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The beginning of this novel drew me in, with its similarity to Harry Potter (which I love), and the growth of Jane's character kept me drawn in through out the rest. Jane Eyre was able to overcome the trauma of her childhood, make a life for herself, leave a man she loved, find a new home with family and a newfound fortune, all to end up with the same man she once left. I feel like a broken record, but, I can not get over my disappointment with the ending of this novel. My rating would have been a 9/10 if not for these things, all receiving a removal of one point:
-The "connection" between Jane and Rochester. I loved the other gothic elements that Brontë included, like the creepiness of Thornfield, because I felt that it was realistic, and added a veil of mystery. This however, is too much for me; I do not believe in spiritual connections such as this one, and Jane returning to Rochester was a total disappointment to her strength.
-The attempt of St. John to marry his cousin. Once again, I do find that the creepy elements of this novel to be quite interesting, but this is another level of creepy, in a bad way: it's incest.
All in all, I found Jane Eyre to be a quite enjoyable novel, but I do think that Brontë could have found a more suitable ending, one that accentuated Jane's strength. Perhaps Jane would adopt Adéle, and raise her as a single mother; anything but this terrible ending.

What rating would you give Jane Eyre overall?

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When I read of Jane being able to "hear" Mr. Rochester calling out for her, I brushed it off as Jane's imagination, thinking it was just Brontë's way of drawing Jane back to Rochester. When Rochester explains to Jane that he called out for her when Thornfield was on fire, I must admit I rolled my eyes so hard they could have fallen out of their sockets. I do not believe in communication of this nature, but apparently Charlotte Brontë does, and felt compelled to include it in her novel. I was already disappointed with the ending of this book because it made it seem like Jane and Rochester just HAD to be together, so the inclusion of this "connection" between them only added to this disappointment. All through out the book, I have been an advocate for Jane's strength, her ability to overcome childhood trauma, make a life for herself, leave Thornfield when she knew she needed to, etc. So when Jane returned to Rochester, I was upset that Charlotte Brontë made Jane seem dependent on love from a man, rather than continue the narrative of Jane being a strong, independent woman. With the addition of Jane "hearing" Rochester, the ending became even more cheesy, like Jane was called to get married to Rochester. I feel like this ending almost ruined the strong woman that Brontë had built Jane up to be, and I am upset about that. In my last blog post I commended Jane for her admirable strength, comparing her to the women being honored during Women's History Month! And now this?

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It turns out that Jane was not meant to live with her cousins, especially because St. John was trying to get her to marry him. I find this extremely bizarre, how could anyone even consider marrying their cousin? What is more frightening is the fact that Jane only said no because she did not love St. John, not because they are related. When Jane was able to leave the Moor House and St. John, I was happy that she would not be committing an act of incest, but instead, going to marry a man decades older than she. Although Jane was able to escape the charismatic trance St. John had put her in, when she left the Moor House, she was under the impression that Mr. Rochester was still married, so when she left, Jane was going after a married man. Before reading the book, we read articles about what to expect, and the one I read touched on how controversial Jane Eyre was. I now understand how Jane Eyre's character could be considered controversial, especially during the time it was published. I would consider the time we live in to be quite accepting of all lifestyles, but to me, this love story is quite weird, and it makes me uncomfortable. I always have considered Jane to be a strong woman, so I think that her story ending up with marriage is disappointing; not every woman NEEDS to end up with a man, especially not Jane Eyre.

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In the book Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë goes through such corrupt and detrimental life alterations that one would at least believe Jane deserves a happy ending. Even though Jane's relationship with Mr. Rochester may be unconventional and confrontational, she does eventually end up marrying him out of love.

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After finishing the section, I was very happy that Jane was able to find family and obtain some happiness after overcoming the challenge of leaving Thornfield. When I was looking back through the chapters, I saw this passage and thought of the happy ending of the section. All throughout the novel, Jane has felt isolated and alone, even when she was at Thornfield and accompanied by Rochester. Now, when Jane has left that all behind and found some people that she enjoys being around, they turn out to be her cousins. All though Jane did have a moment where she did not enjoy being a teacher, when she heard the news of the Rivers being her family, she was extremely happy. I think that this overwhelming joy that Jane experienced at this news was due to a combination of things; her lack of companions as a child and an adult, and her lack of family. Finding out she had cousins after all this time was finding out she had a family. Reading about Jane's happiness reminded me of the good times I have had with my own cousins, and it made me feel excited for Jane and her future with her family. I am also reminded of the song "Cousins" by Vampire Weekend, which myself and my cousins used to sing together.

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Jane's decision to leave Thornfield and Rochester, the only man who has ever loved her, was a very hard one, and I think that this passage shows this. Jane describes the feat of leaving as such a terrible thing, it can be seen that it is a very difficult decision for her. From the beginning of the book, I knew that Jane Eyre was a very strong young woman, and it has been very interesting to watch her grow as a character, and her strength grow as well. She has overcome lots of trauma from her past, she was able to make a life for herself, and now she is able to do the right thing, even though it is very hard for her to do. I think that Jane Eyre could be seen as inspiring to some, seeing as though she is such a tough woman. I find it fitting that I am having the realization of Jane's strength during Women's History Month, a month where we honor and recognize lots of strong women like Jane. The strength I mentioned in an earlier post has made itself present in Jane as a woman, and the "body builder" inside of her has grown.

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This passage stood out to me because it really shows off Brontë's writing style: long descriptive sentences. The passage I highlighted looks like several sentences at first glance, but I read it and saw that it was only two. Such a dense clump of text for Jane to simply be describing the weather outside. I do enjoy Charlotte Brontë's style of writing, because I find that her inclusion of lots of detail makes it easier for me to picture myself in the book, watching the events unfold in front of me as if it were a movie. In some books I am unable to do this because the sentences are not descriptive enough and can be hard to understand, but I find that Jane Eyre is a perfect novel for me to envision in my head. This passage is how Brontë describes the weather; very detailed and descriptive, which allows me to picture Jane in front of a green screen, giving a weather report, which is quite silly to imagine. I also found that in Chapter 20, when I noticed the gothic elements, of the story, that Brontë's long, descriptive sentences helped to add to the suspense I was feeling while reading; picturing Jane being surrounded by darkness, with scary things hiding in the shadows.

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In this excerpt I was able to see the inclusion of gothic elements in the story. The passage alludes to Mr. Mason being afraid of something else in the house, as if a creature or some type of monster had hurt him. I said earlier that I did not expect this novel to be quite as magical as Harry Potter, but perhaps I was wrong; maybe Brontë decided to include some scary creatures to spice things up. This adds the added element of fear to the scene when it is already mysterious, seeing as though no one knows how Mr. Mason was hurt. Mr. Rochester then tells Jane to stay with Mr. Mason, and leaves very quickly and mysteriously. His vague instructions as well as his abrupt exit add to the uncertainty already in the scene, and make it a bit spooky. Although Mr. Rochester's mansion is not a castle, it is still unexplored and large, which is also mysterious! I really enjoyed reading this chapter because I found it was filled with the gothic elements I learned about in the video, which made it more interesting for me to read. I think the slight sense of horror movie I get from this chapter was very enjoyable, and a nice change of pace from the previous chapters.

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It's no secret that Charlotte Brontë has the habit of writing in long, detailed sentences. In most of these details, Jane is describing something in a negative way, which is why I found it really interesting the way in which Jane Eyre describes Mr. Rochester. It differs greatly from the way she describes anyone else thus far in the story, because she adds positive elements to her description. Jane knows that Rochester is not very good-looking, but still finds a way to make him sound attractive, with a twinkle in his eye. She says that Mr. Rochester gives her a good feeling, and that he has a soft energy. Compared to the way she describes Mrs. Reed, it is easy to tell she likes Mr. Rochester to some degree. After reading this I wonder if Jane's fondness of Mr. Rochester will be a plot point in the story; if their relationship is developed, it would be interesting to see how Jane will change as a character, because as of this moment, she is very independent. I know from the article I read about women in the 19th Century that Jane was a controversial character, so her like of Mr. Rochester makes me wonder if the reason she is so controversial is because of a possible relationship. I am disappointed at the possibility that Jane may become reliant on a man because up to this point she has been so strong on her own.

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Reading this Chapter was quite enjoyable for me simply because of the direct address of the reader. In novels in 1st person, it is very uncommon for the narrator to mention, let alone actually address the reader. A show I have been watching recently, WandaVision, does this quite often, effectively breaking the fourth wall. In doing this, a connection is formed between the main character and the audience, which allows me to hone in on my focus. I thought that the inclusion of this in book form was very interesting, and I thought it effectively transformed the novel into a tunnel; Gateshead and Lowood being at one end and Thornfield at the other. While Jane is addressing this change, I am holding my breath, waiting to see what is to come- like I am actually passing through a real tunnel. I quite enjoyed this Chapter, I found that Jane being the one who watches over a misbehaving child quite an interesting change of pace. I think that the new setting allows for many new opportunities to come to light, and I am excited to see what they will be. Adele is an exciting character for me because she provides Jane with the opportunity to be more mature, and perhaps she will really transform. I think that her new job will be a very important part of this novel, because Jane has finally escaped the strictness of being a young child, and she is now freer. I wonder what she will do with her new freedom.

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Before I began reading Jane Eyre, I was unexcited and dreading it. I was under the impression that this novel would be extremely boring and difficult to understand. I was, however, pleasantly surprised, when I began to read and actually enjoy it. The concept of Jane Eyre is different than I had anticipated, and I am glad that I was not prepared for it. In a way, the plot of the novel came out of nowhere: I was anticipating a tale of British Royalty and perhaps Jane Eyre was a marrying into the family. Clearly, I had not done any prior research to reading, and I think that this worked out in my favor. I was blindsided in a good way. I think that the interesting story allowed me to pleasantly immerse myself in the text. Prior to the reading, I knew that Jane Eyre was not a typical woman in the 19th century, and my reading confirmed this. I really enjoyed the scenes of Jane at school and talking with Bessie, and I felt that her uniqueness as a character makes the story more interesting. Obviously, a story where every character is the same is no fun, so I wonder what else Brontë will do to make Jane stand out. I think that the first section has been very engaging, and I am excited for what will come later in the book. I hope we are able to see Jane Eyre grow up, because if she is as interesting an adult as she is a child, we are in for a treat!

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The article I read as a precursor to reading Jane Eyre mentioned that Jane was not a typical woman during the 19th century. In the early chapters of the novel, I saw that Jane was treated differently, but that she acted like any other child in her place would. When Jane starts at Lowood, her differences began to make themselves present. She questions the teaching methods of the teachers and struggles to understand why Helen would allow Miss Scatchered to hit her. In this passage, she explains that if she were to be punished, she would have stood up for herself and resisted, and Helen is taken aback by this. Helen cites the Bible in her explanation to Jane as to why she accepts the punishment, which causes me to wonder if the reason that Jane is "disobedient" is because she is not as immersed in religion. Perhaps this is the reason, but I also consider the fact that going to Lowood is an escape for Jane- is this the reason she would not allow a teacher to punish her? Because she came to Lowood to not be punished as she had been at Gateshead? Early on in the novel, Brontë has set Jane up to be a strong character, and I look forward to seeing this strength build as time goes on, like a bodybuilder.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pJHnQuA1wv8IhMEnZHUQZC2Es5YtKrXv4Fmfkf8kFiE/edit?usp=sharing

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Jane Eyre and the Cupboard Under the Stairs

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Jane Eyre and the Cupboard Under the Stairs

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It is obvious that Jane Eyre is unhappy with her living situation at Gateshead Hall, but this passage goes to show just how unhappy she is. I also find that this passage highlights the writing style of Brontë: long, descriptive sentences. The long sentences in this early stage of Jane's life also shows maturity in Jane at a young age; like an old person is inhabiting a young persons body. While reading, I had thought that Jane was being a bit dramatic, that she could not possibly be so unhappy, but I realize now that she is miserable at Gateshead Hall. Her cousins are favored over her, and everyone, including the help, thinks that 10-year-old Jane Eyre is a trouble maker. I find it quite sad that the only person that Jane does not hate and that does not hate her is Bessie. Because Jane is the narrator of the whole story, I notice the difference in how she talks about her family to her doctor, compared to how she describes Bessie in this passage. The contrast between this passage and all of the rest allows me to understand why Jane Eyre was so eager to go to school: so that she could escape. I find a similarity between Jane Eyre and Harry Potter which I think is quite interesting: both are living with their relatives who make their lives unbearable, and both find that school is their way to get out. Harry is kept in a closet as punishment for being a wizard, and Jane is kept in a creepy red room as punishment for... being a normal child. I do not expect Jane Eyre to be as much a magical story, but I am prepared to be fascinated.

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/2211330-does-jane-eyre-s-childhood-remind-you-of-harry-potter