Jane Eyre: Book Review

Jane Eyre
By Charlotte Bronte


I recommended Jane Eyre for our book club last month. I am posting a bit late.  There is going to be two posts. One is the review of my thoughts on Jane Eyre, the other is our book club meeting.

Jane Eyre, is a small child, her parents died and she is cared for her aunt and her uncle. Unfortunately for Jane, her uncle has passed, and her aunt takes charge of her.  Her aunt treats her terribly, and well as her three cousins.

There is one event that she and her cousin had a argument. The argument was about books. She was told she is not allowed to touch them.  The fight turns into a battle of wits. In the end her cousin wins and her aunt punishes her by putting her in the Red Room. This is one room Jane is frightened of.  While in the room, she feels the presence of her uncle. She is so frightened and starts screaming but no one lets her out.

After this happens her mother has a conversation with the apothecary. She advises her aunt to send Jane away to a school.  There Jane realizes the school is for poor children.  Again, she is treated terribly by the school master. But, eventually things turn around for her. While she is attending the school, there is a breakout of illnesses where some of the students die, including one of her friends.

Eventually she applies for a  job as governess at Thornfield House.

 While Mr. Rochester is at  Thornfield house there are nightly dinner parties, full of guests. At the same time as the nightly parties there are some strange things happening.  They go bump in the night. But, no one can figure out what these strange sounds, or voices are.

 At the dinner parties, Mr. Rochester wants Jane to join in. But, Jane doesn't feel comfortable around them. She doesn't care for these guests they are more concerned with their wealth than by intellectual knowledge.

Rochester enjoys being with Jane for their stimulating conversation. He realizes he doesn't love his fiancee. He would rather be with Jane.  He then asks Jane to marry him. Which she agrees.

I am not going to go any further, as I already told too much already.  I will tell you though if you read my review you will see spoilers.

My Review:  I have never read Jane Eyre, and it always was brewing in back of my head to read. I don't know why it took me so long to get to, and have to use the book club as my excuse to read. 

Jane Eyre has all the elements of a good read. It has good plot development, social satire, romance, and a gothic feel to the novel. It is also a good book if you are a feminist like me. 

The book, is divided in three parts. The first, as a young girl living with her aunt. 
The second part is when she meets Mr. Rochester. The third is after she leaves, Mr. Rochester, inherits money from her uncle. She learns that she has family.

Jane doesn't sit back and take everything. She stands up to everything that is not right with the world. She tells you how it is.  That is why, I feel that Charlotte Bronte, was born in the wrong century.  She would have been well appreciated by modern women of today. 

Jane is not going to sit back, and become a mistress while he is still married to Bertha. Even though he was tricked into marrying her years ago. Then there is another opportunity to marry, the chaplain,  but it is to marry not for love but for job opportunity. She turns him down.

These are the elements to Jane Eyre. It was so important for Jane to have family. She wanted it so bad, it was looking at her in the face and she did not realize it. It was hidden from her by her aunt. 

There are many issues from a feminist view point. She did not want to be a show piece.  She wanted to be Rochester's equal by showing her intellect. She could not stand people talking frivolously about jewels, and gossip. 

 She waited until she inherited money, only then did she come back to Rochester. She considered that made them on equal ground. If she married when she was poor, it would not have worked because she would always feel she was lower than him.  

I did not think I would enjoy reading Jane Eyre as much as I did.  It really is a timeless story, and will always will be the book, to test of time.  The book is so much better than the movie.

One thing, check out back ground information about Charlotte Bronte, and the Bronte Family. It is very interesting insight.  If you read her biography you will find the similarities. 

My next post will be our book club discussion we had.  I had invited a local University professor from Coast Carolina University to visit our book club.




 Mr. Rochester wants Jane to