Beatrix Potter
Introduction
My report is about Beatrix Potter because I like her drawings very much and also because of what she has done in her life. Beatrix wrote books for children, which became the best sold books in history! She also protected nature and landscapes. Many people know her from her books, but there aren’t many people who know about her efforts to preserve the landscapes. That’s also why I write my report about her.
A Victorian childhood
Beatrix Potter was born on July 28th in 1866. She grew up in a rich family and was taught at home by a governess. A typical Victorian family, they lived in a large house with a lot servants. It’s called a Victorian childhood because queen Victoria reigned:
When you’re rich, they are good times. When you’re not, they are bad times.
So when you were poor, bad luck. Her favorite subjects at school were nature and art. She was very interested in animals and nature. She didn’t see her parents often, only in the evening when she went to bed and with special events. She spent much time alone. Her parents were also overprotective, friendships with other children were forbidden. As a little child she already drew very much. She drew her own animals, like rabbits, birds, frogs and even snakes! Her little brother Bertram was also very interested in nature and the two children had a lot of fun, sharing the same hobbies.
Her family
Beatrix had a little brother, called Bertram. He was born when she was six years old and he was also very interested in animals and nature. Bertram and Beatrix could get along well, they drew together and they shared the love for nature.
Her mother, Helen Potter-Leech, wasn’t a very nice woman for Beatrix. Her mother didn’t like Beatrix drawings and she was always unpleasant for her. Beatrix didn’t want to marry, which was ‘not-done’ for rich women in that century. I think that maybe her mother was a little bit jealous of her, because Beatrix knew as a little child already really well what she wanted. She was clever. And she had her own vision on everything and a great opinion, she had also a great talent in making art. She wanted to be independent, and earn her own money.
Her father, Rupert Potter, did also like drawing and painting. But when he was young, his parents didn’t accept that their son was always drawing, they thought he had to earn much money in his life. So he studied law and he became a judge. But because he was not interested at all in his job, he spent all his time at the local club with his friends. He actually didn’t need to work, they had money enough.
Secret diary
When she was 15 years old she started a diary, written in a secret code she made by herself. For outsiders she was a shy girl, but in that diary she wrote critically about writers, artists and politicians. In the secret diary with also a secret code, only then she felt herself safe enough to express her own opinion. She wrote until she was aged 30, and when she was older, it was not easy for her to read her own script. Fifteen years after her dead the code is cracked by Leslie Linder, so now we are able to read it.
Holidays
Once a year, the whole family Potter went on vacation. Everyone went with them, the servants, the governesses and also the pets of Beatrix and Bertram. First they went to the south-west of England, but when that wasn’t possible anymore, they went to the Lake District. There they had a large house, with a huge garden. During these vacations Beatrix discovered her preference for nature. She went with her little brother into the pastures, to capture animals like rabbits, and to tame them. She was, in opposite of what some people thought, a very adventurous girl. She and her brother drew everything which came across.
She was an enthusiastic student of nature, she and her little brother kept a lot of animals in their classroom. He was also very interested in nature. They kept rabbits, snakes, mice and more. She also taught herself to draw, she drew everything which she saw and she practiced a lot. She could draw very well when she was still very young, like seven or eight years old.
Holidays
Once a year, the whole family Potter went on vacation. Everyone went with them, the servants, the governesses and also the pets of Beatrix and Bertram. First they went to the south-west of England, but when that wasn’t possible anymore, they went to the Lake District. There they had a large house, with a huge garden. During these vacations Beatrix discovered her preference for nature. She went with her little brother into the pastures, to capture animals like rabbits, and to tame them. She was, in opposite of what some people thought, a very adventurous girl. She and her brother drew everything which came across.
She was an enthusiastic student of nature, she and her little brother kept a lot of animals in their classroom. He was also very interested in nature. They kept rabbits, snakes, mice and more. She also taught herself to draw, she drew everything which she saw and she practiced a lot. She could draw very well when she was still very young, like seven or eight years old.
Pets
Unfortunately, Beatrix and Bertram had each other to play with, and together they had lot of pets. They kept these animals in their classroom. After a few years, they had a frog, two lizards, several salamanders, a snake, a tortoise and a rabbit, which they studied very well. Beatrix had a lot of full sketchbooks with drawings she made. Almost all the characters of her books, are based on the pets she used to have in that classroom.
Benjamin Bouncer
Benjamin was Beatrix’ first pet. She bought him secretly in a pet shop in London and smuggled Benjamin into her room in a paper bag. ‘Bounce’ became the model for the most rabbit-sketches and studies of Beatrix. On the back of a photograph of him, Beatrix wrote: ‘This is the real Benjamin Bunny. Benjamin was extremely fond of toasted bread with butter and ran around the room when he heard the tea-bell.’
Peter Piper
Peter was a Belgian male rabbit. She wrote in a letter to a child:
‘Peter laid always before the hearth on his back, just like a cat. He was very clever, he could do much tricks, like jumping through a hoop, ring a bell and play tambourine.’
Spot
Spot the spaniel was the dog of the family. He enjoyed travelling very much. Beatrix admitted that she found it quite difficult to draw a dog. She kept a lot of dogs, but when she was older, she wrote that she did respect dogs, but that she thought dogs weren’t good characters in her books. However, she did write about dogs. They occur in the stories like ‘The Tale of Jemima Puddle-duck’, ‘The Tale of the Pie and the Patty-Pan’, ‘The Tale of Ginger and Pickles’.
The Tale of Peter Rabbit
Once upon a time, there were four little bunnies. Their names were Flopsy, Mopsy, Cotton-Tail, and Peter. That’s the beginning of one of the best sold and most loved books ever. The reason because of which she wrote the book is less happy.
On September 4th in 1893, she wrote a picture-letter to an ill son of a governess, Noel Moore.
Noel was 5 years old and Beatrix wanted to brighten him up with a story. The story was about the naughty little rabbit Peter. She wrote him: ‘Dear Noel, I don’t know what I should write, so I will tell you a story about four little rabbits’.
In the meantime, Beatrix made (Christmas)cards and she was asked to illustrate books. With this, she earned her own money, which was quite unique for women in those days.
A few years later, Beatrix decided to send the book to a few publishers. She asked the story back from Noel and rewrote the story in a notebook. She sent it to a few publishers and hoped that they would accept it. She also tried to put it in rhyme.
But, all the publishers were negative about her book and didn’t accept it. She decided to publish it on her own costs; 500 books. She could sell the most of them to friends or local book shops.
After a long time, she was published by the publisher Frederick Warne, one of he publishers who at first didn’t accept her stories. But now he was interested in her book and they agreed to publish it. In 1902 was the first copy in the bookshops for only 1 shilling (which is now about eight eurocent!) ‘The tale of Peter Rabbit’ was a great success and now one of the most sold books ever. Although Beatrix remained believing in her book, even she was surprised when she noticed how popular her book was. Peter Rabbit has always been the most popular character, he also plays a role in ‘The Tale of Benjamin Bunny’, ‘The Tale of The Flopsy Bunnies’, and ‘The Tale of Mr. Tod’.
Romance
In 1903, when Beatrix had published two new books, she was a regular visitor to the office of Warne at Covent Garden. Many of the discussions they held about publishing her book she did with Norman Warne, the youngest son of Frederick Warne. Norman was the only unmarried son from Frederick, and he was a great uncle to his nephews and nieces. Beatrix and Norman became good friends.
Beatrix was very happy when she received a letter from Norman in which he asked to marry her. Beatrix’ parents didn’t agree because Norman wasn’t rich enough, but Beatrix was determined and she finally got permission!
Unfortunately, the wedding could not continue because Norman became very ill. He died a few weeks later of a lethal form of anemia. Beatrix was devastated.
Hill Top farm
Beatrix lost her heart to the Lake District. She loved the nature very much and now she was able to buy a farm from the money she had earned by the books. She bought Hill Top farm with the help from the local lawyer, William Heelis. She made sure that the farm remained working, with the previous owner, John Cannon. She worried about the Herdwick Sheep, a special breed of sheep. There were only a few left.
She could not move in the house because her parents wanted that she took care of them, but it was her first step towards independence and she could go to it when she wanted that. Much of Beatrix’ books are based on the Hill Top farm or the village Sawrey, for example ‘The Tale of Tom Kitten’, and its sequel "The Tale of Samuel
Whiskers or the Roly-Poly Pudding", and ‘The Tale of Ginger and Pickles.’
Beatrix Potter’s marriage
She learned a lot of the rural life in Sawrey, William Heelis and Beatrix worked a lot together. And because she still earned a lot of money, she was able to expand her property. She asked William again to help her with the negotiations. They became closer and they liked each other very much. William and Beatrix also shared the same passion for the Lake District, and they had much in common. In 1912 William asked her to marry him an she answered yes. Beatrix was already 46 years old.
Of course, her parents didn’t agreed again, but she was very sure and she finally got permission. William and Beatrix were married in October 1913 in London, and moved to Castle Cottage in the Lake District.
Farmer and sheep breeder
Beatrix was always very interested in ‘real’ animals. After the marriage she could permanently settle in the Lake District, and she became very busy with the rural life, and she liked it very much.
Beatrix was very active in the rural world. Dressed in wooden shoes, an old tweed skirt and an old shawl, she helped with haymaking, she walked through the mud and looked though the fields looking for lost sheep. She said she was the happiest among her animals. Together with her shepherd, Tom Storey, she bred Herdwick Sheep, a rare and endangered breed that only occurred in the Lake District. She encouraged farms around her to breed the sheep again, and her sheep won a lot of prizes on shows in the environment. In 1930, Beatrix was the first female president of the Association for Herdwick sheep. This was a wonderful achievement and also a sign that the people had a lot of faith in her.
The National Trust
In the summer of 1882, Beatrix visited the Lake District for the first time when she and her family went on holiday. They became friends with the local priest, Cannon Rawnsley. He was already worried about the effects of tourism and industry on the Lake District. He learned Beatrix a lot about preserving nature. In 1895, Rawnsley began with a few other priests the National Trust. That is an organization which protects the nature and landscapes, but also beautiful old buildings. Beatrix was very enthusiast about the National Trust, and bought a lot of landscapes for them with the money she earned with the books. When Beatrix died in 1943, she gave all her landscapes to the National Trust. It was an estate with an area of 4000 hectares, including her 15 farms and houses.
The legacy of Beatrix Potter
Besides her books, Beatrix was also interested in making other things, like toys, games, a puzzle and wallpapers. These ‘side-shows’ are very famous and people still buy it.
When her first book was published, Beatrix had no idea of how incredibly successful it would be. Now, Beatrix is still very famous and she has a lot of ‘fans’
She is very well known in the whole world and children and also adults love her very much. Her books are one of the best children books ever written.
Miss Potter
In 2006 the film ‘Miss Potter’ is made. Directed by Chris Noonan, starring Renée Zellweger as Beatrix and Ewan McGregor as Norman Warne. I think it is a very nice film, but it is a bit too ‘Hollywood’. It doesn’t really show how determined and special she was. She had for example her own carriage in which she crossed down the street. She was very different from the people she lived with, she didn’t belong in the boring and neat rich people-world. She liked to walk around in old clothes among sheep. But, it’s still my favorite film because I also like drawing and nature. And it is simply a lovely story.
Introduction
My report is about Beatrix Potter because I like her drawings very much and also because of what she has done in her life. Beatrix wrote books for children, which became the best sold books in history! She also protected nature and landscapes. Many people know her from her books, but there aren’t many people who know about her efforts to preserve the landscapes. That’s also why I write my report about her.
A Victorian childhood
Beatrix Potter was born on July 28th in 1866. She grew up in a rich family and was taught at home by a governess. A typical Victorian family, they lived in a large house with a lot servants. It’s called a Victorian childhood because queen Victoria reigned:
So when you were poor, bad luck. Her favorite subjects at school were nature and art. She was very interested in animals and nature. She didn’t see her parents often, only in the evening when she went to bed and with special events. She spent much time alone. Her parents were also overprotective, friendships with other children were forbidden. As a little child she already drew very much. She drew her own animals, like rabbits, birds, frogs and even snakes! Her little brother Bertram was also very interested in nature and the two children had a lot of fun, sharing the same hobbies.
Her family
Beatrix had a little brother, called Bertram. He was born when she was six years old and he was also very interested in animals and nature. Bertram and Beatrix could get along well, they drew together and they shared the love for nature.
Her mother, Helen Potter-Leech, wasn’t a very nice woman for Beatrix. Her mother didn’t like Beatrix drawings and she was always unpleasant for her. Beatrix didn’t want to marry, which was ‘not-done’ for rich women in that century. I think that maybe her mother was a little bit jealous of her, because Beatrix knew as a little child already really well what she wanted. She was clever. And she had her own vision on everything and a great opinion, she had also a great talent in making art. She wanted to be independent, and earn her own money.
Her father, Rupert Potter, did also like drawing and painting. But when he was young, his parents didn’t accept that their son was always drawing, they thought he had to earn much money in his life. So he studied law and he became a judge. But because he was not interested at all in his job, he spent all his time at the local club with his friends. He actually didn’t need to work, they had money enough.
Secret diary
When she was 15 years old she started a diary, written in a secret code she made by herself. For outsiders she was a shy girl, but in that diary she wrote critically about writers, artists and politicians. In the secret diary with also a secret code, only then she felt herself safe enough to express her own opinion. She wrote until she was aged 30, and when she was older, it was not easy for her to read her own script. Fifteen years after her dead the code is cracked by Leslie Linder, so now we are able to read it.
Holidays
Once a year, the whole family Potter went on vacation. Everyone went with them, the servants, the governesses and also the pets of Beatrix and Bertram. First they went to the south-west of England, but when that wasn’t possible anymore, they went to the Lake District. There they had a large house, with a huge garden. During these vacations Beatrix discovered her preference for nature. She went with her little brother into the pastures, to capture animals like rabbits, and to tame them. She was, in opposite of what some people thought, a very adventurous girl. She and her brother drew everything which came across.
Holidays
Once a year, the whole family Potter went on vacation. Everyone went with them, the servants, the governesses and also the pets of Beatrix and Bertram. First they went to the south-west of England, but when that wasn’t possible anymore, they went to the Lake District. There they had a large house, with a huge garden. During these vacations Beatrix discovered her preference for nature. She went with her little brother into the pastures, to capture animals like rabbits, and to tame them. She was, in opposite of what some people thought, a very adventurous girl. She and her brother drew everything which came across.
She was an enthusiastic student of nature, she and her little brother kept a lot of animals in their classroom. He was also very interested in nature. They kept rabbits, snakes, mice and more. She also taught herself to draw, she drew everything which she saw and she practiced a lot. She could draw very well when she was still very young, like seven or eight years old.
Pets
Unfortunately, Beatrix and Bertram had each other to play with, and together they had lot of pets. They kept these animals in their classroom. After a few years, they had a frog, two lizards, several salamanders, a snake, a tortoise and a rabbit, which they studied very well. Beatrix had a lot of full sketchbooks with drawings she made. Almost all the characters of her books, are based on the pets she used to have in that classroom.
Benjamin Bouncer
Benjamin was Beatrix’ first pet. She bought him secretly in a pet shop in London and smuggled Benjamin into her room in a paper bag. ‘Bounce’ became the model for the most rabbit-sketches and studies of Beatrix. On the back of a photograph of him, Beatrix wrote: ‘This is the real Benjamin Bunny. Benjamin was extremely fond of toasted bread with butter and ran around the room when he heard the tea-bell.’
Peter Piper
Peter was a Belgian male rabbit. She wrote in a letter to a child:
Spot
Spot the spaniel was the dog of the family. He enjoyed travelling very much. Beatrix admitted that she found it quite difficult to draw a dog. She kept a lot of dogs, but when she was older, she wrote that she did respect dogs, but that she thought dogs weren’t good characters in her books. However, she did write about dogs. They occur in the stories like ‘The Tale of Jemima Puddle-duck’, ‘The Tale of the Pie and the Patty-Pan’, ‘The Tale of Ginger and Pickles’.
The Tale of Peter Rabbit
Once upon a time, there were four little bunnies. Their names were Flopsy, Mopsy, Cotton-Tail, and Peter. That’s the beginning of one of the best sold and most loved books ever. The reason because of which she wrote the book is less happy.
On September 4th in 1893, she wrote a picture-letter to an ill son of a governess, Noel Moore.
Noel was 5 years old and Beatrix wanted to brighten him up with a story. The story was about the naughty little rabbit Peter. She wrote him: ‘Dear Noel, I don’t know what I should write, so I will tell you a story about four little rabbits’.
In the meantime, Beatrix made (Christmas)cards and she was asked to illustrate books. With this, she earned her own money, which was quite unique for women in those days.
A few years later, Beatrix decided to send the book to a few publishers. She asked the story back from Noel and rewrote the story in a notebook. She sent it to a few publishers and hoped that they would accept it. She also tried to put it in rhyme.
But, all the publishers were negative about her book and didn’t accept it. She decided to publish it on her own costs; 500 books. She could sell the most of them to friends or local book shops.
Romance
In 1903, when Beatrix had published two new books, she was a regular visitor to the office of Warne at Covent Garden. Many of the discussions they held about publishing her book she did with Norman Warne, the youngest son of Frederick Warne. Norman was the only unmarried son from Frederick, and he was a great uncle to his nephews and nieces. Beatrix and Norman became good friends.
Beatrix was very happy when she received a letter from Norman in which he asked to marry her. Beatrix’ parents didn’t agree because Norman wasn’t rich enough, but Beatrix was determined and she finally got permission!
Unfortunately, the wedding could not continue because Norman became very ill. He died a few weeks later of a lethal form of anemia. Beatrix was devastated.
Hill Top farm
Beatrix lost her heart to the Lake District. She loved the nature very much and now she was able to buy a farm from the money she had earned by the books. She bought Hill Top farm with the help from the local lawyer, William Heelis. She made sure that the farm remained working, with the previous owner, John Cannon. She worried about the Herdwick Sheep, a special breed of sheep. There were only a few left.
She could not move in the house because her parents wanted that she took care of them, but it was her first step towards independence and she could go to it when she wanted that. Much of Beatrix’ books are based on the Hill Top farm or the village Sawrey, for example ‘The Tale of Tom Kitten’, and its sequel "The Tale of Samuel
Whiskers or the Roly-Poly Pudding", and ‘The Tale of Ginger and Pickles.’
Beatrix Potter’s marriage
She learned a lot of the rural life in Sawrey, William Heelis and Beatrix worked a lot together. And because she still earned a lot of money, she was able to expand her property. She asked William again to help her with the negotiations. They became closer and they liked each other very much. William and Beatrix also shared the same passion for the Lake District, and they had much in common. In 1912 William asked her to marry him an she answered yes. Beatrix was already 46 years old.
Farmer and sheep breeder
Beatrix was always very interested in ‘real’ animals. After the marriage she could permanently settle in the Lake District, and she became very busy with the rural life, and she liked it very much.
Beatrix was very active in the rural world. Dressed in wooden shoes, an old tweed skirt and an old shawl, she helped with haymaking, she walked through the mud and looked though the fields looking for lost sheep. She said she was the happiest among her animals. Together with her shepherd, Tom Storey, she bred Herdwick Sheep, a rare and endangered breed that only occurred in the Lake District. She encouraged farms around her to breed the sheep again, and her sheep won a lot of prizes on shows in the environment. In 1930, Beatrix was the first female president of the Association for Herdwick sheep. This was a wonderful achievement and also a sign that the people had a lot of faith in her.
The National Trust
In the summer of 1882, Beatrix visited the Lake District for the first time when she and her family went on holiday. They became friends with the local priest, Cannon Rawnsley. He was already worried about the effects of tourism and industry on the Lake District. He learned Beatrix a lot about preserving nature. In 1895, Rawnsley began with a few other priests the National Trust. That is an organization which protects the nature and landscapes, but also beautiful old buildings. Beatrix was very enthusiast about the National Trust, and bought a lot of landscapes for them with the money she earned with the books. When Beatrix died in 1943, she gave all her landscapes to the National Trust. It was an estate with an area of 4000 hectares, including her 15 farms and houses.
The legacy of Beatrix Potter
Besides her books, Beatrix was also interested in making other things, like toys, games, a puzzle and wallpapers. These ‘side-shows’ are very famous and people still buy it.
When her first book was published, Beatrix had no idea of how incredibly successful it would be. Now, Beatrix is still very famous and she has a lot of ‘fans’
She is very well known in the whole world and children and also adults love her very much. Her books are one of the best children books ever written.
Miss Potter
In 2006 the film ‘Miss Potter’ is made. Directed by Chris Noonan, starring Renée Zellweger as Beatrix and Ewan McGregor as Norman Warne. I think it is a very nice film, but it is a bit too ‘Hollywood’. It doesn’t really show how determined and special she was. She had for example her own carriage in which she crossed down the street. She was very different from the people she lived with, she didn’t belong in the boring and neat rich people-world. She liked to walk around in old clothes among sheep. But, it’s still my favorite film because I also like drawing and nature. And it is simply a lovely story.
REACTIES
:name
:name
:comment
1 seconde geleden