Upon rereading the book in preparation for my spree, I was especially struck by two of Brontes’s characterization decisions. First, the extreme flatness of Bertha Mason as a character. ⁣
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Bertha is widely recognized as Jane’s opposite in both appearances and temperament, but for someone who precipitates much of the plot, she is described almost uniformly by everyone, and not even her own brother seem to know any better. She is wild, large and dark. She shrieks, attacks, and destroys. This could be a result of Bronte’s often noted prejudice towards Creoles, but it also leads to my second point. ⁣
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For a book with relatively few characters, Jane Eyre has quite her share of foils and contrasts. While I had known from my previous and only time reading that Helen Burns was a contributor to Jane’s growth, I now see that she is an extreme version of her. Pious. Intellectual. But so much so that she “burns” too brightly and cannot survive this earthly life. ⁣
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Bertha, while physically Jane’s opposite, also embodies the potential extremity of her passion and restlessness (one hint is that she appears whenever Jane is restive or imagining the distant future), making the reader wonder whether Jane’s extremity literally has to die before she can live happily ever after. Unfortunately, Bertha herself is never developed to beyond a troupe. ⁣
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Contrasts are ubiquitous even beyond our protagonist: the beautiful, crazed, marble-white but manipulative St.John against the brawn, “irreligious” and lovestruck Rochester. The failed legal mother figure of Mrs.Reed and the bona fide sanctuary of Ms.Temple. The distinction between the pious and intellectual Rivers cousins and the Reed bullies highlights that between both the appointed versus chosen family and dissipation versus fulfillment of dreams. ⁣
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I had disliked Jane Eyre when I read it in college, but this time, it gripped me from the very beginning. I also know that I will be returning to it, as I have only cracked open the gates to Bronte’s world.

{Possible spoilers warning}
First of all, before I read Jane Eyre, I was not interested in classical novels at all. Jane Eyre, however, proved that wrong to me. This is an amazing story in so many aspects. It is absolutely inspirational to see Jane stand up for her equality, even though her childhood was clouded by hopelessness and tragedy. The diction and use of figurative language in this novel were so on point that it will make you feel like you are Jane. I highly suggest this book, even if you do not like classical novels. It really can change the way you see the world/society.

Modern Mrs Darcy

📖 Everyone knows about the Brontë sisters, but not so many know that the family name was originally Prunty, or Brunty. The girls' father changed it because he was fascinated, as are we all, by those two little dots over the "e." Patrick Prunty, or Brunty, or Brontë was perpetual curate of Haworth, which means that he could have kept the job forever if he hadn't had the bad luck to die.
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"Jane Eyre" concerns a penniless, mistreated orphan who becomes a governess in the household of Mr. Rochester, a moody gentleman given to strange antics, such as dressing up as a gypsy fortune teller and sending telepathic messages instead of telegrams or Tweets. Nevertheless Jane falls in love with him and would have married him but for the discovery that the raving lunatic on the third floor is—oh, noes!—his wife! Everything comes out all right, however, when the house burns down and burns the crazy wife with it. It would have been even better had Mr. Rochester, a true gentleman at heart, not tried to rescue his wife from the roof, during the fire, and been blinded in the process. Two years after his marriage to Jane he regained the sight of one eye, which though not as good as regaining the sight of two eyes after one year was still an improvement.
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Aside from all the romance and passion, one of the virtues of the novel is the realistic dialogue, as when Jane exclaims: ❝The human and fallible should not arrogate a power with which the divine and perfect alone can be safely entrusted.❞ Now who could possibly think of a simpler and easier way to convey that thought?
--Richard Armour

The Maple Ridge Teen Advisory Group (TAG) recommends this book (October/November 2019). Come into the Maple Ridge branch to learn more about joining TAG!

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte follows the life of a young girl, and is a classic coming of age story. It is set in the Victorian era, which creates our unique protagonist Jane Eyre. Her confrontative and passionate ways, along with her refusal to back down despite the misogynistic standards society has placed on women, is makes her stand out. She is strong and bold, and faces obstacle after obstacle placed in front of her. As a reader, we are able to watch her grow and truly discover what it means to live as a woman. Throughout the novel, Jane sticks to her morals, no matter what, proving to be an inspiring heroine. There is a lot of descriptive writing and what one may call “fluff” that fills up many pages, due to the nature of the novel. It can seem to drag on a bit, however the in-depth analyses Bronte provides the reader with may be seen as beneficial and key to the overall plot. Regardless, this is a classic that all should attempt.

One of my favorite classic novels of all-time. This is a dark story set in the 19th century. Jane, orphaned as a child, becomes a governess at the gloomy Thornfield Hall. This novel has romance, terrifying secrets, and beautiful writing. For fans of Gothic literature and Jane Austen.

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte is a historic piece of literature. It is one of the first European classics to spark the beginning of the Romanticism era in literature, featuring the perfect balance between romance, fiction, and reality. Throughout the book, Jane Eyre’s adventures through a tough life with many unkind to her and few who support her explores topics on abuse, society, love, and life. In the patriarchal society of 1800s England, this book explores all sorts of themes of identity, independence, and passion — questions that even modern-day people wrestle with in life.

Jane Eyre, written by Charlotte Brontë, is one of my favorite books. The novel describes the tale of Jane Eyre and her experiences in Northern England during the 19th century. The book deals with many topics, like class, religion, feminism and various others. On top of an ever changing setting, Jane interacts with various other complex characters. Unlike many other books of the era, Jane Eyre focused on a more first person narrative, rather than the typical third person. This makes the book a lot more interesting to read.

The novel Jane Eyre follows the story of a character with the same name, an orphan who was abused by her cruel aunt at a young age. After being sent to a charity school, she meets with further abuse, fortunately she receives an education, which lands her a job as a governess (person hired to teach children in a household) at the estate of Edward Rochester. Over time, Edward and Jane begin to fall in love with each other, but we learn that there is more to Edward than meets the eye.

Jane Eyre, along with Pride and Prejudice is one of the most popular romance novels of all time. Jane Eyre explores themes of class, sexuality, religion, and feminism. The novel can be considered to be way ahead of its time, as it explores these previously untouched themes.