Book Description
Elizabeth Gaskell's Use of Color in Her Industrial Novels and Short Stories presents Gaskell's incorporation of Ruskin's moral theory of color to set the tone in her tales as she illustrates the dreary, monotonous existence of nineteenth century industrial workers. Wildt demonstrates the use of various shades, tints, and hues of color to set moral tone, express character feelings, and to foreshadow events as Gaskell establishes and sustains mood in her short stories, and to a greater extent, in her industrial novels. She points out the use of color for foreshadowing events, expressing character's feelings in defining character in "Mary Barton, North and South," and "Ruth". Focusing on Gaskell's repeated use of the storm cloud motif, Wildt notes its presence on physical and emotional levels to illustrate the bleakness of the trapped condition of working women in the mid-nineteenth century, and that it anticipates Ruskin's future use of "The Storm Cloud."
About the Author
Katherine Ann Wildt is Professor of English at Missouri Valley College.
Elizabeth Gaskell's Use of Color in Her Industrial Novels and Short Stories FROM THE PUBLISHER
Elizabeth Gaskell's Use of Color in Her Industrial Novels and Short Stories presents Gaskell's incorporation of Ruskin's moral theory of color to set the tone in her tales as she illustrates the dreary, monotonous existence of nineteenth century industrial workers. Wildt demonstrates the use of various shades, tints, and hues of color to set moral tone, express character feelings, and to foreshadow events as Gaskell establishes and sustains mood in her short stories, and to a greater extent, in her industrial novels. She points out the use of color for foreshadowing events, expressing character's feelings in defining character in "Mary Barton, North and South," and "Ruth". Focusing on Gaskell's repeated use of the storm cloud motif, Wildt notes its presence on physical and emotional levels to illustrate the bleakness of the trapped condition of working women in the mid-nineteenth century, and that it anticipates Ruskin's future use of "The Storm Cloud."
Author Biography: Katherine Ann Wildt is Professor of English at Missouri Valley College.
FROM THE CRITICS
Booknews
Gaskell, author of and has recently been reappraised for her accurate reportage of social conflict in English society during the Industrial Revolution. The author of this book, however, focuses upon Gaskell's skill as an artist of details. She finds that Gaskell was influenced by art critic John Ruskin and made considerable use of his notion of colors as representations of moral elements in artistic creations. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
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