British Library
British Library: Wuthering Heights: Landscape
Professor John Bowen discusses the harshness of the landscape around Haworth and the central part it plays in the writings of the Bronte sisters. [3:26]
British Library
British Library: Jane Austen's Manuscripts
Professor Kathryn Sutherland explores Jane Austen manuscripts, discussing the significance of her dense handwriting and lack of punctuation. [3:06]
British Library
British Library: Jane Austen: The Novel and Social Realism
Professor Kathryn Sutherland discusses Jane Austen's ground-breaking use of social realism and her focus on the mundanity of everyday life. [5:19]
British Library
British Library: Jane Eyre: The Role of Women
Professor John Bowen explores the central role of women in "Jane Eyre" and the unique role of the governess in 19th-century society. [6:32]
British Library
British Library: Jane Eyre: Fairytale and Realism
Professor John Bowen explains how Charlotte Bronte combines fairytale, Gothic techniques, and realism to give Jane Eyre its unique power. [5:05]
British Library
British Library: Childhood in Jane Eyre
Professor John Bowen and Ann Dinsdale discuss the childhood writings and experiences of the Bronte sisters, exploring how these shaped their later writing in novels such as Jane Eyre. [7:15]
British Library
British Library: Oliver Twist: Depicting Crime and Poverty
In Oliver Twist, Dickens paints a vivid picture of London's criminal underworld, a subject he harnesses both to excite the reader and to explore the effects of social deprivation. [8:10]
British Library
British Library: The Gothic in Great Expectations
"Great Expectations" is a novel full of strange repetitions, hauntings and doublings. In this video, Professor John Bowen explores the work's Gothic motifs. [7:51]
British Library
British Library: The Gothic
Professor John Bowen discusses key motifs in Gothic novels, including the uncanny, the sublime, and the supernatural. [8:51]
British Library
British Library: Jane Austen: Gender and Morality
Professor Kathryn Sutherland considers Jane Austen's portrayal of female characters and her harshly moralistic outlook. [2:26]
British Library
British Library: The Brontes: Life in Haworth
Professor John Bowen and Ann Dinsdale discuss the poor sanitary conditions in Haworth in the 19th century and the mix of rural and industrial influences on the Bronte sisters and their writing. [4:04]
British Library
British Library: The Brontes' Early Writings: Combining Fantasy and Fact
Professor John Bowen and Ann Dinsdale discuss the fantasy worlds of Gondal and Angria, created by the Bronte children, and the lasting influence of these on the sisters' later novels. [7:16]
British Library
British Library: Jane Austen: Public and Private Space
Professor Kathryn Sutherland considers the depiction of public and private spaces in Jane Austen's novels. [2:58]
British Library
British Library: Simon Callow on Dickens as a Performer
Simon Callow discusses Charles Dickens's performances, his abilities as an actor, and the impact of his readings upon his audiences and the wider public. [2:32]
British Library
British Library: Jane Austen: Class and Marriage
Professor Kathryn Sutherland discusses the importance of marriage and its relationship to financial security and social status for women in Jane Austen's novels. [1:28]