The letter quoted below was written in 1845 by the English writer, Charlotte Brontë to her professor, Constantin Heger, a married man. The feelings that she had for him appear to have been unrequited, as there has been no evidence found of any sort of romantic relationship.
“ January 8, 1845
Monsieur, the poor have not need of much to sustain them -- they ask only for the crumbs that fall from the rich man's table. But if they are refused the crumbs they die of hunger. Nor do I, either, need much affection from those I love. I should not know what to do with a friendship entire and complete - I am not used to it. But you showed me of yore a little interest, when I was your pupil in Brussels, and I hold on to the maintenance of that little interest -- I hold on to it as I would hold on to life. ”
Although Brontë was well known for her writing, most notably for the novel, "Jane Eyre", one of the most famous of British novels, she was much less well known for her paintings, which while somewhat unschooled, in my opinion, showed a great deal of promise.
Sources: Margaret Lane (1953) The Brontë Story: a reconsideration of Mrs Gaskell's Life of Charlotte Brontë
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