If you have read Michael Armstrong, what are some ways in which Ruth resembles or contrasts with Trollope’s narrative? (both present virtuous poor protagonists, and describe their backgrounds and parents)
Are some of the differences in the portrayal due to the fact that the protagonist of Ruth is female? Why do you think Trollope chose a ten year old boy and Gaskell a fifteen-year old female as a focus of interest?
Is “Ruth” a good choice of name for Gaskell’s heroine? What biblical or etymological connotations does it carry?
Where does this work fit in the sequence of Elizabeth Gaskell’s narratives? Do you see resemblances between this novel and Mary Barton? (descriptions of life of seamstress and the privations of work and sleep; emphasis on theme of forgiveness; concern for fallen woman and upper class seducer or would-be seducer) Which book seems to offer more details on the working conditions for seamstresses?
Likewise North and South focuses on industrial unrest and includes a factory women character. Are there contrasts between the portrayal of a working- class characters in these books?
In what form was the novel published? Where are the volume divisions, and how does the plot emphasize each? (at end of volume one, Ruth has arrived at the Bensons', but her hair has been shorn by Sally)
Volume I:
Who is the narrator, and under what circumstances does she intrude? What can we know about her? (cares about physical environment of area; possesses local knowledge; warns of danger) Do her judgments seem credible and fair-minded? (able to see motivations or context for even unpleasant actions)
What is the importance of the opening scene and descriptions of the old building in which the sewing establishment is housed? Is there anything symbolic about the fact that the building’s old elegance has faded from disrepair?
What do we first learn of Ruth? What seem traits of her character? (gazes at night sky, loves nature and artistry in all their forms; tends to have symbolic dreams) Does she manifest habits associated with female gentility? (often abstains from food, neat and modest)
Is it important that she has no mother or older female relative? (these might have explained to her the dangers of receiving the attentions of someone of higher station)
What do we suspect from Jenny's cough? (tuberculosis) What is the effect on Ruth of the departure of her friend? (left without warning female figure)
Where and under what circumstances does Ruth encounter Mr. Bellingham? Does she have cause to think well of him? (speaks politely to her, rescues child, takes care for its comfort) Are there aspects of his behavior which seem worrisome? (quickly impatient, contemptuous of those of local social classes)
What do we learn about Ruth's character from her response to the nearly-drowned boy? (a natural nurse)
What in indicated by her admiring response to the local dance? (has never witnessed a scene of elegance)
What motivates him to seek her out at church? How would you describe his pursuit of her? (fairly restrained at first, attempts to take an interest in her life and emotions)
Does Mr. Bellingham seem like a potential seducer? Are there aspects of his conduct which should make one suspicious? (eager to take her to situations where she will be unable to protect herself)
What do we learn about his family life? (mother dominating, father dead; mother has failed to seek to control his bad behavior, wishes him to marry a local heiress in which he has little interest)
What are some ways in which Ruth manifests her vulnerable innocence? (ignorant of possibilities and dangers of love)
What qualities or behaviors of Mrs. Mason expose Ruth to greater danger? (no food on Sundays, constant rebuke, lack of sympathy) Does Mrs. Mason have her own problems? (her son misbehaves)
What are some features of Gaskell’s style? (highly metaphorical, even poetic) Does she employ narrative intrusions, and if so, at what points? Are these useful?
What role is played by religion in this narrative? What forms of religion are presented, and how are these characterized?
What variety of faith does the narrator espouse? (forgiveness and lack of judgment) Are these views consistent with Gaskell’s role as the wife of a Unitarian minister?
What do we learn about Ruth’s background from her visit to the farm? Would this background have been a common one for seamstresses of the period? (Gaskell describes bucolic rural setting, to which Ruth responds deeply)
What aspects of Ruth’s behavior when visiting her old home displease Mr. Bellingham? (is friendly to old farm hand, remembers him fondly)
How does old Thomas react to her friendship with Mr. Bellingham? (distrusts Bellingham) Why doesn’t he warn Ruth of the danger he sees in this relationship? (thinks only in terms of biblical verses, perhaps can't broach personal subjects)
On what grounds does Mrs. Mason dismiss Ruth, and with what result?
After being dismissed, where could or should Ruth have gone? Why does she instead accept Mr. Bellingham’s insistence that she should join him in his carriage? In what emotional state does she accept his offer?
Where does Mr. Bellingham take Ruth in his carriage? (London) What excuse does he give for not taking her back to the farm? Is there a gap in the narrative between this scene and their later visit to Wales? What does the reader infer has happened in the interim?
What do we learn about the relationship of Mr. Bellingham and Ruth from the description of their life together in Wales? What traits of character does Mr. Bellingham exhibit? (impatience, snobbishness, restlessness, rudeness; describes Mr. Benson as "not a gentleman")
Why do you think Gaskell emphasized his attractive or reasonable traits earlier in the narrative, whereas now his other characteristics are displayed?
What assumptions may motivate Mr. Bellingham’s irritation that Ruth can’t play complicated card games with him? (lacks an interest in the arts of sophistication)
Under what circumstances does Ruth encounter Mr. Benson? How is he described? Will it be important to the narrative that he is seen as disabled?
What prompts Mr. Bellingham to desert Ruth? Can you see any symbolic meaning in his sudden illness? How does she respond? (is deeply and sincerely worried for him)
Who prompts him to leave Ruth, and why do you think the author included this plot detail? Is it important that he doesn’t give her warning? (pattern of harsh female figures--had women been more helpful, she would not have been so isolated)
How does Ruth respond to this desertion? How are her emotions described under this shock? (p. 80, fixes on Pre-Raphaelite/Spasmodic detail) What rash act does she contemplate, and who and what prompts her to desist? What effect does her near-attempt at suicide have upon the reader? (desists in order to help Mr. Benson; shows her desperation; she thinks of another even when fixed on her own destruction)
How is Mr. Benson described? Is it important that he is disabled with a beautiful (i. e., not necessarily manly) face? What is the significance of his occupation? (dissenting minister)
What essential services does Mr. Benson provide to her in this time of crisis, and who aids him in this task? (his sister Faith)
Are there symbolic overtones to Ruth's illness at this point? What does she (and the reader) come to realize is her situation? (pregnant)
How do Mr. Benson and his sister differ in viewing Ruth’s situation? What purposes does this divergence serve in the plot? In particular, what course of action does Faith suggest, and with what results? (she suggests that no one be told of Ruth's unmarried status; this will cause problems later on)
How might Ruth’s fate have been different had Mr. and Miss Benson not concealed Ruth’s status as an unwed mother?
What roles are served by Sally? What type of public opinion does she represent? What are symbolic overtones of her violent cutting of Ruth's hair? (loose hair represents sexuality and beauty) How does Ruth react? (submits, feels some shame)
Why do you think Gaskell chose this scene for the ending of volume one?
Volume II:
What does Sally's gradually softened attitude toward Ruth and Leonard suggest?
What lies does Faith concoct regarding Ruth, and with what motive? (enjoys lying!) On what grounds does Mr. Benson consent to a concealment of Ruth's situation? How will this decision affect the plot? Where do you think Gaskell comes down on the matter?
How does Ruth respond on being offered expensive gifts from Mr. Bradshaw? (returns gifts firmly) What do you think is her motive? (wishes to be independent, will not be bribed)
What economic consequences do the Bensons suffer from their kindness to Ruth?
What purpose is served by presenting the birth of Leonard? What language does the author use? (she is near to heaven, he is the "holy child")
How does Ruth respond to the birth of her baby? (resolves to live a virtuous life and to bring him up free of evil influences) Does she keep this resolve? (yes, his birth has strengthened her character and given her purpose) What does she most fear? (that he will resemble his father)
What is Ruth's effect on the Benson household? (skillfully domestic, always helpful and tactful)
Why do you think Gaskell creates as the novel’s basic unit a family which consists of a brother, sister, servant, and outsider whom they support from compassion? (more egalitarian than the units portrayed in other Victorian novels; an intentional family)
Why do you think Gaskell chose for her heroine a woman of such saintly sweetness and forbearance? Why do you think she is at first described as frequently weeping?
What motivates Ruth's studies? Why do you think Gaskell makes her heroine independently quick? (shows her natural intelligence and gentility; her selflessness is shown by her desire to learn in order better to teach her child)
What prompts Ruth’s engagement with the Bradshaws? Is this a satisfactory one? (children fond of her) What relationship does she form with Jemima, and how will this be important to the plot? (Jemima admires her, then feels jealous as Mr. Farquhar begins to transfer his interest from her to Ruth)
What do we learn about Jemima's emotions and relationship with her father? To what extent are we expected to be sympathetic with her outbursts? Why is she suspicious of Mr. Farquhar's attentions to her? (feels her parents desire this as a desirable economic and business match; wonders if he too sees her as part of an inevitable business arrangement)
Can you see any parallels between the representation of Jemima and Jo in Alcott's Little Women?
What effect results from Mr. Bradshaw's attempt to recruit Ruth to attempt to alter his daughter's behavior? Does Ruth obey his demands? (no, she attempts to understand why Jemima is unhappy; project backfires and Mrs. Bradshaw assumes Jemima has been spoken to by Ruth; both Bradshaws are tactless and naive)
What does this theme add to the plot? (indicates that the Bradshaws' mode of familial management produces inward rebellion and distrust; also indicates that if Ruth had desired a second marriage she would have found suitable mates)
What parallel plot elements do you find between Ruth and other novels or narrative poems of the period—for example, Aurora Leigh, Oliver Twist, Adam Bede, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, Jane Eyre, or Villette?
How does the narrator intervene in volume II? Are her intrusions less overt? What are some instances of gentle irony? (the electioneer can "allow for the weaknessess" of those who prefer to be honest, or to seem so)
What do we learn about British politics, from Gaskell's perspective? (the Tories are worse, but both parties entirely corrupt; politicians motivated by vanity and ambition; bribery )
What circumstances bring Ruth and Mr. Bellingham--now Mr. Donne--together, and how does he respond to her presence? (declares his love, tries to make her admit that she loves him) What has attracted him to her? (her appearance--by contrast she notices his voice)
How does his manner strike the Bradshaws, and what does this reveal about the British class system? (he seems to Mr. Bradshaw altogether a different type of being, doesn't even wish for a marriage between the future member of parliament and his daughter)
What is manifested by his behavior toward her in church, and her response? Why do you think Gaskell mentions that Ruth is comforted by the figure of the gargoyle? (Ruskin had written of the importance of the grotesque; Ruth sees in the gargoyle a figure of human pain and sorrow and identifies with it)
Does Bellingham/Donne at first intend to make a proposal of marriage? (no--only shifts when she declines his offer) With what does he threaten her? (exposure of her past)
Does Ruth still feel some attraction and or affection for her former lover, and if so, what causes her to curb these emotions? (remembers his lack of concern and communication to her) Why do you think Gaskell presents this inner conflict? (Ruth's responses show that she has genuinely changed; nonetheless she has to struggle to do right for herself and her son; also were she to be completely unfeeling it would show that the superficiality of her love--she had been genuine)
What is the importance of Ruth’s rejection of Mr. Bellingham’s proposal, and what grounds does she give for this? What are some unexpected or unconventional aspects of her response? (feels his character would be a bad influence on her son) Would the reader have expected this? (he is far above her in social station, and he could in fact have provided well for Leonard and provided him with many opportunities)
On what grounds is she correct in her protective response to Leonard? (his character will be more important to him than money or position; we see that Bellingham/Donne is genuinely selfish--resembles dissolute hero in Anne Bronte's Tenant of Wildfell Hall)
During his campaign, how has Bellingham/Donne responded to the issue of bribery? Is this important? What are the views of Mr. Bradshaw on the matter, and also of Mr. Benson? (the latter is the only one who strongly opposes it, irritating his friend)
What do we learn of Mr. Bellingham/Mr. Donne’s character from his future behavior? (he attempts to marry an heiress directly after leaving Ruth, her father involved in scandal)
What change of circumstances does Ruth confront at the end of volume two? (Leonard is quite ill) Why do you think illness is such a recurring them within the plot?
Volume III:
How would the plot have been affected had Leonard in fact died?
On what grounds does Ruth reject Mr. Bellingham/Donne's later offer to support Leonard? What are her motives in depriving her son of the advantages which presumably his father could bestow? What is revealed by Mr. Donne's remarks as he leaves the Benson home after this rebuff? (has no real concern or affection for his son; also has offered a quite paltry amount relative to his own wealth, 2000 pounds)
What seem to be Gaskell's views on the political processes of the day? Were her views unjust? What are some unpleasant aftereffects of the election to parliament of Mr. Donne?
How will the fact that Mr. Bradshaw has aided in the election of Mr. Donne through bribery be related to other elements of the plot?
What do you make of Sally’s offer of her life savings to her employers? Her refusal to take a higher salary? Would this have been realistic? (servant memoirs of time indicated they wanted their own privacy and families, not to join their employers' families)
What points are made by the fact that Sally wants to pay more for the physical presentation of her will and demands more technical legal language? (Gaskell is pointing out the effects of ignorance but also mocking the artifice of legal language)
What do we make of Sally's prejudices against Dissenters? Why do you think Gaskell includes such details as Sally's anxiety that the clergyman will see the plain appearance of her employers? (Gaskell respects such simplicity, finds pretensions of those who look down on Dissenters to be annoying)
What group seems especially scorned? (Methodists) Can you think of other novels that present Methodists or Methodism? (Charlotte Bronte's Shirley, George Eliot's Adam Bede)
On what grounds does Jemima come to dislike Ruth? What do Mr. Farquhar's attentions to Ruth indicate to her? (he isn't seeking wealth but a congenial mate) What is revealed about Jemima's character that she tells the saleswoman not to spread rumors about the former Ruth Hilton?
How are Jemima and Mr. Farquhar's responses to the news of Ruth's past contrasted? What is Mr. Bradshaw's response? (rigid, censorious and niggling) What attitude toward a “fallen woman” does each represent? What is important about the defense which Jemima makes of Ruth? (she herself has had every opportunity, yet has behaved worse; Ruth is a genuinely good person whose past is behind her)
How do their responses affect the fates of the Bensons and Ruth? (Jemima reaches out to the Bensons and encourages Mr. Farquhar to help Leonard)
How does Leonard respond to the news that his mother had not been married, and how do the Bensons and Ruth respond to his pain? (they feel it's inevitable and that his illegitimate status will be held against him all his life) Is he interested in hearing about his father? (no) Is his lack of interest in his titled father significant? (solely Ruth's child, cmp. virgin birth)
The Crimean War was begun in 1853, and two cholera epidemics had broken out in England in the period directly before the composition of Ruth. How do you think this may have influenced Gaskell’s representation of Ruth’s vocation as a nurse, and also her audience’s response to the novel’s conclusion? (The Crimean War started directly afterwards, so readers may have been thinking of Florence Nightingale and the campaign to make nursing a respectable occupation.)
What purpose do you think is served by the town's formal recognition of Ruth's services?
How does Gaskell negotiate the issue of the private schooling for boys to prepare them for middle-class occupations? (Ruth wants Leonard to remain home as long as possible, but formal schooling will be inevitable) What do you think are Gaskell's views on boys' education? (doubtless feels upper class schools teach bad values)
What tenet of Mr. Benson seems borne out by the conclusion to Gaskell’s novel? (redemption is possible, even after the lapses which society judges most harshly--Gaskell points out that if Mr. Bradshaw's advice had been followed, the woman he now admires would have been left in hopeless abjection)
What are some features of the memorial service for Ruth? Is the Biblical passage chosen appropriate? Why do you think the novel focuses at such length on the responses to Ruth’s death? Is it important that the poor of the town are those who most honor her? (they follow her to the grave)
Is this an unusual memorial scene for a Victorian novel?
What events cause Mr. Bradshaw to temper his overbearing pride? (son’s misbehavior and near-fatal accident) What errors in his upbringing have encouraged Richard's hypocrisy and duplicity?
How does he discover his son's dishonesty, and what are his first responses? How do we know that he remains attached to his son? (collapses, essentially has a heart attack or stroke)
What function does the decline of Richard have on the plot? (involves the Bensons; he has stolen all their money) How does Mr. Benson respond? (selflessly and generously, will not prosecute) Does this incident reflect differences between the financial systems of the time and current ones?
Are you surprised that Sally is concerned that Richard not be punished? What provision do his friends make for him, and do you think these are wise? (placed in a position where he can't steal; his potential part of the firm is reserved for him)
Why do you think Gaskell creates a character other than his father who protects Richard's future? (wants to make the point that Mr. Farquhar doesn't have financial motives in uncovering Richard's duplicity)
What role has Mr. Farquhar come to play at this point in the novel? (shown as conventional man with compassionate emotions--a potential role model for many of Gaskell's more conventional readers)
Are there parallels between this plot element and Mr. Carson’s softened heart at the conclusion of Mary Barton?
Why do you think Gaskell returns to the theme of the proud man who is forced to accept the death and/or acknowledged imperfections of his son? (cmp. Mary Barton)
Why do you think Gaskell chooses to end her novel with Mr. Bradshaw’s final change of heart? (most extreme in opposition; he too is entirely converted) Does this seem realistic?
Does Ruth contain more directly religious references and biblical quotations than either Mary Barton or North and South? If so, to what do you attribute this slightly altered tone?
What motivates Ruth to seek to be a sick nurse? (seeks to support herself rather than lean on Bensons after Mr. Bradshaw has dismissed her)
What arguments does Jemima give against this, and what do her objections reveal about the status of nursing at the time? What seem to be Gaskell's views, as expressed by Ruth?
Do you think she has a sense that this occupation might be dangerous? Why would she risk leaving Leonard an orphan? (he is growing up, so for purpose of the plot their bond cannot be as intense)
What effect do Ruth’s ministrations have on the outbreak of cholera in her community? What benefit is gained for Leonard through her efforts? (apprenticed to a surgeon who was himself illegitimate and so feels for him)
What motivates her to return to nurse Mr. Bellingham in particular? Do you think she is attached to him? If not, what may underlie her decision? (feels connection, feels some compulsion for completion)
What fate does Ruth suffer in return for her nursing of Bellingham? Does this seem symbolic?
What is the effect of the fact that Mr. Bellingham/Donne views her dead body? Does this inspire remorse? (not much; he feels no guilt) Why do you think Gaskell chose to include this scene?
Can you think of other Victorian literary scenes in which the dead body of a beautiful young woman is viewed? ("The Lady of Shalott")
What do Mr. Benson and Faith view as signs of their advancing age? Would people in their fifties be considered elderly today, and if not, what has changed? Why do you think that these details were included? (moves toward closure of plot)
Is a medical career suitable for Leonard? Is it important that access to his career not be provided by his father?
What is the significance of the final scene in which Mr. Bradshaw takes Leonard back to the Benson home? Could this level of reconciliation have happened while Ruth was still alive?
Are there ways in which the novel emphasizes themes of parenting? According to Gaskell, which methods of child-rearing seem to work best?
Do you feel the ending resolves satisfactorily the issues and tensions evoked in Gaskell’s novel? If Ruth had not died, what might have been her (fictional) fate? Could Gaskell have presented her remarriage? Were there other options? (she could have worked as nurse and continued to live with Bensons until their deaths)
What are some contrasts and resemblances between the endings of Ruth and of Mary Barton? Of Ruth and Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter? (1850)
What are some of Gaskell’s merits as a writer? (able to build drama from small, domestic, morally significant scenes; able to represent compassion in action) What are aspects of her style and plotting which seem characteristic of the mid-Victorian period?
How does the novel compare/contrast with other Victorian novels you have read?
Which aspects of the novel seem realistic, and which seem implausible? How might a contemporary writer approach similar themes?