One major thing that marks Margaret Hale's transition from the south of England to the north is the move from nature to industry. The village of Helstone was like something out of a fairy tale, with squirrels playing and dogs barking and all that wonderful stuff. Milton, on the other hand, is an industrial wasteland of smokestacks and filthy urban streets. And with all of this modern dirt comes the moral "dirt" of people who only care about money. North and South suggests that Margaret needs to find a way to adapt to, and find beauty in, the North if she's going to make a home for herself.
Questions About Man and the Natural World
- Why does Margaret get offended when Henry Lennox tells her that her home village of Helstone sounds like something from a fairy tale? Whatdoes it tell us about her?
- Does Margaret ever get over leaving Helstone? Why or why not?
- What is Margaret's reaction to Helstone when she returns to it after her parents' deaths?
- What does the natural world symbolize to Margaret? Does its meaning change over the course of the book? Why?
Chew on This
In North and South, Elizabeth Gaskell shows us that modern industry and technology is going to ruin nature and make it impossible to enjoy living in this world.
In North and South, we learn that even though industry might be messy and sometimes immoral, it is inevitable and we need to learn to live with it.