Analysis Of The Novel 'Mary Barton' By Elizabeth Gaskell
Mary Barton Chapter 3 close reading
Elizabeth Gaskell , in her first novel Mary Barton aims to show her opinion on the hardships of the working class in the 19th century through the protagonist Mary Barton. The opinions Mary states in chapter 3 about the working class allude to Gaskells reasons for writing the novel which is shown in the preface. In this passage Mary speaks from a working man 's point of view and contrasts the life of workers to millowners who, to the workers, never seems to have any troubles. Gaskells political position can be questioned as she can 't be seen as radical however also voices her diverse opinion. However an activist for the right of workers is shown through the character John Barton who turns …show more content…
Throughout this passage Gaskell through the voice of Mary Barton compares the lives of the working class and millowners and how this also effects their families. The poor are portrayed as bitter toward their employers as their lives are seen to them as a perfect picture as they struggle to survive. A contrast that can be seen when assessing their living situations is 'removing from house to house, each one grander than the last, till he ends in building one more magnificent than all '(Gaskell
1848:22), this is described as a 'bewildering thing ' to a worker. This is compared to workers families being 'obliged to live in rooms or cellars '(p.23). Gaskell here is not only showing a simple comparison through the voice of Mary but also hinting at her own opinion of how workers view their situation in comparison to their masters. It could be seen that Gaskell is patronising towards the working class as she believes they are not educated enough to understand their situation fully, it is almost evident that if they were educated then they could accept their role in society. As Gaskell was an upper class citizen however, it was forward thinking for the 19th century to form a sympathetic opinion
Elizabeth Gaskell , in her first novel Mary Barton aims to show her opinion on the hardships of the working class in the 19th century through the protagonist Mary Barton. The opinions Mary states in chapter 3 about the working class allude to Gaskells reasons for writing the novel which is shown in the preface. In this passage Mary speaks from a working man 's point of view and contrasts the life of workers to millowners who, to the workers, never seems to have any troubles. Gaskells political position can be questioned as she can 't be seen as radical however also voices her diverse opinion. However an activist for the right of workers is shown through the character John Barton who turns …show more content…
Throughout this passage Gaskell through the voice of Mary Barton compares the lives of the working class and millowners and how this also effects their families. The poor are portrayed as bitter toward their employers as their lives are seen to them as a perfect picture as they struggle to survive. A contrast that can be seen when assessing their living situations is 'removing from house to house, each one grander than the last, till he ends in building one more magnificent than all '(Gaskell
1848:22), this is described as a 'bewildering thing ' to a worker. This is compared to workers families being 'obliged to live in rooms or cellars '(p.23). Gaskell here is not only showing a simple comparison through the voice of Mary but also hinting at her own opinion of how workers view their situation in comparison to their masters. It could be seen that Gaskell is patronising towards the working class as she believes they are not educated enough to understand their situation fully, it is almost evident that if they were educated then they could accept their role in society. As Gaskell was an upper class citizen however, it was forward thinking for the 19th century to form a sympathetic opinion