Hello lovely people !
Today I'm going to write about a book. I've just finished reading it, and it has become one of my favourite books ever : Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë (well this is already written in the title, I know).
I've seen some adaptations of this book, but before that I had never read the book. As I was in my "Jane Eyre fangirl" period - I could watch and re-watch the movies all the time without getting bored, it was almost scary - I decided it was the best time to read it !
The book was published in 1847, under the name "Currer Bell", and encountered a great success.
The story is very well known - that of Jane Eyre, a poor orphan who, mistreated by her aunt and cousins, was sent to a boarding school. When she grew up she became a teacher in that school, and then advertised to go elsewhere. That's when she was hired to work at Thornfield Hall for Mr Rochester, as a governess for the little French girl Adèle.
And that is the beginning of a love story that you must already know very well !
I'm not going to sum up the whole book as there are so many things going on, many events happen in Jane's life - but she's happy in the end so that's okay !
Jane Eyre is not only a romantic story, it is the story of a life, a tough life made of difficult times - how awful Jane's childhood was ! - and brighter moments, which are described by Jane herself, narrator of her own story. Between the events she tells, she spreads little reflections about her situation, her philosophy and the way she handled things. Jane never complained, never grew bitter even though she had lots of reasons to, and never regretted anything. Behind her "plain and little", as she says herself, appearance, her seemingly fragility of body and mind, she shows a great courage and a humble spirit. As strange as it may be, she is a strong character.
I love how, in the 19th century, when women were not really put forward in society, some women like the Brontë sisters, or a little earlier Jane Austen, managed to write stories about women in their society, and how their books were successful. And it's impressing how these stories are still loved and studied and used as references today, in more evolved societies were women have more importance.
It makes these women writers of the 19th century models that I look up to.
***
I'll maybe do an article about the adaptations of Jane Eyre that I've seen, just because this is something I love to talk about, and I'd love to share my thoughts about all of my interests.
But that's all for the book, I wouldn't bother anybody by making a precise analysis of the plot, the characters and the themes, there may be some essays on that subject already (I'll search for that, it must be very interesting to read the thoughts of professionals !) so I'll keep it short.
That was my "literature post of the month", see you next time !
Julia xx
No comments:
Post a Comment