<p>With all the fuss and fanfare around <em>Wuthering Heights</em>, we’re worried Emily Bronte is getting more than her fair share of attention. So today we shift the SLOB-light to her younger sister Anne, author of the remarkable <em>The Tenant of Wildfell Hall</em>, published in 1848. Anne wrote it in a whirlwind after the successes of <em>Wuthering Heights </em>and <em>Jane Eyre</em>, determined to prove herself a Bronte in talent and spirit.</p><p>And though Anne is now the least celebrated of the Bronte trio, <em>Tenant</em> at the time of its publication it was considered the most shocking in the Bronte collective <em>oevre</em>. Anne had fearlessly pulled back the veil on marital infidelity, domestic violence, alcoholism, and the systemic torments of Victorian masculinity and marriage laws.</p><p>Listeners will spot fascinating overlaps with many of the key scenes and motifs in Emily’s and Charlotte’s writing — like the fact Lord Huntingdon, the violent villain of <em>Tenant</em>, shares his initial with Heathcliff; that he sometimes bears an odd resemblance to Mr. Rochester, and that Wildfell Hall itself has the same initials as Wuthering Heights. But <em>Tenant of Wildfell Hall</em> is also uniquely its own creation, and today Sophie and Jonty get to work unpacking what makes it so extraordinary.</p><p>To wrap this Bronte mini-series up we ask, should <em>Tenant of Wildfell Hall</em> be classed as peak Bronte, the equal of <em>Wuthering Heights </em>and <em>Jane Eyre</em>? And should Emerald Fennell be making <em>Tenant</em> the next stop on her raunchy, irreverent period adaptation-spree?</p><br><p>Become a subscriber by signing up at Apple: <a href="http://apple.co/slob" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">http://apple.co/slob</a></p><p>Or join our Patreon community here: <a href="https://www.patreon.com/c/secretlifeofbookspodcast" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.patreon.com/c/secretlifeofbookspodcast</a></p><p>Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>