Chips from a German Workshop: Essays On Literature, Biography, and Antiquities Book

This is a good model for any biographer. Forster reveals EBB in all her complexity. She debunks the story from the drama based upon EBB's father as an ogre stifling her life. She also reveals how EBB was complicit in her invalidism.

The first section is based upon recently discovered letters and diaries. EBB was the eldest in a large family that isolated itself and as a result developed intense dependencies on one another. Family wealth came from Jamaican slave plantations. Her father was exceptional in his love and attendance upon his children and they reciprocated even more after their mother died.

When loss of some income shifted them to London, all went and remained at home as adults. Even the sons were held enthralled by Mr B. She used her illnesses to gain special privileges and attention. She was not tubercular, as has often been said.

It turns out Robert Browning was as naive, living with his parents into his 30s. Their meeting seems star struck. The second half explores their marriage, most of it lived in Europe. They had one child when she was in her mid forties. Forster examines EBBs stubborn, often irrational character. She accepted spiritualism, absurd political beliefs, and strange child rearing choices. Despite a steady thread of women's mistreatment in her writings, she was blind with regard to treatment of devoted servants.

Forster does not attend much to the poetry itself. I wanted more with regard to her contributions--she was much admired by Dickinson, among others. But we don't learn why. This wasn't intended to be a literary biography, still it is too brief regarding poetic style and innovations.

Robert is also not as fleshed out as I'd have liked. She seems to have dominated him, repeated her father's controlling manner, a mistaken expression of love.

These quibbles aside, I highly recommend this enlightening and well written account. It deserves its best British biography honor.