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Before the three Brontë sisters, Charlotte, Emily and Anne, were known as the authors whose literary works we have come to love and admire so much, these daughters of a clergyman had no alternative but to find employment. Like their father, Patrick Brontë, they were ambitious to better themselves in life. The career options open to them were to find work as governesses or schoolteachers, but they longed for independence and nothing gave them more fulfilment than pursuing their private passion of writing. However, being successful authors was still only a dream for the girls. |
Read the letter in which
They wanted to include languages in their curriculum, of which French would be the most important. They were diligent students and dreamed of perfecting their knowledge of the language in a French-speaking school.
| Mary
Taylor, Charlotte’s life-long friend, often wrote of her
continental experiences and after
reading one of her letters Read one of Charlotte's letters, describing Mary's travels. Once the idea had taken root in her mind she could not let it go. She gained support for her scheme by arguing that further education, and in particular a command of foreign languages, would secure the success of their school. She wrote to her aunt, who was the only one within the family to help them financially, in a shrewd bid to enlist her help. Read the letter Furthermore, Charlotte |
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