Sylvia's Lovers — Complete

"Sylvia's Lovers — Complete" by Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell is a historical novel written in the mid-19th century. The story is set in the coastal town of Monkshaven during the late 18th century and focuses on the complexities of love, social class, and the challenges faced by those involved in the whaling trade. As the narrative unfolds, it centers around Sylvia Robson, her relationships, and the impact of societal pressures, particularly through the backdrop of the press-gang, an enforced recruitment system during wartime. At the start of the novel, the reader is introduced to Monkshaven, depicted vividly with its bustling whaling trade and the inhabitants' intertwined lives. The opening chapters establish Sylvia as a young woman with a strong desire to own her first new cloak while accompanying her friend Molly Corney to town. This hopeful outing is juxtaposed with the heavy tension from the impending press-gang, hinting at the anxieties and dangers that shadow the returns of sailors from the Greenland seas. As gossip spreads about the excitement of the whalers’ return, the atmosphere shifts to one of anxiety and turmoil, setting the stage for the dramatic events that will ensue, reflecting the characters’ struggles against both personal and societal adversities. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell, often referred to as Mrs Gaskell, was an English novelist, biographer, and short story writer. Her novels offer a detailed portrait of the lives of many strata of Victorian society, including the very poor. Her first novel, Mary Barton, was published in 1848. Gaskell's The Life of Charlotte Brontë, published in 1857, was the first biography of Charlotte Brontë. In this biography, she wrote only of the moral, sophisticated things in Brontë's life; the rest she omitted, deciding certain, more salacious aspects were better kept hidden. Among Gaskell's best known novels are Cranford (1851–1853), North and South (1854–1855), and Wives and Daughters (1864–1866), all of which were adapted for television by the BBC.