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A review by sergek94
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
5.0
Actual Rating:4.5/5
“Do you think I am an automaton? — a machine without feelings? and can bear to have my morsel of bread snatched from my lips, and my drop of living water dashed from my cup? Do you think, because I am poor, obscure, plain, and little, I am soulless and heartless? You think wrong! — I have as much soul as you — and full as much heart! And if God had gifted me with some beauty and much wealth, I should have made it as hard for you to leave me, as it is now for me to leave you. I am not talking to you now through the medium of custom, conventionalities, nor even of mortal flesh: it is my spirit that addresses your spirit; just as if both had passed through the grave, and we stood at God's feet, equal — as we are!”
There are some books that can be considered timeless, never fading away into obscurity despite being wrapped under long layers of time, and I would definitely consider this work as one of those books every reader should delve into at least once. As a fan of Charlotte's sister's work, Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte, I was always looking forward into delving into this one and I finally did this year, and I was not disappointed.
This book has many layers. It is most obviously a book about love, and one can read it as a classic romance book, but there is far more to it than that. It is also a work exploring the importance of adhering to one's principles, and the capacity to stand firm in our ideals even when faced with bouts of intense passion. It is a glimpse into the life of a girl who is constantly pressured to conform herself to certain societal expectations enforced upon her because of her gender. Jane is a woman who has a very firm sense of self, her desires and her sense of self worth are crystallized, and time and time again, we see external pressures trying to compromise her independence and mold her into a tool to be used, either to capitalize on her unwavering conscientiousness or be privy to her endless well of love and understanding and sympathy. Regardless of these waves, Jane stands as firm as the most unmovable sea cliff and refuses to compromise the sanctity of her notion of self, and she never bends her will to something she does not truly believe in. Jane Eyre, as a character, is an inspiration many readers would want to draw strength from, to face their own lives with the same principled consistency.
“I care for myself. The more solitary, the more friendless, the more unsustained I am, the more I will respect myself.”
Through Jane Eyre, we also delve into the rich world of Britain in the 1800s, coming alive with Charlotte Brontë's beautiful prose that is a pure literary delight to read. We get to experience different aspects of the world, through the rich houses of Britain to a boarding school setting and lush gardens and harsh moors, tinted with a gothic flavour that adds a mysterious and supernatural atmosphere to the world. The world building was superbly written and wonderfully immersive. Nature is vibrant with life, the reader can almost hear the chirping of the birds with the gentle breeze flowing through the green garden of Thornfield and the howling of the wind and the splattering of rain in those dark stormy nights.
“I am not an angel,' I asserted; 'and I will not be one till I die: I will be myself. Mr. Rochester, you must neither expect nor exact anything celestial of me - for you will not get it, any more than I shall get it of you: which I do not at all anticipate.”
Apart from the lovely prose, Charlotte Brontë does not hesitate to make use of her knowledge of the French language to add another layer cultural richness into her book, expressed through a character named Adele, a little girl Mr. Rochester stumbled upon in France after a tragic incident with one of his mistresses.
Characterization was superb, and each character, from the harsh and prejudiced Mrs. Reed, to the intensely passionate Mr. Rochester and the austere and saturnine St. John, was full of life and clearly distinct from the others, all told through the first person of Jane Eyre, which is another testament to Charlotte Brontë's great writing.
One aspect I would have wished to be done differently was the ending. The last paragraph and the way Charlotte Brontë chose to wrap the story up felt out of place and odd.
In conclusion, this lovely work of literature, with its subversion of classical romantic tropes, through adding a strong streak of will to the female character, and not having the two main persons involved being physically attractive in the mainstream sense, and with its lovely gothic prose and rich characterization, is a must read for every literature enthusiast. I will definitely want to reread this, because Charlotte Brontë created a world I would want to revisit over and over again. This is a 4.5 star read for me, and added to the list of my all-time favourite classics.
------------------------------------------------
“Do you think, because I am poor, obscure, plain and little, I am soulless and heartless? You think wrong! - I have as much soul as you, - and full as much heart! And if God had gifted me with some beauty and much wealth, I should have made it as hard for you to leave me, as it is now for me to leave you!”
“Do you think I am an automaton? — a machine without feelings? and can bear to have my morsel of bread snatched from my lips, and my drop of living water dashed from my cup? Do you think, because I am poor, obscure, plain, and little, I am soulless and heartless? You think wrong! — I have as much soul as you — and full as much heart! And if God had gifted me with some beauty and much wealth, I should have made it as hard for you to leave me, as it is now for me to leave you. I am not talking to you now through the medium of custom, conventionalities, nor even of mortal flesh: it is my spirit that addresses your spirit; just as if both had passed through the grave, and we stood at God's feet, equal — as we are!”
There are some books that can be considered timeless, never fading away into obscurity despite being wrapped under long layers of time, and I would definitely consider this work as one of those books every reader should delve into at least once. As a fan of Charlotte's sister's work, Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte, I was always looking forward into delving into this one and I finally did this year, and I was not disappointed.
This book has many layers. It is most obviously a book about love, and one can read it as a classic romance book, but there is far more to it than that. It is also a work exploring the importance of adhering to one's principles, and the capacity to stand firm in our ideals even when faced with bouts of intense passion. It is a glimpse into the life of a girl who is constantly pressured to conform herself to certain societal expectations enforced upon her because of her gender. Jane is a woman who has a very firm sense of self, her desires and her sense of self worth are crystallized, and time and time again, we see external pressures trying to compromise her independence and mold her into a tool to be used, either to capitalize on her unwavering conscientiousness or be privy to her endless well of love and understanding and sympathy. Regardless of these waves, Jane stands as firm as the most unmovable sea cliff and refuses to compromise the sanctity of her notion of self, and she never bends her will to something she does not truly believe in. Jane Eyre, as a character, is an inspiration many readers would want to draw strength from, to face their own lives with the same principled consistency.
“I care for myself. The more solitary, the more friendless, the more unsustained I am, the more I will respect myself.”
Through Jane Eyre, we also delve into the rich world of Britain in the 1800s, coming alive with Charlotte Brontë's beautiful prose that is a pure literary delight to read. We get to experience different aspects of the world, through the rich houses of Britain to a boarding school setting and lush gardens and harsh moors, tinted with a gothic flavour that adds a mysterious and supernatural atmosphere to the world. The world building was superbly written and wonderfully immersive. Nature is vibrant with life, the reader can almost hear the chirping of the birds with the gentle breeze flowing through the green garden of Thornfield and the howling of the wind and the splattering of rain in those dark stormy nights.
“I am not an angel,' I asserted; 'and I will not be one till I die: I will be myself. Mr. Rochester, you must neither expect nor exact anything celestial of me - for you will not get it, any more than I shall get it of you: which I do not at all anticipate.”
Apart from the lovely prose, Charlotte Brontë does not hesitate to make use of her knowledge of the French language to add another layer cultural richness into her book, expressed through a character named Adele, a little girl Mr. Rochester stumbled upon in France after a tragic incident with one of his mistresses.
Characterization was superb, and each character, from the harsh and prejudiced Mrs. Reed, to the intensely passionate Mr. Rochester and the austere and saturnine St. John, was full of life and clearly distinct from the others, all told through the first person of Jane Eyre, which is another testament to Charlotte Brontë's great writing.
One aspect I would have wished to be done differently was the ending. The last paragraph and the way Charlotte Brontë chose to wrap the story up felt out of place and odd.
In conclusion, this lovely work of literature, with its subversion of classical romantic tropes, through adding a strong streak of will to the female character, and not having the two main persons involved being physically attractive in the mainstream sense, and with its lovely gothic prose and rich characterization, is a must read for every literature enthusiast. I will definitely want to reread this, because Charlotte Brontë created a world I would want to revisit over and over again. This is a 4.5 star read for me, and added to the list of my all-time favourite classics.
------------------------------------------------
“Do you think, because I am poor, obscure, plain and little, I am soulless and heartless? You think wrong! - I have as much soul as you, - and full as much heart! And if God had gifted me with some beauty and much wealth, I should have made it as hard for you to leave me, as it is now for me to leave you!”