This book explores how Elizabeth Gaskell''s writing is rich with insights into the law of her time, and to read her work with a lawyer''s eye deepens and enriches the experience of that work. Elizabeth Gaskell wrote against the backdrop of the mid-19th century, a period of rapid industrialisation and democratic reform. Her place in the canon of English literature is well-established and secure. She is best known today for her two industrial novels, Mary Barton (1848) and North and South (1855), and for the charming vignettes of Cranford (1853). She was, however, a far more prolific, and more adventurous author than these works might suggest. Her other writings include three further novels, Ruth (1853), Sylvia''s Lovers (1863) and Wives and Daughters (1866, posthumous), a biography of Charlotte Bronte (1857), novellas such as Cousin Phillis (1864) and Six Weeks at Heppenheim (1862) and extensive shorter fiction. Her work goes beyond the immediate contemporary context and engages with profound questions about obedience to law, and law''s place among multiple systems of obligation and incentive. Her work shows a skilled, accurate and critical handling of legal rules and a sensitivity to law''s personal and social effects. Part of Gaskell''s genius as novelist is that she manages to integrate this sophisticated engagement with law seamlessly. As a leading scholar of Victorian legal history Paul Mitchell brings an in-depth knowledge of the law to his reading of Gaskell. He has unearthed a wealth of fascinating material which reveals the richness and sophistication of Gaskell''s engagement with the law across her writing.

Autorentext
Paul Mitchell is Professor of Law at University College London, UK.

Klappentext

This is the first ever study of law in the fiction of Elizabeth Gaskell. Elizabeth Gaskell is best known today as a novelist of social realism. Until now, however, her use of law, which is crucial to her portrait of society, has never been systematically explored. This book shows that Gaskell's fiction is rich with insights into the law of her time, and that reading her work with a lawyer's eye deepens and enriches the reading experience. The book explores Gaskell's work as a whole. It gives careful attention to her most famous novels, but also engages with the lesser-known novels and the shorter fiction, showing that these often overlooked works contain a wealth of original ideas and legal interest. Gaskell's fiction is shown consistently demonstrating a skilled, accurate and critical handling of legal rules and a sensitivity to law's personal and social effects. She does not limit herself to mid-nineteenth century issues, but enters into such fundamental questions as the individual's obligation to obey the law, and the relation between law and fiction. The book shows that a hitherto unappreciated aspect of Gaskell's genius as writer is that she integrates this sophisticated engagement with law seamlessly, so that it contributes to the cumulative artistic effect of her work. As a leading scholar of Victorian legal history, Paul Mitchell brings an in-depth knowledge of the law to his close readings of Gaskell. He brings out the richness and sophistication of Gaskell's engagement with the law, and proposes both new readings and new valuations of this important novelist's work.

Inhalt

1. Introduction
   
   2. Mary Barton
   3. Ruth
   4. North and South
   5. Six Weeks at Heppenheim
   6. Tenancies: Flitting and "The Squire's Story"
   7. Attorneys I: The Moorland Cottage
   8. Attorneys II: A Dark Night's Work
   9. The Manchester Marriage
   10. My Lady Ludlow
   11. Sylvia's Lovers
   12. Conclusion