Aurora Leigh, Book I

Describe Aurora:
In her first book, Aurora is a young girl, describing her life from birth up to her teenage years. She is obviously a very sensitive and perceptive girl, aware of how her mother's death would have affected her father and how his child-rearing skills were put to the test. Aurora marks her father's death as the end of her childhood; it is at this time that she goes to live with her brother's older sister. Aurora is extremely conscious of her new surroundings and of her new housemate. She sees her aunt as her complete opposite; Aurora, a wild and free fledgling, stands in stark contrast to the aunt who lives a caged-bird life. Aurora is thus keenly aware of the differences between herself and her aunt, and I think this propels her on her path of self-discovery. As she pores through various books, she discovers poetry--and Aurora, intuitive child that she is, is convinced that it is her own poetry-writing that pulls her back from despair and restores her to life.