From her death until the 1950s, the work of Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell (1810-1865) was largely dismissed by critics like Lord David Cecil as a writer who “makes a creditable effort to overcome her natural deficiencies but all in vain.” Ouch. But fortunately, more discerning critics in the 1950s and 1960s recognized that Elizabeth’s voice often went against prevailing masculine views of the time, paving the way for feminist movements. Many modern critics now list Elizabeth Gaskell in the top ten of Victorian writers for her social conscience, psychological insight, and literary craftmanship.
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- Mothers of Horror (2025)
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