially endorsed by The Parsonage and The Bronte Society. You never disappoint. I had cataract surgery on both of my eyes this past summer...a week apart. During the procedures I had twilight sleep....dozing but fully aware and able to answer questions.....I felt absolutely no pain during the procedures. Some pain and discomfort for about a month afterwards. I can't even imagine what Patrick endured. To me, it shows just how much he loved his family....to risk such a surgery so that he could make sure his job was secure....which also meant the family home was secure. Thank you again, Kate for all your hard work
We can always count on this channel to give us the most thorough look at all aspects of the lives of the Bronte family. Another feature well done. Edited to say: We don't mind the "coffee shop ambience" because it adds realism to what you are discussing.
Glad you were ok with the coffee shop, it seems to get so loud and my microphone was having "issues" too so I was worried the sounds would be a big distraction. Glad you enjoyed this video, it's great to have you along as always.
This was a part of the family story that I learned about through the amazing mini-series The Brontes of Haworth. Patrick was a tougher human being than I will ever be to go through that surgery
Patrick put up with so much, he seems to be constantly fighting chest infections and to have this eye issue too. The poor man never had a break. Love that series, the hair styles are a bit mad but it's a great drama.
This is a part of the Brontë history that I knew well and have always found fascinating. I have always been amazed at how it must have been torture to have that surgery that now has become a small operation with people lined up to go in to have it done. I had never heard about the leeches. Oh my! I think Patrick was an amazing man of strength. He watched his wife pass to young and then proceed to loose all of his children. His fortitude makes him a remarkable man! I found it amazing to see the building they had as temporary lodgings was still there but among the modern eyesores of buildings. I imagine with care that building will stand the test of time while modern buildings often are knocked down.
Patrick was lucky to have such a strong religious belief, I think that must have been a great comfort to him through all this troubles. Leeches seem to be one of those treatments, if in doubt, pop a leech on. It was a way of doing something when nothing much else could be done by the doctors. Yuck. Thank you for coming along with me on my adventure.
To undergo this operation at 70 years old with no anaesthetic must have been very traumatic experience for Patrick Bronte. Brave man but no doubt having his daughter close at hand was very reassuring
Patrick must have thought about this operation long and hard before he went for it. It had a big effect on the whole family. Brave man though, he would have read enough to know it was going to hurt like hell.
Oh my goodness this was fascinating! Its great that you were able to record this video at the location of the place he had the surgery! Thank you for taking us to these places! And that you showed us the lodgings. Did Patrick spend his recovery time in Manchester ? I imagine he couldn't have been moved afterwards We are so blessed that cataracts surgery is so gentle nowadays! So brave of them both to go through this! And how he endured months in darkness not moving is just extraordinary! Its also fascinating that Charlotte started writing Jane Eyre at this time! I knew so little about these events so it was a truly fascinating video! Thank you so much for your passion and hardwork in sharing these glorious videos! ❤❤❤❤
We think they were there for a month and Patrick was limited to movement while his eye healed. He could only sit up for a short amount of time each day. It must have been so hard for him. I have spoken to a few people who have had cataract surgery and they say it is easy, pain free and quick. Can you imagine if they only had the options Patrick had, who would get it done? Thank you, as always, for watching and coming along with me. Your support means a lot to me.
I had no idea that Patrick Bronte needed eye surgery. Thank you for discussing this topic and sharing with us what it was like at that time! Great video as usual!
This is such a fascinating topic! I must admit I felt a little creeped out thinking about aspects of the surgery and also Patrick having leeches on his face! 🙈 Thank goodness cataract surgery has come such a long way! My mom had one done and will have to have another down the road. She said it wasn’t as bad an experience as she thought it would be and her recovery was fairly easy. Patrick sure was a strong person.
We are so lucky now, so many people would be totally blind now if it wasn't was modern medicine. Amazing. The amount of outtakes of me going "yuck" was silly, it creeped me out too and normally this sort of stuff doesn't bother me. Patrick was one tough cookie.
This is such a great episode Kate. This story has always fascinated me and I’m so glad you did a video on it!! (I’d have had a real Guinness in that cup 😆)
Thanks for another great video Kate. Having watched many RUclips videos of cataract operations, I have wondered just how it was for Patrick, and I did some reading on the history of this operation. While today the capsule containing the lens is left in place, and it's contents liquidised using ultrasound and sucked out, to be replaced by a plastic lens slipped into the capsule, in Patrick's time the whole lens and capsule would have been pushed back into the eye, where hopefully it fell to the bottom and did not interfere with vision. This is known as 'couching' and, to my surprise, has a history going back a very long way - to the 5th century BC! Without a lens, very strong positive glasses would be needed to focus; which would have been available to him. Today, antibiotic drops are used afterwards to minimise the risk of infection, but they would not have been available to Patrick. Apart from that, and the need to keep the eye clean, I see no reason why his recovery need have been so different from today, when folk go home with vision restored straight away. Keeping the eye protected from light, once the Belladonna wore off after a few hours seems to serve no purpose as far as I can see. Belladonna contains Atropine, which is still used today, just in purified form, to dilate the iris, alongside other variants that are just slower or faster acting. I have wondered just what Patrick's vision would be like, after recovery. Assuming that he didn't also have serious macular degeneration, it should have been possible for him to see quite clearly, but a basic understanding of optics suggests that with the exterior lenses doing all the work, in front of the eye, the iris would have cast a shadow, which would close in to give him only central vision in bright light, but expand as his iris opened in dim light - a bit weird! Couching is still widespread apparently, in Africa, where modern medicine is scarce, and I've just watched an operation being performed in Nigeria that would be very much like that experienced by Patrick, except that they do use 'topical' anesthesia! You can see this at the Burkhard Dick channel under 'Couching Today', and there are other channels showing it. I wonder whether Patrick described the vision he experienced after the operation when he wrote about it? If I seem obsessed with the science of this, I assure you that I am as passionate as you are about the whole Bronte story, and have been for many years - I prefer to say Bronte, not 'Bronte Sisters' as I think Branwell deserves more credit than he gets for starting the sisters off on story-telling, and I was pleased to see his story told realistically for once in the excellent 'To Walk Invisible'. Oh, and my ancestors lived in Baildon, not many miles from Haworth, and yes, I do love my tea, Yorkshire of course.😀
This is brilliant, you have explained it all so well, thank you. I tried to talk with an Ophthalmologist about this but had no luck finding one that knew their history of cataract procedures that far back or I might have gone into it a bit more. Was worried, with my none science mind, I wouldn't get the info right. Thank you for sharing this with all of us because it helps us understand more of Patrick's procedure. Reading a little more of Christmas it seems poor Patrick suffered with his eyes after with swellings and pain, if this was from the operation I don't know. Agree, Branwell was a bit part of the Bronte world and I have plans to discuss him more soon. And finally and most importantly, good to hear you are a Yorkshire Tea drinker. Thanks again for your comment and for watching and being part of this brilliant community.
My poor husband hates anything to do with eyes so I wont let him watch this video. Eyes don't bother me but even I (good pun) felt the shivers talking about it. Thank you for watching.
I have little notes all around the house and on my phone. I think of things and then have to write it down. I read a lot and enjoy the process so much it doesn't feel like I'm working. Thank you for your kind words. x
I'd love to visit The Salutation pub! It's amazing that it's still there, amongst all the modern buildings ❤ I've just looked it up on Google maps, there are some photos of the ceiling of the pub that has a unique period feature design on it, I wonder if that was there when they were there? Fascinating ❤❤
What a very interesting vidio well they all are I thought you might be interested i have just come across a sampler that Charlotte stitched at age just 6 years old i had know idea that she did such a thing im a big fan of antique samplers myself
Funny you should talk about samplers, I was looking into them myself the other day. Six, wow, I don't think I could have done that at six. Will google that now. Thank you for this and for watching my video.
When I was looking into where the leeches were put after eye surgery I saw an article about them being used still. Couldn't help but imagine a medical leech farm with them all lined up being raised and educated in what to do. :-)
Удаление катаракты - древнейшая операция. Зубную боль лечили, разжевывая семена гвоздичного дерева, очень эффективное средство. Я не знаю, сколько они стоили во времена 19 века, но сейчас они доступны, сама пользуюсь
Clove Oil is used for toothache still here but I don't think it is as fashionable as it used to be. I assume chewing Cloves was a cheep option in the 19th century. Thanks for watching.
Have you watched 'To Walk Invisible'. Branwell was not just a 'tortured soul', he despised his father and raged at him for his stupid religion and yet was forced to grow up tutored by him, and later on, as an adolescent, to sleep in the same room with his father watching over him! I'm with Elizabeth Gaskell who had a harsh view of Patrick. While Emily, who also rejected her father's religion, was able to find quiet and isolation and carve her own path and think her own thougts while fulfilling her duty peeling potatoes, Branwell was expected to go out into the world and make his own way. He was also caught up in Freemasonry, as was his father - a whole other story that is rarely talked about, but may have played a part in those events that so upset him. Emily in particular, showed compassion for Branwell in his suffering.
@lindosland I have the seen the film, yes. As far as religion goes, I think Rev Brontë was a bit more lenient than other Evangelicals. He believed in universal salvation, which influenced Anne and Charlotte's views. He was against the strict Calvinism that was preached at Lowood School. And while he was anti-Catholic like many clergymen of the day, he still supported Catholic Emancipation. Juliet Barker was correct in saying that Mrs Gaskell's portrayal of him is not an accurate portrait. His faith drove him to do a lot of good things for the people of Haworth. Emily may not have attended church as frequently as her sisters, but unlike Branwell, she was definitely not an atheist. Some of her poems have a deeply religious tone, albeit she felt closer to God in nature than in conventional doctrine.
At least he had a month away in peace before heading back home. Watching you son go through what Branwell did must be the hardest thing for any parent.
@@Artfanbookfan25 If Patrick was against the strict Calvinism preached at Cowan Bridge school (Lowood was the fictional version) then why did he send his daughters there? Carus-Wilson, the school's founder, was Patrick's friend so Patrick knew his views. Why did Charlotte keep her literary ambitions from her father until after publication? I suggest that an important reason was that she ruthlessly exposed the horrors of the school, as Lowood, and wanted to put down her true feelings unchallenged by her father, until after publication. She insisted later, when challenged, that it was a true account. Why was Emily so furious with Charlotte when the latter discovered her poems in her private box? Because those poems contain her deepest thoughts that she knew would neither be understood nor approved of by Charlotte or her father. This was a family at war, and all the books tell that story to some extent - Wuthering Heights, Jane Eyre, Tennant of Wildfell Hall . Juliet Barker is someone who likes facts, and writing history, but in my opinion is not very good at deducing things about people and relationships - joining the dots. I met her at one of her talks and was surprised when I tried to point out the dissent in the family over Christianity that she would only say, 'they all disliked the hypocrisy'. No, it was much more than that. Later I was shocked to read her book, 'The Deafening Sound of Silence', about a school for disturbed children that she supports, which, to my mind, indoctrinates the kids with religion in an unacceptable way that almost looks like a milder version of Cowan Bridge! She, like many biographers of the Brontes, is a dedicated Christian, something that I think restricts us to a sanitised version. While Emily could not be called an atheist, she despised the religion of her father (and she did witness the cruelty at the school as a young pupil). She refused to teach in the Sunday School. Her poems leave no doubt about this: 'Vain are the thousand creeds; worthless as withered weeds', she says in her final poem, 'No Coward Soul is Mine'. Yes, God was 'within her breast' but that was no conventional god, more like Nature. Her 'devoirs', the Belgian French essays give us great understanding about this- 'The Butterfly', in particular shows that she was searching for an explanation along the lines of evolutionary thought, for the cruelty of nature. We have over 200 of her poems, and seven devoirs, giving us a lot more insight than many realise into who she really was. She didn't just leave us 'Wuthering Heights'.
I am imagining Charlotte, sitting so quietly…her tooth throbbing, the pain so severe that I am sure tears must have started in her eyes and rolled down her cheeks. Her dear father lying in the darkness beyond, and the hours crawling by. Then, that moment of moments, “There was no possibility of taking a walk that day…” I am in awe of her devotion and her tremendous strength. Such a tiny frame, those glowing eyes, the determination. Their return to Haworth must have been triumphant. Thank you for your wonderful videos.
Thank you for watching and I had very similar thoughts on poor Charlotte too. It must have been hard for her and watching her Father in such a helpless state too. I bet she was happy to get back to her own bed.
It must have given Charlotte solace and focus in her writing Jane Eyre, away from from the worry for Patrick's recovery, and her toothache.A bleak few weeks, yet creating one of the most well known and loved books. Thank you for the video and taking us to where it began. Patrick was very brave to undergo the cataract op.
I imagine Charlotte felt very lonely when in Manchester, must have been hard for them both in their own ways. Thank you for watching.
I was so happy to see that you covered this topic, 2 years ago I had cataract surgery in both eyes and often thought of Patrick Bronte, and to top it off, the numbing drops sort of failed in one eye and for a few seconds I felt the sharp pain of the incision, I can only imagine Patrick's resolve. I have always had the greatest admiration for Patrick, he was an extraordinary man.
You made my eyes water all over again. Poor you, I hope you waved your arms about to make them stop. I have no idea how Patrick coped with this and he would have know before hand too how hard it was going to be. Thanks for watching and joining me.
Another well researched video that really proves your YT channel should be officially endorsed by The Parsonage and The Bronte Society. You never disappoint. I had cataract surgery on both of my eyes this past summer...a week apart. During the procedures I had twilight sleep....dozing but fully aware and able to answer questions.....I felt absolutely no pain during the procedures. Some pain and discomfort for about a month afterwards. I can't even imagine what Patrick endured. To me, it shows just how much he loved his family....to risk such a surgery so that he could make sure his job was secure....which also meant the family home was secure. Thank you again, Kate for all your hard work
Thank you for your support. Love the description of twilight sleep. Patrick must have felt the weight of the world on his small shoulders, poor man.
We can always count on this channel to give us the most thorough look at all aspects of the lives of the Bronte family. Another feature well done. Edited to say: We don't mind the "coffee shop ambience" because it adds realism to what you are discussing.
Glad you were ok with the coffee shop, it seems to get so loud and my microphone was having "issues" too so I was worried the sounds would be a big distraction. Glad you enjoyed this video, it's great to have you along as always.
This was a part of the family story that I learned about through the amazing mini-series The Brontes of Haworth. Patrick was a tougher human being than I will ever be to go through that surgery
Patrick put up with so much, he seems to be constantly fighting chest infections and to have this eye issue too. The poor man never had a break. Love that series, the hair styles are a bit mad but it's a great drama.
This is a part of the Brontë history that I knew well and have always found fascinating. I have always been amazed at how it must have been torture to have that surgery that now has become a small operation with people lined up to go in to have it done. I had never heard about the leeches. Oh my!
I think Patrick was an amazing man of strength. He watched his wife pass to young and then proceed to loose all of his children. His fortitude makes him a remarkable man!
I found it amazing to see the building they had as temporary lodgings was still there but among the modern eyesores of buildings. I imagine with care that building will stand the test of time while modern buildings often are knocked down.
Patrick was lucky to have such a strong religious belief, I think that must have been a great comfort to him through all this troubles. Leeches seem to be one of those treatments, if in doubt, pop a leech on. It was a way of doing something when nothing much else could be done by the doctors. Yuck. Thank you for coming along with me on my adventure.
To undergo this operation at 70 years old with no anaesthetic must have been very traumatic experience for Patrick Bronte. Brave man but no doubt having his daughter close at hand was very reassuring
Patrick must have thought about this operation long and hard before he went for it. It had a big effect on the whole family. Brave man though, he would have read enough to know it was going to hurt like hell.
Oh my goodness this was fascinating! Its great that you were able to record this video at the location of the place he had the surgery! Thank you for taking us to these places! And that you showed us the lodgings. Did Patrick spend his recovery time in Manchester ? I imagine he couldn't have been moved afterwards We are so blessed that cataracts surgery is so gentle nowadays! So brave of them both to go through this! And how he endured months in darkness not moving is just extraordinary! Its also fascinating that Charlotte started writing Jane Eyre at this time! I knew so little about these events so it was a truly fascinating video! Thank you so much for your passion and hardwork in sharing these glorious videos! ❤❤❤❤
We think they were there for a month and Patrick was limited to movement while his eye healed. He could only sit up for a short amount of time each day. It must have been so hard for him. I have spoken to a few people who have had cataract surgery and they say it is easy, pain free and quick. Can you imagine if they only had the options Patrick had, who would get it done? Thank you, as always, for watching and coming along with me. Your support means a lot to me.
I had no idea that Patrick Bronte needed eye surgery. Thank you for discussing this topic and sharing with us what it was like at that time! Great video as usual!
Thank you for watching. Poor Patrick, he never had it easy it seems.
This is such a fascinating topic! I must admit I felt a little creeped out thinking about aspects of the surgery and also Patrick having leeches on his face! 🙈
Thank goodness cataract surgery has come such a long way! My mom had one done and will have to have another down the road. She said it wasn’t as bad an experience as she thought it would be and her recovery was fairly easy. Patrick sure was a strong person.
We are so lucky now, so many people would be totally blind now if it wasn't was modern medicine. Amazing. The amount of outtakes of me going "yuck" was silly, it creeped me out too and normally this sort of stuff doesn't bother me. Patrick was one tough cookie.
This is such a great episode Kate. This story has always fascinated me and I’m so glad you did a video on it!! (I’d have had a real Guinness in that cup 😆)
Thanks Tez, maybe there needs to be a Guinness Coffee??
Thanks for another great video Kate. Having watched many RUclips videos of cataract operations, I have wondered just how it was for Patrick, and I did some reading on the history of this operation. While today the capsule containing the lens is left in place, and it's contents liquidised using ultrasound and sucked out, to be replaced by a plastic lens slipped into the capsule, in Patrick's time the whole lens and capsule would have been pushed back into the eye, where hopefully it fell to the bottom and did not interfere with vision. This is known as 'couching' and, to my surprise, has a history going back a very long way - to the 5th century BC! Without a lens, very strong positive glasses would be needed to focus; which would have been available to him.
Today, antibiotic drops are used afterwards to minimise the risk of infection, but they would not have been available to Patrick. Apart from that, and the need to keep the eye clean, I see no reason why his recovery need have been so different from today, when folk go home with vision restored straight away. Keeping the eye protected from light, once the Belladonna wore off after a few hours seems to serve no purpose as far as I can see. Belladonna contains Atropine, which is still used today, just in purified form, to dilate the iris, alongside other variants that are just slower or faster acting.
I have wondered just what Patrick's vision would be like, after recovery. Assuming that he didn't also have serious macular degeneration, it should have been possible for him to see quite clearly, but a basic understanding of optics suggests that with the exterior lenses doing all the work, in front of the eye, the iris would have cast a shadow, which would close in to give him only central vision in bright light, but expand as his iris opened in dim light - a bit weird!
Couching is still widespread apparently, in Africa, where modern medicine is scarce, and I've just watched an operation being performed in Nigeria that would be very much like that experienced by Patrick, except that they do use 'topical' anesthesia! You can see this at the Burkhard Dick channel under 'Couching Today', and there are other channels showing it.
I wonder whether Patrick described the vision he experienced after the operation when he wrote about it?
If I seem obsessed with the science of this, I assure you that I am as passionate as you are about the whole Bronte story, and have been for many years - I prefer to say Bronte, not 'Bronte Sisters' as I think Branwell deserves more credit than he gets for starting the sisters off on story-telling, and I was pleased to see his story told realistically for once in the excellent 'To Walk Invisible'.
Oh, and my ancestors lived in Baildon, not many miles from Haworth, and yes, I do love my tea, Yorkshire of course.😀
This is brilliant, you have explained it all so well, thank you. I tried to talk with an Ophthalmologist about this but had no luck finding one that knew their history of cataract procedures that far back or I might have gone into it a bit more. Was worried, with my none science mind, I wouldn't get the info right. Thank you for sharing this with all of us because it helps us understand more of Patrick's procedure. Reading a little more of Christmas it seems poor Patrick suffered with his eyes after with swellings and pain, if this was from the operation I don't know.
Agree, Branwell was a bit part of the Bronte world and I have plans to discuss him more soon.
And finally and most importantly, good to hear you are a Yorkshire Tea drinker.
Thanks again for your comment and for watching and being part of this brilliant community.
Wowsy wow very informative episode. Thanks a lot Kate.
Thank you, I'm glad you liked it. Can't beat a chat on eyes and leeches. :-)
Another very informative video and I am cringing right along with you! I've always been so relieved for all of them that Patrick's treatment worked.
My poor husband hates anything to do with eyes so I wont let him watch this video. Eyes don't bother me but even I (good pun) felt the shivers talking about it. Thank you for watching.
You do so much research to put together all this information, thank you very interesting 😊
I have little notes all around the house and on my phone. I think of things and then have to write it down. I read a lot and enjoy the process so much it doesn't feel like I'm working. Thank you for your kind words. x
Thank you 😊
Thanks again. I am pleased you enjoyed it.
Another excellent video! I loved it! Oh, and Happy New Year!
Thank you and Happy New Year to you too. Glad you enjoyed it.
I'd love to visit The Salutation pub! It's amazing that it's still there, amongst all the modern buildings ❤ I've just looked it up on Google maps, there are some photos of the ceiling of the pub that has a unique period feature design on it, I wonder if that was there when they were there? Fascinating ❤❤
All I am going to say is....watch this space. :-) x
@brontesistersuk ❤️❤️
Thanks
Thank you so much, this is so kind of you. xx
What a very interesting vidio well they all are
I thought you might be interested i have just come across a sampler that Charlotte stitched at age just 6 years old i had know idea that she did such a thing im a big fan of antique samplers myself
Funny you should talk about samplers, I was looking into them myself the other day. Six, wow, I don't think I could have done that at six. Will google that now. Thank you for this and for watching my video.
Fascinating! BTW, leeches are still used in certain medical situations. I recently had a patient who was getting leech therapy.
When I was looking into where the leeches were put after eye surgery I saw an article about them being used still. Couldn't help but imagine a medical leech farm with them all lined up being raised and educated in what to do. :-)
Hope the coffee helped telling the process of his surgery and recovery.
It is a rare thing for me to have a coffee but I was so tired and hadn't had much sleep. I was like a child on too many sweets after though. :-)
@brontesistersuk I had an espresso once. I can relate!
Did I mishear you Kate or did you call the Salutation Inn the Salvation? P.S Keep up the good work 👍
Knowing me, I probably did. 😆 I am well know for getting my words muddled up. Thank you was watching and apologise for my creative use of words.
Удаление катаракты - древнейшая операция. Зубную боль лечили, разжевывая семена гвоздичного дерева, очень эффективное средство. Я не знаю, сколько они стоили во времена 19 века, но сейчас они доступны, сама пользуюсь
Clove Oil is used for toothache still here but I don't think it is as fashionable as it used to be. I assume chewing Cloves was a cheep option in the 19th century. Thanks for watching.
It must have been hard for Patrick to recover his sight only to see what a mess Branwell had become. 😢
Have you watched 'To Walk Invisible'. Branwell was not just a 'tortured soul', he despised his father and raged at him for his stupid religion and yet was forced to grow up tutored by him, and later on, as an adolescent, to sleep in the same room with his father watching over him! I'm with Elizabeth Gaskell who had a harsh view of Patrick. While Emily, who also rejected her father's religion, was able to find quiet and isolation and carve her own path and think her own thougts while fulfilling her duty peeling potatoes, Branwell was expected to go out into the world and make his own way. He was also caught up in Freemasonry, as was his father - a whole other story that is rarely talked about, but may have played a part in those events that so upset him. Emily in particular, showed compassion for Branwell in his suffering.
@lindosland I have the seen the film, yes.
As far as religion goes, I think Rev Brontë was a bit more lenient than other Evangelicals. He believed in universal salvation, which influenced Anne and Charlotte's views. He was against the strict Calvinism that was preached at Lowood School. And while he was anti-Catholic like many clergymen of the day, he still supported Catholic Emancipation. Juliet Barker was correct in saying that Mrs Gaskell's portrayal of him is not an accurate portrait. His faith drove him to do a lot of good things for the people of Haworth.
Emily may not have attended church as frequently as her sisters, but unlike Branwell, she was definitely not an atheist. Some of her poems have a deeply religious tone, albeit she felt closer to God in nature than in conventional doctrine.
At least he had a month away in peace before heading back home. Watching you son go through what Branwell did must be the hardest thing for any parent.
Thats addition isn't it, it turns you into a completely different person.
@@Artfanbookfan25 If Patrick was against the strict Calvinism preached at Cowan Bridge school (Lowood was the fictional version) then why did he send his daughters there? Carus-Wilson, the school's founder, was Patrick's friend so Patrick knew his views.
Why did Charlotte keep her literary ambitions from her father until after publication? I suggest that an important reason was that she ruthlessly exposed the horrors of the school, as Lowood, and wanted to put down her true feelings unchallenged by her father, until after publication. She insisted later, when challenged, that it was a true account.
Why was Emily so furious with Charlotte when the latter discovered her poems in her private box? Because those poems contain her deepest thoughts that she knew would neither be understood nor approved of by Charlotte or her father. This was a family at war, and all the books tell that story to some extent - Wuthering Heights, Jane Eyre, Tennant of Wildfell Hall .
Juliet Barker is someone who likes facts, and writing history, but in my opinion is not very good at deducing things about people and relationships - joining the dots. I met her at one of her talks and was surprised when I tried to point out the dissent in the family over Christianity that she would only say, 'they all disliked the hypocrisy'. No, it was much more than that. Later I was shocked to read her book, 'The Deafening Sound of Silence', about a school for disturbed children that she supports, which, to my mind, indoctrinates the kids with religion in an unacceptable way that almost looks like a milder version of Cowan Bridge! She, like many biographers of the Brontes, is a dedicated Christian, something that I think restricts us to a sanitised version.
While Emily could not be called an atheist, she despised the religion of her father (and she did witness the cruelty at the school as a young pupil). She refused to teach in the Sunday School. Her poems leave no doubt about this: 'Vain are the thousand creeds; worthless as withered weeds', she says in her final poem, 'No Coward Soul is Mine'. Yes, God was 'within her breast' but that was no conventional god, more like Nature. Her 'devoirs', the Belgian French essays give us great understanding about this- 'The Butterfly', in particular shows that she was searching for an explanation along the lines of evolutionary thought, for the cruelty of nature. We have over 200 of her poems, and seven devoirs, giving us a lot more insight than many realise into who she really was. She didn't just leave us 'Wuthering Heights'.