Jan 11, 2011 05:25 PM
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(Updated Jan 14, 2011 12:41 PM)
Women are supposed to be very calm generally: but women feel just as men feel; they need exercise for their faculties, and a field for their efforts, as much as their brothers do; they suffer from too rigid a restraint, too absolute a stagnation, precisely as men would suffer; and it is narrow-minded in their more privileged fellow-creatures to say that they ought to confine themselves to making puddings and knitting stockings, to playing on the piano and embroidering bags.
Charlotte Bronte – A name associated with a handful of novels, the most famous of which, is Jane Eyre. The brilliant authoress has written this story partly as an autobiography where the protagonist Jane is a character associated with her own self. Charlotte died at the young age of 38 after living a difficult life, but has given the society a message; one of patience, endurance, determination and self- respect.
Story – The story is narrated by Jane in first person. It starts with a description of the life of 10 year old orphan Jane Eyre, who is ill-treated by her aunt Mrs. Reed and three cousins. She quietly tolerates all the tortures and thrashing but eventually vents out her hatred against Mrs. Reed. Outraged by this, the aunt sends her off to a boarding school, where the spoilt child could possibly learn to respect elders.
When Jane enters the boarding school for orphans, she is relieved having left the family that hated her, but is also full of apprehensions of stepping into unknown waters. In due course, she finds a friend in Helen, who is 3 years older than her. Soon, Jane proves herself to be a sincere student and establishes herself as a pet of many a teacher. She discovers a new interest in painting. Sadly, because of the miserable conditions of the school, worn out clothes and poor nutrition for the children, many of them contract typhus fever and die; one of the ill-fated is Helen.
Six years later, she becomes a teacher for the same school. After 2 years of teaching, she feels stagnated in her job and moves out to a different region to be appointed as a governess for little girl -Adele. Adele’s guardian Mr. Rochester is a respected gentleman but seems to be brusque, eccentric and moody in his manner of interaction. Jane enjoys her new job in plush conditions of her master’s huge home. However, weird incidents, eerie laugher in the middle of nights, some periodic secretive murmurs and a fire flaring in Mr. Rochester’s room under mysterious circumstances make Jane wary.
In due course, she secretly falls in love with her suave master though she regards him the moon that she can see every day, but can never reach to. She mentions-I tossed on an unquiet sea, I thought I saw beyond its wild waters a shore, a freshening gale, wakened by hope, bore my spirit triumphantly: but I could not reach it, even in fancy--a counteracting breeze blew off land, and continually drove me back.
Life for Jane takes a turn when Mr. Rochester proposes to her. He promises to give her all the pleasures of life, treat her as a princess and show her the world. He mentions, “Ten years ago, I flew through Europe half mad; with disgust, hate, and rage as my companions: now I shall revisit it healed and cleansed, with a very angel as my comforter.” However, Jane has suffered too many hardships to trust anyone blindly and she feels he is playing some practical joke on her. It all seems unreal to her and too good to be true. The wedding preparations start in full swing and the finest jewels, wedding gown complete with veil is readied for the grand occasion. Just on the day before her wedding, her veil is torn apart by an unknown, ghostly figure.
What is the mystery behind the uncanny happenings at their mansion? Will the wedding take place and Jane live a life of bliss and comfort?
My opinion- Jane Eyre is a classic of rich literature laced with gems of intricate metaphors and alliterations. I found at least five words on each page which I did not know even existed! Unlike most novels, where the main characters are usually immensely beautiful/handsome and intelligent, we have Jane who is pale, thin and average looking and Mr. Rochester who is dark and middle aged. Perhaps, this facilitates an easy connect between the reader and these down to earth characters. I found the story slow at places, but picks up speed in the second half of the book. There are quite a few deaths in the story, which made me a tad depressed. :P The classic genre proved to be a welcome change for me.
Jane Eyre boasts of an intriguing story and a valuable message to mankind. It is a simple love story with some suspense and twists towards the end, and is definitely worth treasuring. A must read for the lover to know the depths of love, for the depressed to hoist his hope, for the privileged to know how lucky he is and finally, for today’s authors to know what writing is! And why did I mention the last one? That’s because the writing skills of authors in recent years have stooped to such low levels that any Tom, Dick or Harry has the audacity to write books and moreover, glorify himself for his gibberish! Disclaimer- An apparent pointer to any author’s works is purely coincidental. :)
