Agnes Grey by EAnne Bront? is a novel in 1847 which is about a governess of that name and is said to be based on Bront?'s own experiences in the field. It was Bront?'s first novel. Similar to her sister Charlotte's novel Jane Eyre, this is a novel that addresses what the precarious position of governess entailed and how it affected a young woman. The Irish novelist George Moore praised Agnes Grey as "the most perfect prose narrative in English letters." Agnes travels to Wellwood house to work for the Bloomfield family. The choice of central character allows Anne to deal with issues of oppression and abuse of women and governesses, isolation and ideas of empathy. An additional theme is the fair treatment of animals. Agnes Grey also mimics some of the stylistic approaches of bildungsromans, employing ideas of personal growth and coming to age, but representing a character who in fact does not gain in virtue.
