Agnes Grey

Anne Bronte's debut novel tells the realistic and moving story of a young governess. For well-educated women of lesser means in the mid-nineteenth century, there was only one option for employment that paid decently and provided a sense of dignity: becoming a governess. These young women were tasked with educating the children of the rich in the ways of the world. When the Grey family falls into debt, Agnes is forced to find work as a governess and learns of the misery and cruelty that exist in the landed classes. In her first home, she sees a family with spoiled, abusive children; and in the second, she discovers the misery of the elite, who seem from afar to have everything. Drawing from her own experiences as a governess, Bronte has crafted the story of a young woman named Agnes Grey with warmth and realism. "e;What a fool you must be,"e; said my head to my heart, or my sterner to my softer self."e; Anne Bronte (Agnes Grey)