1847 - 1848: Le Cousin Pons to Vanity Fair

Chronology of World, British and American Literature

Balzac. French. 1847. Novel. Le Cousin Pons. Musical composer squanders his income on works of art. Ugly and lonely, he becomes a glutton and a parasite.

Herman Melville. American. 1847. Novel. Omoo: A Narrative of Adventures in the South Seas. Polynesian word for wanderer. Hero and doctor friend explore the island of Tahiti.

Anne Bronte. British. 1847. Novel. Agnes Grey. Quiet account of life of ill-treated, lonely governess who eventually marries a curate.

Dante Gabriel Rossetti. British. 1848. Sonnet. “The House of Life.” Autobiographical. Title refers to house of human life in astrology.

Wm. Makepeace Thackery. British. 1848. Novel. Vanity Fair, A Novel without a Hero. Becky Sharp: clever, scheming, determined to get on in the world.