Addition to our website

A whole new webpage has been added to the website of the Brussels Brontë Group. On our Picture Gallery page, you will discover a new album, called Old Prints & Lithographs. It consists of several pages, showing wonderful images of Brussels and the surrounding area of the 1830’s and 1840’s. Some you may never have seen before.

If you have not yet seen all of our other pages, don’t forget to have a look; it has really interesting information on other historical themes, such as Brussels in the mid 19th Century and information on Charlotte and Emily Brontë, the Heger family and the Brussels novels; all with wonderful illustrations. Have a pleasurable exploration!

The 'Grand Bassin' in the park.

EMILY BRONTË: DEVOIRS DE BRUXELLES

A new publication, solely devoted to the devoirs Emily wrote during her time in Brussels, is being released this month in France.

DEVOIRS DE BRUXELLES

Emily Brontë

Commentaries by Augustin Trapenard

Date : 10/09/2008

Publisher: Editions Mille et Une NuitsCollection : La Petite Collection

ISBN: 9782755500677

Format (105 x 150)

Pages : 64
Price : €2,50 (available at Amazon.fr)

Résumé.
Ces neuf textes écrits sous la tutelle du professeur belge Constantin Héger ont été rédigés en français par E. Brontë lors d'un séjour dans un pensionnat de Bruxelles en 1842. Avec leurs fautes et leurs maladresses, ils mettent en lumière l'enseignement de la langue, de la rhétorique et de la littérature aux jeunes filles de bonne famille dans l'Europe du XIXe siècle.

En 1842, Emily Brontë (1818-1848) quitte l'Angleterre avec sa soeur Charlotte pour parfaire son éducation dans un pensionnat de jeunes filles à Bruxelles. Durant neuf mois, elle reçoit l'enseignement d'un professeur charismatique, Constantin Héger, qui lui apprend à écrire le français.Neuf des devoirs d'Emily ont été retrouvés. Truffés de fautes et de maladresses, ce sont les rédactions d'une étudiante de vingt-trois ans, qui résite tant bien que mal à l'autorité et à la rigueur de la langue française.Inédits en France, ces textes suggèrent déjà tout le talent de l'auteur des Hauts de Hurle-Vent, son unique roman.

Les premières lignes
Emily J. Brontë

Mai 15th 1842

Le chat.

Je puis dire avec sincérité, que j'aime les chats ; aussi je sais rendre des très bonnes raisons, pourquoi ceux qui les haïssent, ont tort.Un chat est un animal qui a plus des sentiments humains que presque tout autre être. Nous ne pouvons soutenir une comparaison avec le chien, il est infiniment trop bon : (mais) mais le chat, encore qu'il diffère en quelques points physiques, est extrêmement semblable à nous en dispositionIl peut être des gens, en vérité, qui diraient que cette ressemblance ne lui approche qu'aux hommes les plus méchants ; qu'elle est bornée à son excès d'hypocrisie, de cruauté, et d'ingratitude ; vices détestables dans notre race et également odieux en celle des chats.Sans disputer les limites que ces individus mettent à notre affinité, je réponds, que si l'hypocrisie, de cruauté et l'ingratitude sont exclusivement la propriété des méchants, cette classe renferme tout le monde ; notre éducation développe une de ces qualités en grande perfection, les autres fleurissent sans soins, et loin de les condamner, nous regardons tous les trois, avec beaucoup de complaisance. Un chat, pour son intérêt propre cache quelquefois sa misanthropie sous une apparence de douceur très aimable ; au lieu d'ar­racher ce qu'il désire de la main de son maître il s'approche d'un air caressant, frotte sa jolie petite tête contre lui, et avance une patte dont la touche est douce comme le (che) duvet. Lorsqu'il est venu à bout, il reprend son caractère de Timon, et cette finesse est nommée l'hypocrisie en lui, en nous mêmes, nous lui donnons un autre nom, c'est la politesse et celui qui ne l'employait pas pour déguiser ses vrais sentiments serait bientôt chassé de société.

Bekende Buitenlanders in Brussel: de zusjes Brontë

While I surfed on the internet, which I don’t do that often and therefore notice things rather late, I stumbled across a small radio fragment from Radio Vlaanderen Internationaal. Roel Jacobs, who was one of our speakers during our conference last April, is talking about the Brontës in Brussels, who feature in a program about foreigners in Brussels: “Bekende Buitenlanders in Brussel: de zusjes Brontë”. One can listen to this fragment and read more about it by clicking on this link: http://www.rvi.be/rvi_master/specials/rvi_specials_bbb_brontes/index.shtml

Scroll down the page till you read Roel Jacobs over het verblijf van de Brontë-zusjes in Brussels and click on it; a new window will open and you need to click on “naar de radiospeler” and the radiofragment will start after it has been connected to the medialink.
It takes only 4 minutes or so, and I’m afraid it’s only in Dutch.

A step back in time in Broadstairs

The Dickens Museum in Broadstairs

Sheila Fordham acquired some background for the books on our 19th century reading group list by sampling a historical town tour with a difference in the Kentish seaside resort of Broadstairs so loved by Dickens. The tour brings to life the Napoleonic and Victorian periods in particular.

(Books on our list for 2008-09 include David Copperfield, Pride and Prejudice, Wuthering Heights)

While on holiday in Kent at the quaint resort of Broadstairs this summer my stepmother, daughter and I were lucky enough to get a place on the popular St Peter´s Village Tour. I have tried several times before and never been successful. It was well worth the wait. I can recommend the walks to all those who enjoy history. The tour starts and ends at the village church, as is only fitting as the church was such an important part of life, and of course includes a break for tea and biscuits half-way round in true English village fashion.

The tour, which has won several tourist awards in Kent, consists of a guide who takes you round the village (St Peter´s is the next village to Broadstairs, only a few minutes' walk away but with its own unique personality) telling you interesting stories about the history of St Peter´s, while meanwhile various characters dressed in period costume appear from behind a wall or walk up to you along the road and tell you their own particular story. It is such a simple idea but really brings history to life. Some of the characters looked as if they had stepped out of one of Dickens´ novels themselves. One of them was a soldier from around the time of the Napoleonic Wars, who was checking on us to make sure there were no French spies in the party. He asked whether anyone spoke French - and as nobody else said anything, before I could stop myself I had shouted out "Oui, un peu". From that moment on I was a marked woman - he was keeping an eye on me in case I was a spy. It was strange to think that at that time the threat of an invasion by Napoleon and his army was taken very seriously.

You caught the flavour also of how much smuggling of tobacco and alcohol was going on along the coast in those days. It was a long way from London and the revenue men were not always there to check what was going on. There were many tunnels and cellars used to transport and keep smuggled goods which are probably still in existence today. Shipwrecks were good opportunities for ordinary people to get something of value and it was hinted that some wrecks were planned.

Society did try to help its less fortunate members, for example in the Workhouse, but conditions were very harsh, as they did not want to encourage people to go there unless absolutely necessary. One poor character had stolen some wine and was the worse for wear and when taken to task by the benefactors of the Workhouse, pointed at me and said that I had given her the bottle. It was very funny - I was really in the swing of things by then and would have liked to join the party of players myself.

It was a lovely warm Kentish summer afternoon, flowers were in bloom around the village, and the red sloping tiled roofs of the old houses and the old flint walls around the gardens all added to the sights and smells of the afternoon. Our guide unlocked an arched door in one of the walls into the garden beyond. It was like stepping into another world. It was so quiet and peaceful there. In the garden we were shown a row of cottages, one of which had been a school set up for poor children.

All the people who gave their time to the village tour are volunteers and are not professional actors. It is amazing because many of them had the most wonderful speaking voices and acting ability.

I can thoroughly recommend the Village Tour and would love to go on the Churchyard Tour and the War Graves Tour. I am sure there are further stories and characters to be brought to life.

http://www.villagetour.co.uk/

Sheila Fordham

Members of the Brussels group meet Italian member Maddalena De Leo in Amsterdam

Sherry Vosburgh writes:

Italian Bronte Society member and leading light of the Italian Section Maddalena De Leo had the brainwave of meeting Dutch and Belgian group members during her Amsterdam holiday. We all met up at her hotel on July 8 to hear her paper on the Brontës and the Sea - an entertaining and fascinating talk. She took the opportunity to give members copies of her novel for teenagers about Charlotte Brontë, Un@mica del Passato, and also presented the Brussels group with a hand-painted Neapolitan plate to commemorate the event. We then toasted the occasion with champagne also brought from Italy, after which some of us rounded off the day with a delicious Indonesian dinner.

Also present at the meeting were Veronica Metz and other members of the Dutch Celtic Band "Anois" who are setting some of Emily Brontë's poems to music.

I had decided to stay for 3 days and accompanied Maddalena and her delightful family and companions on 2 tours of the Netherlands and we met for dinner several times. Despite the torrential rain we had a good time visiting Amsterdam's many museums. Thank you, Maddalena and Helen, for organising the little jaunt.

Helen MacEwan adds:

It was most interesting to meet Maddalena and learn more about the Italian section, which has of course been around a lot longer than our group - for about 10 years. Many of its leading lights are translators of the Brontës' works into Italian as well as academics and writers: Maddalena herself of Charlotte Brontë's Juvenilia, Franca Gollini of Muriel Spark's biography of Emily Brontë and Silvio Raffo of Brontë poems. Some of the members have of course written original works on the Brontës. Maddalena is a teacher and her novel for teenagers about Charlotte Brontë's ghost contacting a modern teenager contains much information on the Brontës.

Over the years the section has organised events in cities all over Italy. Nowadays they are often held in Milan where a large audience is guaranteed, and sometimes speakers from the UK are invited.

In the photos, the whole group; Sherry Vosburgh, Maddalena De Leo and Helen MacEwan; Maddalena with members of Anois.