Emmeline (Rossner novel)
| Industry | Publishing |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | United States |
| Products | Books |
Emmeline is a novel published in 1980 by Judith Rossner that dramatizes the life of Emeline Bachelder Gurney, a woman who faced social rejection in her Maine community after a long-concealed truth came to light. The narrative is inspired by both anecdotal accounts and verified information regarding Gurney's experiences.
In the 1970s, filmmaker David Hoffman presented an interview with Maine reporter Nettie Mitchell (1886–1981), who had firsthand acquaintance with Emeline.
An opera adaptation composed by Tobias Picker with a libretto by J. D. McClatchy debuted in 1996 at the Santa Fe Opera. This work has been recorded, broadcast on PBS, and staged in multiple full-length and chamber formats.
Plot
The story begins in 1839 when thirteen-year-old Emmeline Mosher departs from her impoverished family farm in Fayette, Maine to take employment at a textile mill in Lowell, Massachusetts. Residing in a boarding house designated for young female laborers, Emmeline finds it difficult to assimilate and becomes involved with the Irish-born spouse of the factory owner's daughter, leading to her pregnancy. As a result, she is dismissed from the mill, and her boarding-house landlady contacts Emmeline's aunt residing in nearby Lynn, Massachusetts, who assists in hiding the pregnancy and arranging for the child's adoption.
Over two decades later, Emmeline remains single while tending to her parents. She weds a traveling laborer named Matthew Gurney, only to learn through her aunt that Matthew is actually her son—the child she had believed was adopted away as an infant girl. Following this revelation, her father disowns her, Matthew abandons her, and the local preacher excommunicates her. Shunned by the community, Emmeline lives on the outskirts until she dies during a severe winter.
Reception
Emmeline earned a starred critique from Kirkus Reviews, which described it as "an unusual and at times challenging novel—but a solemn story with lasting resonance." Susan Fromberg Schaeffer of the Chicago Tribune likened it to Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre, praising it as "a work of exceptional insight and profound strength, skillfully narrated."