Elizabeth Gaskell

Mary Barton

Elizabeth Stevenson Gaskell was born in 1810. Although her mother died young and she was rejected by her father, Gaskell nonetheless had a happy childhood, living with relatives in a town that later became the inspiration for her book of stories, Cranford & Other Stories. She had a passion for reading and writing, and eventually was sent to boarding school.

From Mary Barton:

“Remember, too, that though it may take much suffering to kill the able-bodied and effective members of society, it does not take much to reduce them to worn, listless, diseased creatures, who thenceforward crawl through life with moody hearts and pain-stricken bodies.”

The early years of her marriage to a Unitarian minister were marred by miscarriages and stillbirths. They successfully raised four daughters, but the death of a baby son sent Elizabeth into a deep depression. To distract her, her husband suggested she write a novel. Mary Barton was published in 1848, anonymously, but it wasn’t long before her identity was unmasked.

Like her contemporary, Charles Dickens, many of Gaskell’s works contrast the lives of rich and poor, and her depiction of poverty was honest and compassionate. She often showed the effects of the Industrial Revolution on ordinary workers whose jobs were lost to the greed of their employers.

Gaskell was great friends with both Dickens and Charlotte Brontë, and wrote the celebrated biography, The Life of Charlotte Brontë. Her final novel, Wives and Daughters, was unfinished when she died. Her death came at a tea party when, in the midst of telling a funny story, she suddenly slumped in her chair, collapsing from a heart attack at fifty-five.

ALSO RECOMMENDED:

Cranford & Other Stories. Charming and humorous, Cranford was first published in Household Words, a weekly magazine started by Charles Dickens in 1850.

Smuggler’s Respite

Mary Barton, after fainting, is resuscitated by a kindly boatman who pours smuggled “Golden Wasser” into her mouth. Goldschlager is a close cousin, but tastes much better!

4 oz. hot coffee

1/4 oz. triple sec

1/4 oz. amaretto

1/4 oz. Irish Cream

1/4 oz. hazelnut liqueur

Dash of cinnamon schnapps (Goldschlager)

Whipped cream (optional)

Chocolate powder (optional)

Mix everything but the coffee and cinnamon schnapps in an Irish coffee glass. Stir in coffee and schnapps. Optional: garnish with whipped cream and chocolate powder. Serves 1.