North and South (1854 novel)

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A Penguin cover of North and South

North and South is a novel by Elizabeth Gaskell, first published in 1854. It originally appeared as a serial in the magazine Household Words. The title indicates a major theme of the book: the contrast between the way of life in the industrial north of England and the wealthier south, although it was only under pressure from her publishers that Gaskell changed the title from its original, Margaret Hale.

North and South presents, as the title suggests, a contrast between the old agricultural gentry of the south of England and the new industrialists of the north. As the wife of a Unitarian minister in Manchester, Elizabeth Gaskell herself worked among the poor and knew at first hand the misery of the industrial areas.

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

The book is a social novel that tries to show the industrial North and its conflicts in the mid-19th century as seen by an outsider, a socially sensitive lady from the South. The story: the heroine, Margaret Hale, is the daughter of a Nonconformist minister who moves to the fictional industrial town of Milton after leaving the Church of England. The town is modelled after Manchester, where Gaskell lived as the wife of a Unitarian minister.

The change of lifestyle shocks Margaret, who sympathizes deeply with the poverty of the workers and comes into conflict with John Thornton, the owner of a local mill, also a friend of her father. After an encounter with a group of strikers, in which Margaret attempts to protect Thornton from the violence, he proposes to her, telling her that he is in love with her; she rejects his proposal of marriage, mainly because she sees it as if it were out of obligation for what she had done. Later, he sees her with her fugitive brother, whom he mistakes for another suitor, and this creates further unresolved conflict. Margaret, once she believes she has lost his affection, begins to see him in another light, and eventually they are reunited.

[edit] Television adaptations

Two television serials based on Gaskell's novel were produced by the BBC. 1975's North and South featured Rosalind Shanks as Margaret Hale and Patrick Stewart as John Thornton. 2004's North and South featured Daniela Denby-Ashe and Richard Armitage respectively in these roles.