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At age twenty, Charlotte Bronte sent a sample of her poetry to England's Poet Laureate, Robert Southey.

At age twenty, Charlotte Brontë sent a sample of her poetry to England’s
Poet Laureate, Robert Southey. His comments urged her to abandon
all literary pursuits: “Literature cannot be the business of a woman’s
life, and it ought not to be. The more she is engaged in her proper
duties, the less leisure will she have for it, even as an accomplishment
and a recreation.” His response indicates the political difficulties women
faced as they tried to enter the literary arena in Victorian England;
domestic responsibilities were expected to require all their energy, leaving
no time for creative pursuits. Despite a lack of support from the
outside world, Charlotte Brontë found sufficient internal motivation
and enthusiasm from her sisters to become a successful writer and balance
her familial and creative needs.
Born at Thornton, Yorkshire on April 21, 1816, Charlotte was the
third child of Patrick Brontë and Maria Branwell. In 1820, her father
received a curate post in Haworth, a remote town on the Yorkshire
moors, where Charlotte spent most of her life. In 1821, Mrs. Brontë
died from what was thought to be cancer. Charlotte and her four sisters,
Maria, Elizabeth, Emily and Anne, and their brother, Branwell,
were raised primarily by their unpleasant, maiden aunt, Elizabeth Branwell,
who provided them with little supervision. Not only were the children
free to roam the moors, but their father allowed them to read
whatever interested them: Shakespeare, The Arabian Nights, Pilgrim’s
Progress, and the poems of Byron were some of their favorites.