Genius Triumphs Over Gender Bias: The Life of Beatrix Potter
Dr. Jerry Flack
If I have done anything, even a little, to help small children enjoy honest, simple pleasures, I have done a bit of good.
Beatrix Potter
Beatrix Potter is known throughout the world as the author-illustrator of The Tale of Peter Rabbit, one of the most beloved and cherished books in the global library of children’s literature. However, what few of her fans know is that she was an extraordinarily gifted woman who was decades beyond the limitations forced upon women in the late nineteenth and early to mid-twentieth centuries, especially in Great Britain’s Victorian and Edwardian eras. At the very least, Beatrix Potter was exceptionally talented as a writer, artist, storyteller, scientist, gardener, farmer, preservationist, conservationist, philanthropist, and entrepreneur. Perhaps the most impressive of her exceptional accomplishments is that they occurred during a time frame when gifted women suffered terrible discrimination because of their sex. Helen Beatrix Potter-Heelis was born in London – then the largest city in the world – in 1866, just one year after the conclusion of the Civil War between the United States. She would live until 1943, at a time of terror in her home country of England during the Second World War.
Beatrix Potter’s parents were very wealthy at a time during which parents of their class saw little of their own children. It was a time when governesses supervised the lives and education of the children of affluent families. Beatrix’s brother, Bertram, was six years younger than her, but they both loved drawing and painting animals that they secretly kept in their third-floor nursery of their luxurious London home. These subjects included rabbits, frogs, bats, mice, a snake, turtle, and hedgehog.
Despite the restrictions imposed upon their social life with other children, the parents of the Potter children encouraged their children to study art. Their father, Rupert, loved art and was interested in the new art form of photography. He introduced Beatrix to Everett Millais, a famous painter of the time frame. He taught the young artist to paint, and she spent time in his studio learning the ways of painters.
When the children were young, their parents moved the family to Scotland to spend their summers. The children were encouraged to take note of the magic of the wilderness and to discover animals in their natural homes. These summer outings gave Beatrix years of development in drawing and painting. Later, the Potter Family would spend their summer vacations in England’s beautiful Lake District.
Botany became Beatrix’s passion, especially mycology, the study of fungi. In the summer of 1892, in Scotland, Beatrix came under the influence of Charles McIntosh, an amateur mycologist. He taught the young scientist natural history and botany taxonomies, how to dissect fungi, and how to view them under a microscope. Her exacting study of fungi grew exponentially. She even proposed a theory that fungi might serve as a cure for cancer, an experiment later tried by Russian scientists. She answered questions such as how fungus spores reproduced and how they survived in the cold winters of England and Scotland. In all, over a period of years, the growing knowledge of mycology resulted in well over 300 paintings of such fungi as mushrooms. In the 1890s, Beatrix’s knowledge of mycology was perhaps greater than any professional botanist in England. In 1897, Beatrix completed a scholarly paper that she submitted to the prestigious scientific Linnean Society. Being both a woman and amateur scientist (because women could not be professionals), her membership was denied. Beatrix convinced scientist George Massee to present her scientific research at a meeting of the Linnean Society, but she realized that her work would not be given any credence. Sadly, Beatrix would never see her magnificent paintings of fungi published in her lifetime. In 1967, mycologist W.P. K. Findlay included a great many of her exquisite and accurate paintings in his book, Wayside & Woodland Fungi. It would take the Linnean Society a full century to issue a posthumous apology (in 1997) for their discrimination against her seminal research. Remarkably, today, botanists still study Beatrix Potter’s scientific drawings and paintings of fungi.
Science’s loss resulted in the incredible gain in the world of children’s literature. The beauty of Beatrix’s drawings and paintings enabled her to be successful in her first attempt to earn her own living. She earned small amounts of income by selling her animal paintings to publishers of Christmas cards. Although Miss Potter created lovely illustrations of classic fairy tales, her favorite subjects were her own animal pets, especially her beloved rabbit, Benjamin Bunny. Using money gained from her greeting card illustrations, she first self-published a limited printing of Peter Rabbit’s adventures. She chiefly gave copies of the small book to relatives and friends, but a few extra copies sold rapidly in a bookshop and became appealing to the London publishing house of Frederick Warne & Company.
The originals for many of Beatrix Potter’s 23 tales were initially illustrated letters to the children of her former governess and beloved friend, Annie Carter Moore. Moore’s children loved the illustrated letters that Beatrix sent to them. They were delightful animal stories. Their mother urged Beatrix to borrow back the letters and turn them into storybooks for young children. Her first tale was about Peter Rabbit. Frederick Warne & Co. wanted to publish The Tale of Peter Rabbit, but they asked that all the illustrations be in color. Beatrix was delighted to comply with this wish as long as her own wish was honored. The tales had to be published in book sizes small enough that young children could easily hold them in their hands. In 1902, The Tale of Peter Rabbit was published and became an overnight success. By 1903, more than 50,000 copies were in print. Beatrix Potter had found her place in the world. She quickly became a highly successful author-illustrator with a personal income that allowed her to become an independent woman. Her favorite, The Tailor of Gloucester, was published in 1903, and was another instant success. For the next decade, Beatrix would write and illustrate a minimum of two books annually. Each of her tales were best-selling children’s books. Beyond England, her tales were popular in the United States, and they were translated into many foreign languages. Over 250 million copies of Beatrix’s childhood tales exist in every corner of the world. Beatrix Potter was also an entrepreneur. During the year of 1903, as Beatrix awaited the publication of The Tailor of Gloucester, she sewed a soft toy version of Peter the Rabbit. She was a savvy businesswoman and gained a patent for her Peter doll. Peter the Rabbit became the first licensed literary character in history. Over the years, she would help save her publisher from financial ruin with an amazing array of licensed and patented characters. She designed many more toys, coloring books, board games, tea sets, wallpaper, and other childhood-related items based upon her beloved animal characters.
In 1905, Beatrix Potter had become wealthy enough to be independent in her own right. She purchased Hill Top Farm in the Near Sawrey village in the scenic Lake District of northwest England. It was the beginning of her exceptional diversity and success. She became a farmer of a workplace that possessed a garden, cows, sheep, pigs, and chickens. Her literary output did not suffer. She produced at least ten new books in the first decade of life at Hill Top Farm. She used farm animals as characters in her books. One of the notable examples is the heroine of The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck.
As a sheep herder, Beatrix saved the Herdwick sheep of the Lake District from extinction and proudly both showed and judged the breed at county fairs. Beatrix loved the countryside and small villages of the Lake District, but she realized that she would need to acquire more property both for her growing herds of livestock and to prevent unnatural development of the pristine countryside that surrounded Hill Top farm. The local lawyer who helped her acquire Castle Cottage Farm in 1909 was William Heelis. He not only facilitated vast land acquisitions for Beatrix, but the two fell in love and were married in 1913. In the following 30 years Beatrix Potter-Heelis purchased over 4,000 acres of land to be conserved and preserved forever.
As she acquired greater tracts of land, which included at least a dozen farms, she preserved many of the households as period museums so that future generations could witness life in the early decades of the 20th century. Over the years, Beatrix became a great supporter of England’s National Trust that had the purpose of conserving both the lovely natural environment and history. Upon her death she left over 4,000 acres of land and farms to the National Trust. Today, the rural areas she loved so much remain very much as they did during her lifetime.
In 2006, the movie, “Miss Potter,” was released, starring Renée Zellweger. While Hollywood took some liberties with Beatrix Potter’s life, the essential facts are accurate. The movie is a good introduction to this gifted woman and shows the discrimination against women in society in her era.
Dr. Jerry Flack is Professor Emeritus and President’s Teaching Scholar Emeritus at University of Colorado, Colorado Springs. Please see Dr. Jerry Flack's Children's Book Reviews of award-winning children’s books on our website. Each book has activities designed for home and school in order to to enrich the reading experience.