
Ruth
'Ruth ' Summary
Alone in the world, Ruth is whisked away by Bellingham to London where it is implied she becomes a fallen woman. They go on holiday to Wales together and there on a country walk Ruth meets the disabled and kind Mr Benson. Bellingham falls sick with fever and the hotel calls for his mother who arrives and is disgusted by her son's having lived in sin with Ruth. Bellingham is persuaded by his mother to abandon Ruth in Wales, leaving her some money.
A distraught Ruth attempts suicide but is spotted by Mr Benson who helps comfort her. When he learns of her past and that she is alone he brings her back to his home town, where he is a Dissenting minister, to stay with him and his formidable but kind sister Faith. When they learn that Ruth is pregnant they decide to lie to the town and claim that she is a widow called Mrs Denbigh, to protect her from a society which would otherwise shun her.
Ruth has her baby, whom she names Leonard. She is transformed into a Madonna type figure, calm and innocent once more. The rich local businessman Mr Bradshaw admires Ruth and employs her as a governess for his children, including his eldest daughter Jemima who is in awe of the beautiful Ruth.
Ruth goes away with the Bradshaws to a seaside house while one of Mr Bradshaw's children is convalescing from a long illness. Mr Bradshaw brings Mr Donne, a man whom he is sponsoring to become their local MP, to the seaside to impress him. Ruth recognises Mr Donne as actually being Mr Bellingham and the two have a confrontation on the beach. Bellingham offers to marry Ruth as he claims he still loves her and for the sake of their child, Ruth rejects him saying she will not let Leonard come in contact with a man like him.
Book Details
Authors

Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell
England
Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell , often referred to as Mrs Gaskell, was an English novelist, biographer and short story writer. Her novels offer a detailed portrait of the lives of many strata of Victorian...
Books by Elizabeth Cleghorn GaskellDownload eBooks
Listen/Download Audiobook
- Select Speed
Related books

The Mystery Girl by Carolyn Wells
In the quaint college town of Corinth, a mysterious young woman arrives, her beauty and enigmatic aura captivating the hearts of the townsfolk. But am...

Anybody But Anne by Carolyn Wells
In this, Wells weaves a thrilling tale of a young woman named Anne who unexpectedly inherits a large fortune from a distant relative. As Anne navigate...

His Wisdom, the Defender: A Story by Simon Newcomb
It tells the story of a young man named John Marbury, who seeks to defend his faith against the skepticism and doubt of the scientific community. Set...

Old Ladies by Hugh Walpole
The Old Ladies is a Gothic novel centered on a timid elderly spinster who becomes the target of a predatory widow. The story unfolds in a creaky, iso...

The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle
A modern day legend, Robin Hood is an archetypal hero of the common people who goes to great lengths to famously take from the rich and give to the po...

Beyond These Voices by Mary Elizabeth Braddon
Beyond these voices, there is a mystery waiting to be solved. Helen is a young woman who is haunted by voices. She hears them everywhere she goes, an...

The Island of Appledore by Cornelia Meigs
It follows the adventures of a group of children who discover a mysterious stranger living on the island and must unravel the secrets of his past. Th...

Mark the Match Boy or Richard Hunter's Ward by Horatio Alger
Mark, a young orphan boy, sells matches on the streets of New York City to survive. One day, he witnesses a robbery and bravely intervenes, saving the...

John Sherman and Dhoya by William Butler Yeats
In 1891, Yeats published "John Sherman", a novella, and "Dhoya", a Celtic mythologic story. Ganconagh, Yeats’s nom de plume for this work is the name...

The Giant's Robe by Thomas Anstey Guthrie
Imagine finding a robe that grants you the power to become invisible. What would you do with it? In F. Anstey's classic Victorian fantasy novel, The...
Reviews for Ruth
No reviews posted or approved, yet...