The Professor, A Tale was the first novel written by English author Charlotte Brontë. It was completed in 1846, before her famous book Jane Eyre. However, many publishing companies refused to print it. After Charlotte Brontë passed away, her husband, Arthur Bell Nicholls, agreed to have the book published. He helped review and edit the text so it could be released to the public in 1857.

Plot

The story follows William Crimsworth, a young man who tells his own experiences. It shows how he grows up, his job as a teacher in Brussels, and his personal relationships.

The story begins with a letter William writes to his friend Charles. In the letter, William explains that he refused his uncle’s suggestion to become a clergyman. He also describes meeting his wealthy brother, Edward. Seeking work as a tradesman, William is offered a job as a clerk by Edward. However, Edward is jealous of William’s education and treats him poorly. With the help of Mr. Hunsden, a kind man, William leaves his job. He then finds work as a teacher at a boys’ boarding school in Belgium.

The school is run by Monsieur Pelet, a friendly man who treats William kindly. William’s skills as a teacher soon reach the attention of Mademoiselle Reuter, the headmistress of a nearby girls’ school. She offers him a job, which he accepts. At first, William is interested in Mademoiselle Reuter, but he later overhears her and Monsieur Pelet discussing their upcoming marriage and their dishonest treatment of him.

William begins to treat Mademoiselle Reuter coldly after learning about her true intentions. She continues to act kindly toward him, asking him to teach one of her students, Frances, who wants to improve her language skills. William notices Frances’s intelligence and gradually develops feelings for her.

Mademoiselle Reuter becomes jealous of the attention William gives Frances. She fires Frances and hides her address from William. After a long search, William finds Frances in a graveyard and they reconnect.

It is later revealed that Mademoiselle Reuter had accidentally fallen in love with William while trying to be friendly. To avoid conflict with Monsieur Pelet, William leaves her school.

William finds a new job as a teacher at a college, allowing him to marry Frances. Together, they open a school and have a child named Victor. After achieving financial stability, the family travels across England and eventually settles in the countryside near Mr. Hunsden.

Characters

• William Crimsworth: The main character, a young boy without parents who is raised by his maternal uncles and educated at Eton College. He refuses a job as a clergyman offered by his uncles because he believes he is not qualified for the role. Instead, he chooses to follow his late father’s path and becomes a tradesman. His time working for his harsh older brother in Yorkshire is brief, and he later moves to Belgium, where he works as a teacher and meets the woman who will become his wife. He is well-educated, religious, and healthy, though not handsome.
• Lord Tynedale / Hon. John Seacombe: William’s maternal uncles who try to arrange for him to become the Rector of Seacombe-cum-Scaife and to marry one of their cousins, whom William strongly dislikes. William ends his relationship with them and they are not mentioned much in the rest of the story.
• Charles: William’s only friend at Eton. William writes a letter to Charles describing his life after leaving Eton and his first meeting with Edward at Crimsworth Hall. This letter introduces the story. Charles does not respond because he has already traveled to one of the colonies. He is not seen again in the story.
• Edward Crimsworth: William’s older brother, who is a successful tradesman and owner of a mill in Yorkshire. He is married and more handsome than William. He is jealous of William’s education and treats him poorly. Later, Edward loses his wealth and wife but regains his fortune by the end of the story.
• Hunsden Yorke Hunsden: A man who helps William escape from his brother’s control. He introduces William to contacts in Brussels, and the two become close friends. He is unusual but not unattractive, and he shares similar tastes in women with William, though he never marries.
• Monsieur Francois Pelet: The French headmaster of a boys’ school in Belgium where William works. He becomes William’s friend but later betrays him to win the affection of Zoraïde Reuter, whom he eventually marries.
• Mademoiselle Zoraïde Reuter: The Catholic headmistress of a girls’ school in Belgium. William is initially drawn to her, though she is meant to marry Monsieur Pelet.
• Frances Evans Henri: A teacher at the girls’ school in Belgium where William works. She and William fall in love, marry, and later move to England. She is a Swiss orphan with partial English heritage, raised by her aunt.
• Madame Reuter: Zoraïde’s mother.
• Madame Pelet: Monsieur Pelet’s mother.
• Eulalie, Hortense, and Caroline: Three students at Mademoiselle Reuter’s school who are described as flirtatious.
• Sylvie: A student at Monsieur Pelet’s school.
• Jules Vanderkelkov: Another student.
• Victor Crimsworth: The son of William and Frances Evans Henri.

Themes

In the novel, William shows disrespect toward Catholics and refers to their practices as "Romish wizardcraft." Charlotte Brontë describes the two main Catholic characters in the story as dishonest and unreliable. William believes that Catholic education has a harmful effect on the young girls at his school.

William also holds a negative view of the Flemish people and is upset by how they mispronounce the English language while he tries to teach them.

Context

The novel is inspired by Charlotte Brontë's time in Brussels, where she studied languages and worked as a teacher in 1842. Many of the topics from The Professor were later rewritten, as seen through the eyes of a female teacher, in Brontë's later novel Villette.