Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book. The book comprises an annotated edition of 260 letters by John Ruskin to Joan Severn, followed 20 letters by Joan to Ruskin. Following a brief note on editorial practice, it offers the letters in chronological order. This presentation, rather than a thematic one, has been chosen since a given letter may speak to several arbitrary themes and because of the cumulative nature of the correspondence. While taking letters from across the whole correspondence, the book concentrates on the most significant moments in their relationship. It first focuses on the extant letters of 1864–1869, when their relationship was being cemented and their baby-talk idiolect emerged; it then deals mainly with two periods of transition in Ruskin's life and in his relationship with his cousin: 1871–1873 and 1887.