Mary Barton: A Tale of Manchester Life

Gaskell, Elizabeth

ISBN 10: 1551111691 / ISBN 13: 9781551111698

Published by Broadview Press Inc, 2000

Readable copy. Pages may have considerable notes/highlighting. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less. Seller Inventory # G1551111691I5N00

Synopsis:

Mary Barton first appeared in 1848, and has since become one of the best known novels on the ‘condition of England,’ part of a nineteenth-century British trend to understand the enormous cultural, economic and social changes wrought by industrialization. Gaskell’s work had great importance to the labour and reform movements, and it influenced writers such as Charles Dickens, Thomas Carlyle and Charlotte Brontë.

The plot of Mary Barton concerns the poverty and desperation of England’s industrial workers. Fundamentally, however, it revolves around Mary’s personal conflicts. She is already divided between an affection for an industrialist’s son, Henry Carson, and for a man of her own class, Jem Wilson. But Mary’s conflict escalates when her father, a committed trade unionist, is asked to assassinate Henry, who is the son of his unjust employer.

About the Author: Jennifer Foster, a doctoral candidate at the University of Ottawa, is a professional writer and editor who has written on nineteenth-century British literature.

Bibliographic Details

Title: Mary Barton: A Tale of Manchester Life
Publisher: Broadview Press Inc
Publication Date: 2000
Binding: Paperback
Condition: Fair
Dust Jacket Condition: No Jacket