Elizabeth Gaskell’s literary fame rests mainly on novels like Wives and Daughters, Cranford and North and South. Gaskell’s penultimate novel, Sylvia’s Lovers was published in 1863. This much overlooked novel exhibits some of the famous English writer’s best qualities, making it a deeply considered mature work.
Sylvia’s Lovers’ Historical Setting
The novel is set in the 1790s, in a coastal town named Monkshaven. (Gaskell based the town on Whitby, a place she actually visited in November 1859.) Much of the political action surrounds the press-gangs of the time, which forcibly enlisted men to fight in the Napoleonic wars.
The main character of the book’s title, Sylvia Robson, lives with her parents Daniel and Bell on a farm. She is loved from afar by her rather practical and prosaic cousin Philip Hepburn.
Sylvia’s romantic feelings, however, are directed at someone else. Charley Kinraid, a ‘specksioneer’ (chief whale harpooner), impresses Sylvia with his vigorous personality and tales of sea life. The two fall in love and become engaged.
Fate steps in when Charley Kinraid is press-ganged into the Royal Navy. Philip witnesses this dramatic incident, but does not reveal all he knows to Sylvia. He essentially allows her to be misled about Kinraid’s sudden and unannounced disappearance. Things then seem to go Philip’s way, until the truth eventually finds its way out.
Main Theme of Sylvia’s Lovers
Sylvia’s Lovers provides a powerful story of sexual tension and unfulfilled relationships. It is a story that has a high level of psychological complexity, one that anticipates the subtle psychological portraits of Gaskell’s next and last novel, Wives and Daughters (1865).
The main theme that Gaskell tackles is the intoxicating effects of sexual attraction. Sylvia chooses the vigorous risk-taker Charley Kinraid over the more pedestrian shop-keeper Philip Hepburn. Her judgement over who would be the better match for her is unbalanced by the heightened sexual attraction she feels for Charley Kinraid.
Charley Kinraid is a romantic figure, yet not entirely reliable. While Philip Hepburn’s obsessive love for Sylvia leads him to make some very bad choices, he is a devoted and practical man who is a rock of support when Sylvia’s family experiences tragedy.
Sylvia’s Lovers shows the pernicious effects sexual desire can have over adult human relationships, and their ramifications for social cohesion. It is these tensions that the novel stretches to breaking point, handling complex emotions and relationships with great skill and artistry.
The reader cannot help but be deeply impressed with the balance and control the author exerts over her story. This is very fine writing.
Problems With Sylvia’s Lovers
There are a few minor problems with the novel. With the last hundred pages or so the action suddenly speeds up, a pace that is at odds with the rest of the novel. It makes the ending of the novel seem like it was written in haste, giving it a somewhat melodramatic feel.
If the last section of the novel did not seem so rushed, then Sylvia’s Lovers would be amongst Gaskell’s very best work. As it stands, this novel comes very close, and should bring much aesthetic pleasure to any reader.
Sylvia’s Lovers, by Elizabeth Gaskell is published by Penguin Classics. ISBN: 978-0-14-043422-4
Chris Saliba - Chris Saliba is a freelance writer. Read more of his workplace articles at chrissalibafreelancewriter.blogspot.com
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