Agnes Grey

Agnes is happy to be home for a while, but her father continues to be unwell. He insists that Mary and Agnes save what they have earned so they can support themselves when he dies, as they, being poor, are not likely to marry. Her mother is concerned about what Agnes suffered with the Bloomfields but agrees to help her find another position, this time with more careful screening and better pay. She can ask for £50 a year since she knows music, singing, drawing, French, Latin, and German. Agnes advertises and receives one response from a woman who insists that “next to unimpeachable morality, a mild and cheerful temper and obliging disposition were the most essential requisites” for a governess (44).

Against her family’s reservations, Agnes agrees to work with the Murray family of Horton Lodge in the town of O—, 70 miles away. Agnes has never been so far from home, but she is eager to see more of the world. In contrast to her last position, she hopes that Mr. Murray’s rank and fortune mean he will “treat his governess with due consideration as a respectable, well-educated lady, the instructor and guide of his children, and not a mere upper servant” (44).