Approaching Charlotte Brontë in the Twenty-First Century

This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Wynne, D. (2017). Approaching Charlotte Brontë in the Twenty-First Century. Literature Compass, 14(12), e12355. DOI: 10.1111/lic3.12355, which has been published in final form at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/lic3.12355/abstract. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-ArchivingThis essay offers an overview of recent criticism in Charlotte Brontë studies. In the year of Brontë's bicentenary, it takes stock of some of the latest approaches and topics covered, including material culture, disability, screen and stage adaptations, sexuality, regional identity, education, trading networks, the periodical press, and the law. Although much of this new criticism contributes to a fresh understanding of Charlotte Brontë's work and legacy, Jane Eyre continues to dominate most critical discussions, and this essay calls for more attention to be paid to The Professor, Shirley, and Villette. It welcomes those historicist readings that continue the important work of contextualizing Brontë's oeuvre, a project that has transformed her from the reticent provincial writer of semi‐autobiographical fiction presented by early critics into a political and socially engage