An Accursed Race

Gaskell, Elizabeth Cleghorn, 1810-1865Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.3

Word count: 37K words
Chapters: 4

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.An Accursed Race by Elizabeth Cleghorn GaskellAuthor: Gaskell, Elizabeth Cleghorn, 1810-1865,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Mar 1, 2001

Editor's review

An Accursed Race is a short historical account by Mrs. Gaskell centered on the group known as the Cagots, examining their origins, the discrimination and persecution they faced, and how memories of them have been passed down. Its readability comes from the restraint of the narrative: rather than appealing to sentiment, the author sets rumor, documents, and local memory side by side, letting readers see how prejudice was fixed in place by institutions and custom. For those familiar with Gaskell's novels, this work offers another entry point into her social concerns; for readers interested in history and ethnic issues, it provides a way to think about the relationship between being named and being excluded. Its length suits reading over one or two evenings, and afterward one might revisit which claims are supported by materials and which belonged to the lore of the time.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who like Mrs. Gaskell's work and want to read her nonfiction
Those concerned with the history of ethnic prejudice and persecution who are willing to read a short historical account
Students and enthusiasts seeking supplementary material on nineteenth-century English social history
Readers who prefer restrained narration and close reading of short texts

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting a complete general history or systematic sociological analysis
Casual readers who want only strongly plotted fiction
People sensitive to details of historical persecution who would rather avoid such material

Reading tips

Learn the basic background of the Cagots before reading the main text to reduce difficulty in understanding
While reading, distinguish between rumors the author cites, documents, and her own judgments
After finishing, use a single page to outline the key links in how prejudice formed and persisted
Read alongside Gaskell's social-problem novels to observe how her concerns are transformed

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this work a novel or a historical account?

It is closer to a historical account and cultural inquiry than to fiction. Gaskell organizes the origins, experiences, and memory of a stigmatized group, and her judgments are present in the narrative, but it is mainly based on materials and commentary.

Can I read it without knowing British history?

Yes. It is short, and the core issue is how prejudice forms and persists, so it does not depend on complex background events. You can skim over place names or institutional terms and focus on the process by which the group is named and excluded.

Why is the book called An Accursed Race?

The title points to the stigmatizing label imposed on the group by outsiders. The author's very aim is to examine how this idea of a curse circulated and affected real circumstances; readers can watch how she dismantles such labels.

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About the author

Gaskell, Elizabeth Cleghorn, 1810-1865 Author

Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell (1810–1865) was a British novelist of the Victorian era. The library holds 28 of her works, including Cranford, Wives and Daughters, North and South, Sylvia's Lovers, and The Life of Charlotte Brontë. Her writing focuses on daily life in English villages and industrial towns, with a delicate and often humorous touch, and she excels at portraying characters and circumstances across different social classes. Cranford depicts a small-town female community with gentle irony; North and South interweaves industrial conflict between employers and workers with personal feeling; and her biography of Charlotte Brontë is also an important biographical work. Public information is limited, so this note outlines her subjects and style based only on the works held here.