"[Brandon] never loses her profound empathy and passion for her subjects'' travails." -- Kirkus Reviews "If there is a heroic governess in Brandon''s survey--a woman able to triumph over the strictures of the position--it is a third Wollstonecraft sister, Mary.Wollstonecraft''s political writings and romantic entanglements have made her story well-known, but Brandon''s view of her through the prism of governessing makes it fresh. Brandon''s governess chronicles are poignant.Nowadays, when the academy is stocked with feminists who fret about patriarchal depredations that escape the notice of everybody else, it is important to remember what a great, necessary and arduous achievement the education of women was. These governesses still have something to teach us." -- Wall Street Journal "Brandon''s governess chronicles are poignant.Nowadays, when the academy is stocked with feminists who fret about patriarchal depredations that escape the notice of everybody else, it is important to remember what a great, necessary and arduous achievement the education of women was.
These governesses still have something to teach us." -- Wall Street Journal "A masterly survey.even when donning her sociologist"s hat, [Brandon] is still lively as well as humane.a book about what might have been a worthy dry topic instead fairly sizzling with fascination." -- Washington Times "Brandon presents a poignant portrait of governesses in 18th- and 19th-century England. Using letters, journals, and other writings of the time, she sheds light on the female circumstance by showing how these women, some of whom eventually became famous, lived and wrote about their solitary lives in the employment of wealthy families.As a biographer, she provides brilliantly detailed backgrounds on her subjects, leaving the reader wanting still more.a very interesting look into the struggle to create parity between the sexes in this era, especially regarding education.
Recommended for both public and academic libraries." -- Library Journal "Brandon offers plenty of absorbing nuggets about the travails of governesses, particularly among the insecure English middle classes who sought to imitate aristocratic lifestyles. But as Brandon acknowledges, her subjects (who also include, among others, Anna Leonowens, who inspired The King and I) are exceptional rather than representative of the average 19th-century unmarried woman compelled to spend a lifetime in service. And much in these well-written biographical sketches is far outside the boundaries of the women''s experiences as governesses." -- Publishers Weekly "[Brandon] never loses her profound empathy and passion for her subjects'' travails." -- Kirkus Reviews "Beautifully told, effortlessly thoughtful." -- (UK Telegraph) "The accounts of these women''s lives are riveting, and the conclusions of this excellent book thoughtful and beautifully expressed." -- (UK) Independent "Brandon''s book addresses a remarkably interesting subject, exploring the real-life experiences that supplied so rich a vein of literature.
It has numerous ramifications, and the surrounding subjects of the drive for women''s formal education and the oppressive legal nature that the 19th-century alternative of marriage was formed by are covered as well." -- (UK) Spectator "My personal lead title has to be Ruth Brandon''s excellent GOVERNESS. With Jane Eyre echoing throughout the text, Brandon describes the lives of governesses . a most worthwhile subject, revealing the truth about a profession most of us encounter only through fiction." -- (UK) Publishing News history issue "Engrossing." -- (UK) Literary Review "This fascinating history paints a vivid picture, from Mary Wollstonecraft and the Brontës to Anna Leonowens (the inspiration for The King and I)." -- (UK) Sainsbury''s Magazine.