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‘No Coward Soul is Mine’: A Family Systems Analysis of the Bronte Family
Author(s) -
Darracott Robin,
Crago Hugh
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
australian and new zealand journal of family therapy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.297
H-Index - 19
eISSN - 1467-8438
pISSN - 0814-723X
DOI - 10.1002/j.1467-8438.2001.tb01327.x
Subject(s) - secrecy , soul , theme (computing) , speculation , mythology , sibling , family life , period (music) , sociology , psychology , genealogy , psychoanalysis , history , developmental psychology , art , literature , aesthetics , philosophy , political science , law , epistemology , business , finance , computer science , operating system
The Bronte family produced three major authors of the Victorian period, only one of whom, Charlotte, lived to enjoy her fame. Since the beginning, this family has elicited controversy, myth and speculation. The authors attempt an analysis of the complex dynamics of the Brontes, including its constituent ‘family cultures’, parent‐child alliances, sibling bonds and rivalries, the traumatic effects of three early deaths, and the strong theme of secrecy and ‘protection’ in a family dominated by Branwell Bronte's instability and eventual alcoholism. The authors speculate on how this family might have presented for treatment, and invite readers to consider how they, as family therapists, might have responded.