A review by dorhastings
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
5.0
By the markings in my battered book, I note that I first read this book when I was fifteen years old. I know I didn't really like the book the first time I read it, but I'm not sure I loathed it. I suspect I didn't understand most of what was going on.
Also, it was interesting to be reading this and a Stephanie Plum book at the same time. Very different female leads.
Overall I found this to be a very enjoyable lead. Bronte thoughtfully developed her characters, especially but not only in the case of Jane herself. It's not a book of action, not that I think anyone would make that mistake. What I find most interesting is the dialogue between characters. I can't say I was drawn to any romanticism in the book, but what I came to expect was Jane's independence, and I certainly found it. The dramatic episodes showing her independence aren't what we're used to in everyday literature, I think, or so it seems to me, but I was especially struck by her defiance and strength of character during her interactions with Edward Rochester and St. John Rivers. I found occasion to be more than a little annoyed with both parties; with Mr. Rochester because he kept wanting to turn Jane into a shining expensive thing, and with St. John because he wanted Jane to abandon her life to join in the service of his own life plan. It surprises me that my attitude toward these male characters changed. Rochester was just going with his upbringing and used to having his own way, and in the end, St. John truly did want what he thought was best for Jane. Neither man could really go beyond himself to see what she herself wanted, though it's arguable to say that Mr. Rochester might have made a little change.
One thing that will probably confuse me forever is the idea of Bertha Mason not being real. I've heard that Charlotte Bronte thought herself to be in a position similar to Jane's, and that it was no coincidence that Bertha Mason's outbursts always happened when Jane was feeling particularly upset. There's a question of whether or not Bertha Mason was truly "real" and I don't really understand the point of view that represents her not being a "real" character in the book. Probably just as well.
Also, it was interesting to be reading this and a Stephanie Plum book at the same time. Very different female leads.
Overall I found this to be a very enjoyable lead. Bronte thoughtfully developed her characters, especially but not only in the case of Jane herself. It's not a book of action, not that I think anyone would make that mistake. What I find most interesting is the dialogue between characters. I can't say I was drawn to any romanticism in the book, but what I came to expect was Jane's independence, and I certainly found it. The dramatic episodes showing her independence aren't what we're used to in everyday literature, I think, or so it seems to me, but I was especially struck by her defiance and strength of character during her interactions with Edward Rochester and St. John Rivers. I found occasion to be more than a little annoyed with both parties; with Mr. Rochester because he kept wanting to turn Jane into a shining expensive thing, and with St. John because he wanted Jane to abandon her life to join in the service of his own life plan. It surprises me that my attitude toward these male characters changed. Rochester was just going with his upbringing and used to having his own way, and in the end, St. John truly did want what he thought was best for Jane. Neither man could really go beyond himself to see what she herself wanted, though it's arguable to say that Mr. Rochester might have made a little change.
One thing that will probably confuse me forever is the idea of Bertha Mason not being real. I've heard that Charlotte Bronte thought herself to be in a position similar to Jane's, and that it was no coincidence that Bertha Mason's outbursts always happened when Jane was feeling particularly upset. There's a question of whether or not Bertha Mason was truly "real" and I don't really understand the point of view that represents her not being a "real" character in the book. Probably just as well.