North and South

Elizabeth Gaskell is a famous British writer, placed among the Brontë sisters, William Thackeray, and Charles Dickens. The latter highly valued Gaskell's texts about complex fates, moral quests, and boundless love. The main character, Margaret Hale, a native of Southern England, is forced to move to a northern town, the center of the industrial revolution. Margaret despises the new 'lords of life', and the owner of the cotton mill, John Thornton, becomes a true embodiment of evil for her. John, however, is irresistibly drawn to Margaret, and she soon begins to feel sympathy for the vulgar upstart. Throughout the novel, the characters must overcome many prejudices and broaden their view of the world, not dividing it into black and white — north and south — learning kindness and humanity.