Jane Eyre
By Charlotte Bronte
As Victorians were notoriously wordy, it is hard to describe plots without rambling. So, let’s simplify.
Orphan living with cruel aunt- strict boarding school- becomes a governess- mysterious master who is kinda sexy- weird happenings at his house- CRUSH- he is engaged- heartache- aunt dies- he proposes- they almost get married but it turns out he is already married to a criminally ill woman locked in the attic- more heartache and soul-searching – TRAGEDY- happy ending.
How’s that?
As someone who isn’t the biggest fan of Victorian literature and marriage plots in general, I expected to hate this book.
Turns out, I am an idiot for that assumption. I LOVED this novel!
I think I got turned off by my negative associations with her sister, Emily Bronte, whose novel, Wuthering Heights, is the bane of my existence.
Jane is so strong and determined! Her character is so rounded and believable. I appreciate her sense of justice, her need for fairness, and her deep desire to be true to herself. She is a wonderful character in literature- and while she isn’t as evolved as characters today- she is an important figure in the very beginnings of the feminist movement! She is physically delicate but, mentally and emotionally, a powerhouse!
I promise that the plot is not nearly as silly as my thorough explanation.
Read it.
When I saw that you reviewed this book, I thought to myself, "I hope she didn't hate it," because it's one of my favorite books. I would have felt stupid if you, a woman of literature, thought this was a waste of paper. :-)
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