BRONTE, CHARLOTTE

Additional reading The first biography, Elizabeth C. Gaskell, The Life of Charlotte Bront, 2 vol. (1857), raised controversy and was modified in the third edition (1857, reprinted in 1 vol., 1978); it is indispensable. Winifred Grin, Charlotte Bront: The Evolution of Genius (1967, reprinted 1987), is also standard. Margaret Lane, The Bront Story: A Reconsideration of Mrs. Gaskell's Life of Charlotte Bront (1953, reprinted 1971), interweaves Gaskell's material with later discoveries. Rebecca Fraser, The Bronts: Charlotte Bront and Her Family (1988), makes use of previously unavailable or unused materials. Margot Peters, Unquiet Soul (1975); and Helene Moglen, Charlotte Bront: The Self Conceived (1976, reprinted 1984), are feminist readings. Tom Winnifrith, A New Life of Charlotte Bront (1988), is brief and critical of other biographers. Barbara Timm Gates (comp.), Critical Essays on Charlotte Bront (1990), covers the period 18481988. Especially during the 20th century a formidable body of scholarship has appeared; guides include Anne Passel, Charlotte and Emily Bront: An Annotated Bibliography (1979); R.W. Crump, Charlotte and Emily Bront: A Reference Guide, 3 vol. (198286); and F.B. Pinion, A Bront Companion: Literary Assessment, Background, and Reference (1975).