Katherine Bradley and Edith Cooper

Pseudonyms were a tool used by female Victorian writers to gain popularity in a male dominated field.  Victorians held to the notion that the ideal woman was a submissive housewife and mother.  Various Victorian women wrote works challenging these stereotypes and published them under male pseudonyms.  Some of these pseudonyms are still used today while others have fallen into obscurity in favor of the autheress’s real name.

Charlotte Bronte originally published her novels, most notably Jane Eyre, under the name Currer Bell.  However, Duan Jang points out in the article “Critical Names Matter: “Currer Bell,” “George Eliot,” and “Mrs. Gaskell” after Charlotte Bronte’s death her novels were accredited to Charlotte Bronte largely due to her obituary and a biography that was published in 1857, both of which used Charlotte Bronte over Currer Bell.  Today Jane Eyre’s author is largely known to be Charlotte Bronte Jung goes on to point out that George Eliot, the pseudonym of Mary Ann Evans author, is still regularly used in the twenty-first centuries.  Jung theorizes that Evans had a longer writing career allowing her pseudonym to be fixed in the mind of readers and giving it longevity.  Jung also points out that Evans’ family did not, like Bronte’s family, place as much importance on revealing Evans’ true name and gender.  Also, Evans’ biographers, while writing about the literary woman, used the name George Eliot in their titles and content. 

Charlotte Bronte and Mary Ann Evans are just two women on a spectrum of the outcomes of 19th century female authors who used pseudonyms.  Charlotte sister’s, Emily Bronte and Anne Bronte published as Ellis Bell and Acton Bell respectively and both these monikers have fallen into obscurity.  Across the Atlantic, Louisa May Alcott is similarly known as herself and not A. M. Barnard.  On the Evans side of the spectrum, aunt and niece duo Katherine Harris Bradley and Edith Emma Cooper are often credited as Micheal Field. 

These pseudonyms have had several effects throughout the years since they were first published.  During their time women used these names to masquerade as men and got their work to be taken seriously.  Thus, women’s stories from women’s perspectives were told and they challenged the status quo.  However, while some of these pseudonyms were left in the 1800s, others still persist.  Authors such as Bradley, Evans , and Evans still hide behind Micheal Field and Goerge Eliot. 

Works Cited.

Jung, Daun. “CRITICAL NAMES MATTER: ‘CURRER BELL,’ ‘GEORGE ELIOT,’ AND ‘MRS. GASKELL.’” Victorian Literature and Culture, vol. 45, no. 4, 2017, pp. 763–781., doi:10.1017/S1060150317000201.https://www-cambridge-org.er.lib.k-state.edu/core/journals/victorian-literature-and-culture/article/critical-names-matter-currer-bell-george-eliot-and-mrs-gaskell/2C10EC76FB3887E01924192E5E9C665A 

Further Reading:

Jung, Daun. “CRITICAL NAMES MATTER: ‘CURRER BELL,’ ‘GEORGE ELIOT,’ AND ‘MRS. GASKELL.’” Victorian Literature and Culture, vol. 45, no. 4, 2017, pp. 763–781., doi:10.1017/S1060150317000201.https://www-cambridge-org.er.lib.k-state.edu/core/journals/victorian-literature-and-culture/article/critical-names-matter-currer-bell-george-eliot-and-mrs-gaskell/2C10EC76FB3887E01924192E5E9C665A 

Manasia, Mihaela G. "PSEUDONYMITY: VICTORIAN WOMEN AUTHORS' RECOGNITION STRATEGY." British and American Studies, vol. 27, 2021, pp. 113-121,305. ProQuest, https://er.lib.k-state.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/pseudonymity-victorian-women-authors-recognition/docview/2530035225/se-2. 

Stokes, Claudia. "Pseudonymous was a Woman: Pen Names, Louisa may Alcott, and Feme Covert." Legacy, vol. 39, no. 2, 2022, pp. 44-67. ProQuest, https://er.lib.k-state.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/pseudonymous-was-woman-pen-names-louisa-may/docview/2849363741/se-2.