Helen Graham (The Tenant of Wildfell Hall) clear and full of soul'. Helen Graham (The Tenant of Wildfell Hall) Helen Lawrence (married name is Helen Huntingdon but she is most commonly known under her alias Helen Graham) is the main female protagonist of Anne Brontë's 1848 novel "The Tenant of Wildfell Hall". Helen was portrayed by Janet Munro in the 1968 TV adaptation and Tara FitzGerald in the 1996 miniseries. Helen Lawrence was born in 1802 (or in the first half of 1803) at Wildfell Hall. Rachel, later her maid and friend, takes care of infant Helen. Her mother dies when Helen is still too young to
The Tenant of Wildfell Hall life after leaving Arthur without a man's protection and supervision. Gilbert's mother, Mrs. Markham, holds the doctrine prevailing at the time that it is "the husband's business to please himself, and hers [i.e. the wife's] to please him." The portrayal of Helen, courageous and independent, emphasizes her capacity for seeking autonomy rather than submitting to male authority, and the corrective role of women in relation to men. "The Tenant of Wildfell Hall" is thus considered a feminist novel by many critics. Josephine McDonagh believes that the theme of displacement is underlined by the title of the novel: Helen is the