Anna of the Five Towns

Description

The beginning of the 1900s in England spelled the end of an era and the start of significant changes in the country’s industry that impacted numerous businesses and the lives of many people. Anna of the Five Towns is a novel that explores that effect, showing how early 20th century work and industry had a severe and devastating impact on relationships and families throughout the country.

Arnold Bennett (1867 – 1931) is mainly known as a successful novelist today, however, throughout his life he has worked in many other fields, including theater, film and journalism. Bennett wrote numerous works of fiction and non-fiction – including titles such as The Old Wives’ Tale and How to Live 24 Hours a Day – as well as working on 11 plays, an opera production and six movies.

The setting in Anna of the Five Towns is particularly important due to the main theme of the novel which has to do with the impact of industry on the personal lives of the characters. The location of most of the novel’s action is a region of five towns situated in England’s Potteries area – an area well-known at the time for providing work for many of the locals and a significant income increase to owners of the pottery works.

The plot unfolds as Anna Tellwright, a sheltered and unassuming young girl who has lived most of her life under her father’s influence, finds herself severely affected by her father’s domineering influence and restrictions, along with her little sister, Agnes. On her 20th birthday, however, Anna’s whole life changes in surprising and frightening ways as she receives an unexpected inheritance, and is cast into the unfamiliar world of business and industry due to her father’s constant attempts to control her actions.


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