North and South

by Elizabeth Gaskell, Kathryn White (Introduction)

Overview

Designed to appeal to the book lover, the Macmillan Collector's Library is a series of beautifully bound pocket-sized gift editions of much loved classic titles. Bound in real cloth, printed on high quality paper, and featuring ribbon markers and gilt edges, Macmillan Collector's Library are books to love and treasure.

North and South is a wonderful blend of social comment on the dramatic changes in society brought about by the industrial revolution and a compelling love story. Written from the author's first-hand experience, the novel follows the story of Margaret Hope, the young heroine, in her move from the tranquil setting in rural southern England to the raw and turbulent northern town of Milton. Margaret takes an instant dislike to her new home and its people. She hates the dirt, noise and lack of civilisation. Her distaste extends to handsome and charismatic cotton mill owner John Thornton whom she believes epitomises everything unpleasant about the North. However, as Margaret gradually begins to settle in Milton, she learns about the poverty and workplace struggles. As events conspire to throw Margaret and Thornton together, the two spirited characters have to overcome their repressed physical attraction for one another and conquer prejudices of class and circumstance. The passion and the history embedded in this narrative is as appealing and engrossing today as when it was first published.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781509827947
Publisher:	Macmillan Collector's Library
Publication date:	06/06/2017
Edition description:	Reissue
Pages:	656
Sales rank:	299,259
Product dimensions:	3.70(w) x 6.00(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

Along with short stories and a biography of Charlotte Brontë, Elizabeth Gaskell (1810–1865) published five more novels including Mary Barton (1848) and Wives and Daughters (1865). Jenny Uglow is the author of Elizabeth Gaskell and Hogarth—both shortlisted for the Whitbread Prize; The Lunar Men, which won the PEN Hessel-Tiltman prize and James Tait Black Memorial Prize; and Nature’s Engraver.

Table of Contents

About Author:

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

Chapter 38

Chapter 39

Chapter 40

Chapter 41

Chapter 42

Chapter 43

Chapter 44

Chapter 45

Chapter 46

Chapter 47

Chapter 48

Chapter 49

Chapter 50

Chapter 51

Chapter 52

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"[An] admirable story … full of character and power"
—Charles Dickens

Reading Group Guide

1. Why do Margaret’s parents allow her to shoulder such heavy burdens – her father’s crisis of faith and her mother’s illness – at such a young age?

2. Why does Margaret not tell her mother and father about Mr Lennox and Mr Thornton’s proposals? Why does she have to wait to be asked directly by her father?

3. 'North and South explores themes that still seem strikingly modern' (Daily Mail). Do you think that the attitudes expressed in the novel about the north and south divide are relevant today?

4. Why is Margaret prejudiced against the industrialists of the time? How important is social class to the novel?

5. Who is the better Mother – Mrs Hale, Mrs Thornton or Mrs Shaw?

6. The scene where Margaret stands between Mr Thornton and the striking workers is a turning point in the tale. What motivates Margaret’s to put herself in this vulnerable - both emotionally and physically - situation?

7. Margaret is a strong female heroine. Do you think this is unusual in a Victorian novel? Why does Elizabeth Gaskell contrast Margaret so dramatically with the other girls of her age in the book for example Edith, Fanny and Bessy?

8. The original title of the book was Margaret Hale and it was only under pressure from her publishers that Gaskell changed the title to North and South. Do you think this was the right decision to make? Do you think you would read the novel differently if it had its original title?

9. Elizabeth Gaskell describes Mr Thornton as ‘large and strong and tender, and yet a master’. Do you agree with her description? Can you be tender and a master? Does Mr Thornton prove this?

10. Was Margaret right to lie to the police officer? Do you think she should have told Mr Thornton the truth straight away?

11. Look at Margaret’s relationship with the Higginses and compare it to Mr Thornton’s relationship to them. What are the differences and the similarities? Who gains the most from the connection – Margaret, Mr Thornton or the Higgins?

12. Both Margaret and Thornton know that their families will not approve of the marriage. Are they right to marry? Can they be happy?

Foreword

1. Why do Margaret’s parents allow her to shoulder such heavy burdens – her father’s crisis of faith and her mother’s illness – at such a young age?

2. Why does Margaret not tell her mother and father about Mr Lennox and Mr Thornton’s proposals? Why does she have to wait to be asked directly by her father?

3. 'North and South explores themes that still seem strikingly modern' (Daily Mail). Do you think that the attitudes expressed in the novel about the north and south divide are relevant today?

4. Why is Margaret prejudiced against the industrialists of the time? How important is social class to the novel?

5. Who is the better Mother – Mrs Hale, Mrs Thornton or Mrs Shaw?

6. The scene where Margaret stands between Mr Thornton and the striking workers is a turning point in the tale. What motivates Margaret’s to put herself in this vulnerable - both emotionally and physically - situation?

7. Margaret is a strong female heroine. Do you think this is unusual in a Victorian novel? Why does Elizabeth Gaskell contrast Margaret so dramatically with the other girls of her age in the book for example Edith, Fanny and Bessy?

8. The original title of the book was Margaret Hale and it was only under pressure from her publishers that Gaskell changed the title to North and South. Do you think this was the right decision to make? Do you think you would read the novel differently if it had its original title?

9. Elizabeth Gaskell describes Mr Thornton as ‘large and strong and tender, and yet a master’. Do you agree with her description? Can you betender and a master? Does Mr Thornton prove this?

10. Was Margaret right to lie to the police officer? Do you think she should have told Mr Thornton the truth straight away?

11. Look at Margaret’s relationship with the Higginses and compare it to Mr Thornton’s relationship to them. What are the differences and the similarities? Who gains the most from the connection – Margaret, Mr Thornton or the Higgins?

12. Both Margaret and Thornton know that their families will not approve of the marriage. Are they right to marry? Can they be happy?

Editorial Reviews

"A really remarkable picture of the reality, as well as the prosperity, of northern industrial life, and an interesting examination of changing social conscience."  —Joanna Trollope, author, Second Honeymoon


"Gaskell saw the emotional and economic realities of ordinary life with a steely honesty."  —The Times



"Pah! to Dickens. Eat your heart out, Little Nell. That Elizabeth Gaskell could write a death scene to make your socks melt."  —Scotsman



"One of the most perceptive novels of the mid-Victorian era."  —Glasgow Herald

From the Publisher

Mrs. Gaskell uses the contrast of northern and southern England as a framework for an indepth examination of Victorian society. Her characters are complex, representing the rising working class, the intelligence, the aristocracy and the clergy. The narrator does an excellent job of rendering dialect differences among characters, adding depth to the story. Through her compassionate voice we are able to feel the conflict, vexation and the introspective struggle of the main characters. The prolonged conversations among characters make listening somewhat tedious, but the listener will be rewarded by persevering to the end. J.K.R. ©AudioFile, Portland, Maine

DEC 94 - AudioFile