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Jane Eyre an autobiography

by Charlotte Brontë

4.08 of 5 stars 4.08 · rating details · 1,045,535 ratings · 25,272 reviews

This is the only original version I have found which hasn't been 'accredited' to an extra author for the sake of publication. It is without additional comments or study notes - just as the author left it. A wonderful read.

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Published 1897 by Service & Paton (first published 1847)

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Dec 04, 2013 Cristin rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: classics , favorites

I could bang Mr. Rochester like a screen door 'till next Tuesday. That's not all I got from this book, honestly...

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Lynette I couldn't put my feelings for mr Rochester into words. Thank you for doing this for me. I never knew whether I wanted to slap him, kiss him, or throw ...more
updated Aug 01, 2015 10:48AM

Eve Brown Best review, EVER! Completely made my day. Have been "in love" with Mr. Rochester since I was ten ... and that was a long time ago. Yes, indeed. *sett ...more
Sep 12, 2015 11:15PM

Aug 24, 2012 Nataliya rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: i-also-saw-the-film , awesome-kickass-heroines , 2012-reads , books-from-childhood-revisited , my-childhood-bookshelves

Yes, I suppose you can view this book mostly as a love story. That's what I did at age 13 - but that's why I was left disappointed back then.

Or you can view this as an story of formation of a strong and independent female protagonist , a nineteenth-century feminist, light-years ahead of its time. And that's what left my now-closer-to-thirty-than-twenty self very satisfied and, quite frankly, rather impressed.²

(view spoiler)

Yes, I suppose you can view this book mostly as a love story. That's what I did at age 13 - but that's why I was left disappointed back then¹.

¹ (view spoiler)

² "I do not think, sir, you have any right to command me, merely because you are older than I, or because you have seen more of the world than I have; your claim to superiority depends on the use you have made of your time and experience."

Sing it, Jane. You tell him, you strong and awesome woman, you!

When I read it for the first time as a young and opinionated teen, I thought Jane Eyre was a boring and meek protagonist, too clingy to her 'outdated' morals, too afraid to do what I thought was a brave thing to do - say 'yes' to the apparent happiness that poor tragic Mr. Rochester was offering. (Oh naive young me, putting way too much stock in Rochester's woes after his (view spoiler) , sleeping with everyone in Europe and rejecting them probably because they were not English enough for him!) Wow, was there ever a way to misunderstand a book more than I did this one? Sometimes life experience does matter indeed.

Jane Eyre has a good idea of her self-worth. And she has a good idea about her own morals. And, unlike many in her situation, she sticks to her morals and her idea of what is wrong or right regardless of what outcome is in it for her. Here is the prime example:

" Gentlemen in his station are not accustomed to marry their governesses. "

The emphasis in this well-intentioned advice by Mrs. Fairfax is on the word MARRY. Ah, silly old lady, one may think, cautioning the young woman in such a prudish way. Ah, silly young woman, taking the advice of the old lady and acting prudishly. Ah, silly young woman, eventually rejecting the sincere love and offer of happiness for a seemingly prudish reason - not wanting to be a mistress. So old-fashioned and weak and caged-up, screamed my thirteen-year-old self.

But here's the thing. It's not just for the moral lesson for the readers that Bronte has Jane firmly say 'no'. It's not for the sake of mere societal appearance. It's for the sake of Jane, and Jane alone. MARRYING governesses was uncommon. Having them as mistresses - probably not as rare. In her society, protecting her virtue and reputation was not only the matter of religious views or stigma - it was the question of her future, as she had nobody to stand up for her if her reputation was ruined. And it was a question of her integrity - the quality that she maintains through thick and thin, refusing to fall head over heels for love, refusing to let love justify all the mistakes and wrong choices, refusing to let love blind her to everything else that was important for her sense of self-worth.

By refusing Rochester, Jane stays so true to herself without ever betraying herself. Jane refuses to take the steps that would destroy her integrity in her own eyes, and for that she has my strongest and most sincere respect and admiration. What Rochester did is unthinkable to her - not because of how others view it but because of her morals and convictions - and she shows unbelievable courage in sticking up for what she believes in, even if it is to her own material and soul-wrecking detriment. She will not give herself fully to something - or someone - that would destroy her integrity, tarnish her own self. And I love her for this unwavering determination to stay true to herself!

" Reader, I married him" may be one of the most famous phrases from this book (actually, the most famous, come to think of it) - but it is her refusal to marry him in the first place that allows her to keep her integrity and remain true to self, and continue developing into the amazing person she becomes. Jane has too much self-worth to have Rochester until he redeems himself in her eyes, until he repents. That's the point, not the marriage part.

Despite self-proclaimed meekness, Jane Eyre is far from weak or scared. She has been forced to make her own way in life without the luxury of relying on a rich male relative - father, brother, husband. And she did this in the world where being attached to a man was the best choice for a woman (just remember Jane Austen's heroines a few decades earlier reaching happiness only after finding a suitable gentleman!) . She is a rebel - setting out to have her own career in a male-dominated world, refusing to let a man rule her life (that applies to both Rochester and St. John here), and making statements that may have not had the most sympathetic audience back in her day:

" 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, to 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. It is thoughtless to condemn them, or laugh at them, if they seek to do more or learn more than custom has pronounced necessary for their sex. "

And here's what else I enjoyed about this book - its attempts to subvert the tropes, the same tropes that we still heavily rely on in literature. Bronte gets rid of the 'faultless' heroine - instead of being perfect (or having an imaginary flaw, like many literary heroines are prone to nowadays) Jane has a real one (for her time, at least) - her occasional temper. And she is not beautiful - not fake flaws, either but a consensus by many impartial observers that she is not a beauty. And to take it a step further - Mr. Rochester, our romantic lead, is quite frankly, rather ugly. This is not a beautiful couple (and Hollywood managed to "fix" that in all the movie adaptations, by the way - a slap in Bronte's face, I guess?). Jane is not in love with a pretty façade of Rochester - since he has none (a thing that contemporary writers should learn, by the way - writing love that stems from something else that simple attraction to physical beauty).

And finally, the atmosphere of this story. Oh, the wonderfully gothic atmosphere written so well, with intense moods palpable in every paragraph. So colorful, so vivid, so immersing - every room, every moor, every tree. Every description of landscape or interior actually serves a purpose to establish the mood of the scene, and it is very well-done.
.................................
All that said, I'm giving a condescending pat on the shoulder to my teenage self from the 'wisdom' of another fifteen years. Sorry, teen Nataliya, you little annoying know-it-all - you just needed to grow up to appreciate this story. 4.5 stars and high recommendation. ["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]> ...more

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Spigana Oh my God, this sounds exactly like me - the teenager who thought this a boring read with prudish heroine who can`t get anything done properly and now ...more
May 29, 2015 12:31AM

Spigana *feel
May 29, 2015 12:32AM

Dec 18, 2014 Steve Sckenda rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommends it for: Lovers of Quiet, Serious Women

Shelves: gothic , women , women-voices , religion , freedom , 19th-century , britain , british , british-authors , classics , favorites , favorites-classics , love , marriage , bible , romanticism , first-person

Reader, I am smitten. Society claimed Jane Eyre lacked charm, beauty, and grace, but Charlotte Bronte trusted her readers and me to see beneath the surface to Jane’s bedrock integrity, intelligence, imagination, individualism, and generosity. Jane’s pheromones secrete whiffs of spontaneity and passion that trigger attraction in men like Rochester, St. John-- and me. Says Jane: “I am independent, sir. I am my own mistress.” Her gray Victorian dress hides her sensuality, but Jane is “an aromatic w Reader, I am smitten. Society claimed Jane Eyre lacked charm, beauty, and grace, but Charlotte Bronte trusted her readers and me to see beneath the surface to Jane’s bedrock integrity, intelligence, imagination, individualism, and generosity. Jane’s pheromones secrete whiffs of spontaneity and passion that trigger attraction in men like Rochester, St. John-- and me. Says Jane: “I am independent, sir. I am my own mistress.” Her gray Victorian dress hides her sensuality, but Jane is “an aromatic wine, after swallowing, warm and racy.”

Jane learned her independence through loneliness, persecution, hardship, death, and a horrific childhood. She has endured suffering, and--for her scars--we love her. Cruelty of others made her kind; she returns good for evil. She adheres to religion but answers to her own conscience and is respectfully skeptical of religious representatives blathering cant. She follows that "still, small voice" of confident conscience:

I can live alone if self-respect requires me too. I need not sell my soul to buy bliss. I have an inward treasure born with me, which can keep me alive if all extraneous delights should be withheld.

Rather than a religion of self-righteousness, hers is a religion of integrity and duty which requires tough choices that force her to abandon security and comfort.

Reader, I am Rochester. Volcanic. Moody. “If I have peculiarities of temper, allowances should be made.” I have suffered misfortune, and I just want happiness in middle age. Do my passions overwhelm you? Good. Like Rochester, I will pay the cost, because bloodlessness is a crime against our natures. We will have our freedom.

But Reader, I need Jane, “my elf, my changeling.” Upon meeting her, "my soul began to expand, exult." I have known superficial women fixated on trivialities like the French actress and like Blanche Ingram. But Jane does not seem to care about messy pasts. She is confident, not jealous. Yet, if we persevere, do you think that life has a way of destroying us or destroying the impediments to our happiness?

I am Jane. I am Rochester. Great literature encompasses us. “Eddying darkness seemed to swim around me. I heard a flood loosed in a great mountain and felt the torrent come to rise.”

Reader, I love these independent, intelligent women--both the characters and their creators. I come to this novel right after having read Jane Austen, another clergyman's daughter who died young and whom I love, but Austen writes with quiet wit and irony, and her subtle dialogue requires close attention, so I found her myself starting paragraphs and sometimes chapters over again. But with “Jane Eyre,” I mounted Mesrour as Pilot chased us across the foggy moor, and we raced the wind and scudding clouds. If passion carried me away from the text, I easily picked up the narrative a few paragraphs down the road. Even so, I love Jane Eyre like I loved Elizabeth Bennet and Anne Elliot. Now, I leave to court Catherine in Wuthering Heights. Charlotte Bronte’s sister will make proper introduction.

March 3, 2013 ...more

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Poncho I liked this review so much, Steve! You are definitely right when you say "great literature encompasses us". I liked the way you found yourself in Roc ...more
Sep 08, 2015 10:00PM

Steve Sckenda Poncho wrote: "I liked this review so much, Steve! You are definitely right when you say "great literature encompasses us". I liked the way you found ...more
Sep 09, 2015 08:45AM

Feb 06, 2011 Vinaya rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: books-i-loved , re-reading-times-1-million

FIVE REASONS WHY JANE EYRE WOULD NEVER BE A BESTSELLER IN OUR TIMES:
5. Four hundred-odd pages of purely descriptive writing
4. Overt religious themes and moral preaching
3. A plain-Jane heroine who stays plain. No makeovers to reveal a hitherto hidden prettiness that only needed an application of hydrogen peroxide and some eyebrow plucking to emerge full-blown.
2. The world is not well-lost for love. In the war between self-respect and grand passion, principles win hands down. Rousing, yet tender s FIVE REASONS WHY JANE EYRE WOULD NEVER BE A BESTSELLER IN OUR TIMES:
5. Four hundred-odd pages of purely descriptive writing
4. Overt religious themes and moral preaching
3. A plain-Jane heroine who stays plain. No makeovers to reveal a hitherto hidden prettiness that only needed an application of hydrogen peroxide and some eyebrow plucking to emerge full-blown.
2. The world is not well-lost for love. In the war between self-respect and grand passion, principles win hands down. Rousing, yet tender speeches do not make our heroine forsake her creed to fall swooning and submissive into her alpha's arms.
1. NO SCHMEXING!!

When I was a little girl, I had a doll named Saloni. Now Saloni wasn't a particularly attractive specimen as dolls go, especially since, over the years, I had drilled a hole in her little rosebud mouth in order to 'feed' her, I had 'brushed' her hair till all the poor synthetic threads had fallen out and I had dragged her around with me so much, one of her big blue eyes had fallen off. But in my eyes, Saloni was the best doll ever created. She was my comfort, my mainstay in a world filled with confusing new things like school and daycare and other little people. Jane Eyre is my grown-up version of Saloni. Comfort food for my brain.

There are two authors I will read over and over and over again, until the day I die. One of them is Charlotte Bronte, the other one is Georgette Heyer. I have read Jane Eyre a million times, but I never tire of the story. Every time I reach the scene where she professes her love to Mr. Rochester, I come out in goosebumps. Every single time. Age and experience have taught me to spot the flaws in the story and the characters. The ineffable belief in English superiority. The condescending attitude towards servants and people of the lower class. The ill-treatment of mentally disabled people. The almost Quaker-ish sentiments of Jane Eyre. But all of this detracts not a whit from one of the greatest love stories ever told.

And there are a lot of things to admire in this book as well. Edward Rochester, ugly as sin, but powerful and dominant and unbelievably attractive in spite of his looks. A love that grows and strengthens on the basis of mutual sympathy, respect and a meeting of the minds, that a lot of our authors would do well to learn from. Jane Eyre, who does not think that her great love excuses acts of selfishness and immorality. Despite being drawn as a somewhat submissive personality, Jane manages to hold her own with quiet fortitude, never loudly asserting her intelligence or talent, but nonetheless displaying a strength of character that would put the Bellas and Noras of out time to shame.

Jane Eyre would never, as I have said above, be a bestseller if it had been written in our times. And that is a loss we must take upon ourselves. That we have put such prime value on lust and looks and power that we have forgotten to be real in our writing. There is a reason why millions of people the world over remember and revere a book written a hundred and fifty-odd years ago while the bestsellers of our times slip quickly and quietly from our memories. Jane Eyre is more than just a beautiful book about a love story that transcends all boundaries; it is a testament to the power of pure emotion, that can be felt through the ages and across all barriers of time and culture.
...more

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Jun 29, 2010 Ellen rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: novels , favorites

[The picture disappeared which made the comments rather irrelevant.:]

description

…Oh course, Rush Limbaugh is nuts.

In December 2007, on a radio show with an audience of 14.5 million, Limbaugh asked this question about the former first lady's presidential prospects, after an incredibly unflattering picture of her had surfaced: "Will Americans want to watch a woman get older before their eyes on a daily basis? I want you to understand that I'm talking about the evolution of American culture here, and not so much Mrs Clinton," Limbaugh told his audience. "It could be anybody, and it's really not very complicated. Americans are addicted to physical perfection, thanks to Hollywood and thanks to television” (news.com.au).

Interestingly and at the same time, we have John McCain, another presidential prospect, who was 71 years old [11 years older than Hillary Clinton:]. Somehow this is different. Society has agreed that women age, and men grow more distinguished. Ah, bullshit. McCain looked plenty old and acted like an irrational coot.

However, the more important point is how little we've changed. Women still must be beautiful. And, for the most part, beautiful women still populate contemporary fiction. Consider how brave it was, then, for Charlotte Brontë to insist on a "plain" heroine. Brontë emphasizes Eyre's plainness as if challenging the reader to reject her. The impact of presenting such a heroine may be gauged by a male critic (a 19th century Limbaugh) in the Westminister Review (1858), who writes, "Possibly none of the frauds which are now so much the topic of common remark are so irritating, as that to which the purchaser of a novel is a victim on finding he has only to peruse a narrative of the conduct and sentiments of an ugly lady" (Showalter 123).

Despite ignoring the classic paradigm of either having a beautiful heroine or a heroine--ostensibly plain--who later "blooms," Brontë makes us forget that neither Jane nor Rochester are physically attractive. From the opening scene, Jane's personality dominants the horizon. Having endured the young master's abuse for some time, Jane strikes back and, as punishment for her passion, is banished to the red room. The room is chill, garish, and where Mr. Reed died. Jane's cries to be released are ignored, and she falls into unconsciousness.

Although Jane suffers no lasting harm, her thoughts before she is thrust into the room isolate well why her path will be harder than fate had dictated already:

I know that had I been a sanguine, brilliant, careless, exacting, handsome, romping child—though equally dependent and friendless—Mrs. Reed would have endured my presence more complacently; her children would have entertained for me more of the cordiality of fellow-feeling; the servants would have been less prone to make me the scapegoat of the nursery.

While beauty and its attendant charms would have made Jane’s life easier, it would have lessened her complexity as a character. Again and again, Jane cannot sit back and depend on the free pass beauty often accords, but must choose to give up or to fight her way through. Jane chooses to fight, and it is her passion, wit, and intelligence that make her an unforgettable heroine.
...more

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Jan 09, 2015 Cecily rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: classics

Child neglect, near death, a dash of magical realism, the power of love, the powerlessness of the poor, sexual rivalry, mystery, madness and more. It is as powerful as ever - but is it really a love story, given Rochester's Svengali-tendencies? His downfall and her inheritance make them more equal, but is it really love on his part? I'm not sure, which is what makes it such a good book (just not necessarily a love story). I also like the tension between it being very Victorian in some obvious wa ...more

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Jocelynn Proulx I believe that your overall review of the book was very insightful. With your comments it is interesting you could relate to Jane Eyre because you too ...more
Jun 04, 2015 05:06PM

Cecily Thanks for the compliments, Jocelynn. It's always nice to be encouraged - and I've just enjoyed your own review, which has a refreshing and slightly d ...more
Jun 05, 2015 04:51AM

Apr 22, 2015 Samadrita rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommends it for: misogynists

Shelves: timeless-classics , bygones-are-never-bygones , romance , european-literature , britain , 1001-and-more , by-women-who-matter , feminism-feminist-undertones , gothic , cherished , re-readable , behemoth , semi-favorites

EDIT - 22/04/2015:- The following review was written in paroxysms of adoration which I no longer feel hence a star is being ducked. Now that I have read Wide Sargasso Sea and re-read Wuthering Heights , Rochester and Jane's attraction as characters of high morals has waned in my eyes. But until I write a more balanced critique of this, I refrain from disowning my first impressions.

____

What do I write about you Jane? Words fall short when I try to.

Jane, you are so much a part of me as I am your ...more

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Samadrita Varsha wrote: "Excellent review!! However I would agree with your edited part Samadrita, it happened to when I compared Charlotte Brontë’s Villette wi ...more
Apr 22, 2015 08:51AM

Samadrita @Ivonne & Karen:- I do not distance myself from all the praise in this review. Jane Eyre is definitely good and will remain a landmark feminist te ...more
Apr 22, 2015 08:56AM

Sep 07, 2009 Grace Tjan rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: british-literature , classics , 5-star-reads , 2009 , bbc-big-reads , the-bronte-parsonage , victorian-lit

Now I know why Charlotte Bronte said this of Jane Austen: "The passions are perfectly unknown to her: she rejects even a speaking acquaintance with that stormy sisterhood". I love Jane, but Charlotte REALLY knows how to write about passion, romantic or otherwise. If Jane’s books are stately minuets in which the smallest gesture has its meaning, Charlotte’s is a spirited, sweeping tango of duty and desire. A perfect blend of passionate romance, gothic mystery, romantic description of nature, soci ...more

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Oct 20, 2011 Stephen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 1800s , classics

A CELEBRITY DEATHMATCH REVIEW : Hamlet vs. Jane Eyre!

Setting : A small town in the Old West. Sheriff Hamlet is relaxing out in front of the General Store.

Suddenly Polonius comes running down the middle of the dirt road at the center of town, waving his hands in the air, shouting "EVERYBODY RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!! JANE EYRE AND THE BRONTE POSSE IS COMING TO TOWN!!" The townspeople all scramble out of sight. Store owners pull the shades down. Sheriff Hamlet remains cucumber cool with his legs crossed ...more

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Feb 22, 2008 Gabriella rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. SPOILER ALERT. YOU MAY NOT WANT TO READ THIS REVIEW IF YOU PLAN ON READING JANE EYRE.

I read Jane Eyre for the first time as an adult and I can't help but feel sorry for every junior high or high school student who was forced to read this book.

I thought getting through this book was very difficult. I assumed I would love it since I generally love books by Jane Austen, but I didn't find many similarities at all. Jane Eyre was boring and unbelievable. I did enjoy the first half of the book because ...more

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Christa I think that for the time period during which it was written, Jane Eyre would be considered feminist and even sexually revolutionary. If you look at i ...more
Sep 08, 2015 07:09PM

Greg Z Christa wrote: "I think that for the time period during which it was written, Jane Eyre would be considered feminist and even sexually revolutionary. ...more
Sep 09, 2015 03:32AM

Sep 14, 2009 Danielle The Book Huntress (Self-Proclaimed Book Ninja) rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommends it for: To romantics of all kinds

Shelves: abused , angsty-read , bad-boy-rake-or-rogue , beauty-is-in-the-eye , classic , coming-of-age , favorites , flawed-hero , governess-or-schoolmarm , hero-to-die-for , heroine-i-adore , less-than-perfect-hero-or-heroine , owned-copy , plain-jane , redemption , scarred-hero , tortured-hero , aar-top-100-romance , the-brontes

It seems silly to say that a book can affect you on a profound level. well I definitely believe in this power that a good book has. Jane Eyre is one of them. I cannot say that this was an easy book to read. But it was a book that I was very enriched by reading. Romance is a genre that is looked down on by many "sophisticated readers." Perhaps they would look down on Jane Eyre, but would probably get some eyebrows raised at them. Well Jane Eyre is the archetype for the romance novel. After having It seems silly to say that a book can affect you on a profound level. well I definitely believe in this power that a good book has. Jane Eyre is one of them. I cannot say that this was an easy book to read. But it was a book that I was very enriched by reading. Romance is a genre that is looked down on by many "sophisticated readers." Perhaps they would look down on Jane Eyre, but would probably get some eyebrows raised at them. Well Jane Eyre is the archetype for the romance novel. After having read thousands of them, I know a romance novel when I see it, and Jane Eyre does qualify. But it is much more than this. It's a story for the person who wonders why they keep trying to do the right thing, and persevering in life, instead of just taking what they want when they want it. If Jane Eyre had been that sort of person, she would not have gotten her happy ending. Instead, Jane walked away from the thing she wanted most in the world. She almost died doing what she felt in her heart was right. Had the story ended there, I probably would have detested this book. But it doesn't. We see Jane continue to grow and act as the phenomenal person that she was. Although often downtrodden, she is no meek mouse. She has a fighting spirit that keeps her going when others would have laid down and died. But despite being a fighter, she is not a user and abuser. It's hard at times for the difference to be clearly delineated. Well there is no question about Jane's level of strength and intregrity. Although it is made clear several times in this novel, that Jane is no beauty, her soul makes her a beautiful character. Beautiful in a more profound way.

There are moments when you feel, how can one person suffer so? But taking the journey, you realize that all Jane's suffering had a purpose. It refined her into a woman who could look beneath and love what others could never love or understand. It made her the woman who could love and heal Rochester.

At the same time, Rochester was made for Jane Eyre. He had searched his life for a woman like her, and made quite a few mistakes along the way. And out of love, he was able to let her go when he wanted to keep her. But she came back to him, when he needed her most.

Rochester is the hero that formed the archetype for many of my favorites: tortured, scarred, dark, enigmatic, all of those things. Best of all, loving little, plain, ordinary Jane with a fundamental intensity that pours out of the pages of this book into my heart as a reader. Despite his lack of perfection, I could not love him more.

Ah, how maudlin I sound. I can't help it. This book moved me to tears. Yet I smiled at the same time. I enjoyed the conversations between Rochester and Jane. There was a heat there, a passion. Yet this book is clean enough to read in Sunday school. That is grand romance. The journey so well expressed, that no sex scenes are needed. It's all there.

This novel is also inspirational. Not preachy, in my opinion, but for a believer, one can definitely find spiritual messages in this book. About perseverance, about not wearying about doing good. About the profoundness of God's love. It's all there, but in a narrative that expertly showcases it, not preaching it.

I feel I am failing to write the review I want to write for this book. The words do fail me. All I can say is that this book will always be a favorite of mine because of the way it touched my heart and challenged me.

...more

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Jul 17, 2013 Garima rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites , my-2-cents

Classics are books which, the more we think we know them through hearsay, the more original, unexpected, and innovative we find them when we actually read them. - Italo Calvino, Why Read the Classics?

There is no second or third or nineteenth time for me. This is the first time I have read Jane Eyre and this is the first time I’ve read anyone like her. Did I take forever to say ‘hello’ to Jane? Not at all! There couldn’t have been a more better timing since at present, my mind is in perfect harm
Classics are books which, the more we think we know them through hearsay, the more original, unexpected, and innovative we find them when we actually read them. - Italo Calvino, Why Read the Classics?

There is no second or third or nineteenth time for me. This is the first time I have read Jane Eyre and this is the first time I’ve read anyone like her. Did I take forever to say ‘hello’ to Jane? Not at all! There couldn’t have been a more better timing since at present, my mind is in perfect harmony with my heart and I’m walking down the line of rationality without many missteps. Kindly don’t consider these words as some kind of vain certitude on my part but rather an admission of those rare times in our lives, no matter how short lived these moments are, when the clouds of confusion and ambiguity makes way for a clear sky of coherence and understanding, mostly about ourselves and sometimes about others and in this blissful state, I met Jane, Jane Eyre, Jane Elliot, Jane Fairfax Rochester and Jane.

We hit it off right away. I empathized with her when she was a child, I encouraged her when she was an adolescent and I admired her when she was on the cusp of being a teenage girl and a woman. Everything was taking place in an acceptable manner. But then Mr. Rochester entered the scene and I went weak at the knees. I wanted a perfect love story with a perfectly happy ending. This usually happens whenever I realize that the love in question is true and pure and the hopeless romantic in me can’t bear the thought of any ill fate befalling upon my dear lovers. I’m game for all the crazy twists and turns but something different was happening here and the difference was Jane. I had my doubts about her along with some petty preconceptions and banal expectations but in spite of reading so much about her, a surprise bundled in the myriad layers of words and phrases, both contemporary and archaic was waiting for me in the form of this book.

“You are going, Jane?”
“I am going, sir.”
“You are leaving me?”
“Yes.”

One fundamental aspect of this novel was the constant movement of our protagonist. The changes in her life were not courtesy the coming and going of others but it was her, who moved to different places and caught herself in different circumstances which brought the welcome and unwelcome changes that eventually gave the long awaited meaning to her life. As a child, it was an imposition but as the years passed, she attained an understanding of being an individual. This despite the fact that there was an easy and apparently happy road she could have chosen, but that person at the end of that road would have transformed into someone else, someone not Jane. In her quest, she took us, the readers, along with her and made us see the world through her eyes. It was an unpleasant world- unfair, prejudiced, conceited, gothic, but the presence of Jane was redeeming enough. She was real in the world of fakes, an antidote to the poisonous streams of inhumanity and a torchbearer of individuality, feminism, integrity, and independence.

What about Love in all this? Especially when Love is all you got? Is this what you’re supposed to proclaim?

I care for myself. The more solitary, the more friendless, the more unsustained I am, the more I will respect myself.

That’s precisely what you need to do. You need to care for yourself in order to know yourself, only then you can and should step up on the pedestal of love without compromising your being in any manner and Love! It always finds a way when it is meant to be. As for me, I have found a lifelong companion in Jane. What would Jane think? Had I been a Jane in my life? Do I feel a little guilty for not being a Jane on certain occasions? These are some sample yardstick questions I have saved for myself for the perpetual dilemmas that engulf our lives. I’m sure that their answers would help me in a great way and my kind Jane, my plain Jane, my beautiful Jane will always be there to help because, Dear Readers, Jane is Forever.
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Iris A truly exquisite, wonderful review. I agree I felt a strong kinship to Jane and Bronte paints her admirable, fierce independent spirit so vividly. If ...more
Sep 24, 2015 02:47AM

Iris If only I had read your review when I was first studying Jane Eyre two years ago at school, for there is so much profound insight here :) a truly exqu ...more
Sep 24, 2015 02:50AM

May 24, 2012 s.penkevich rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: classics , love

‘ It is in vain to say human beings ought to be satisfied with tranquillity: they must have action; and they will make it if they cannot find it. ’
One would be hard pressed to find a stronger female character than Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre. She is a staggering figure of feminist literature, rejecting, or rather, dismissing the notions of social class and many gender roles as she moves upward from her humble beginnings. I was floored by how incredibly enjoyable and poetic this novel was, and how ‘ It is in vain to say human beings ought to be satisfied with tranquillity: they must have action; and they will make it if they cannot find it. ’
One would be hard pressed to find a stronger female character than Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre. She is a staggering figure of feminist literature, rejecting, or rather, dismissing the notions of social class and many gender roles as she moves upward from her humble beginnings. I was floored by how incredibly enjoyable and poetic this novel was, and how it would resound equally well with audiences of either gender despite being often dismissed by males. With Brontë’s strong feminist themes brilliantly illuminated through her enviable prose and engrossing characters, Jane Eyre truly deserves the title of Classic Novel.

One cannot help but fall in love with the character of Jane Eyre. I went into this novel expecting simply a variation of Austen, and was pleasantly surprised. Instead of being focused on the proper workings within proper society, I found a total rejection of these notions in the character of Jane. Still being pleasant and strong willed like Austen’s leads, Jane climbs the ladder of society without stopping to consider her place within it and often criticizes class based distinctions. Although she is merely a governess, she aims for the heart of the ‘Master of the house’, and even after certain events would no longer require her servitude, she is quite insistent upon maintaining employment and an income. She is like a Victorian era punk, totally bent on independence. Mr. Rochester is another lovable character, despite his being a complete pompous ass (which totally won my heart). It is interesting to note that Brontë toys with some of the ideas of romantic plots as well. It is usual for the romantic couple to be attractive (look at Hollywood), yet Brontë is quick and often to point out that neither Jane nor Mr. Rochester are particularly pleasing to the eye, and have a difficult countenance.

Brontë’s use of language is widely impressive, having a keen eye for detail and distinction in both natural descriptions and dialogue. It was difficult not to speak like these characters in real life (which would have probably earned me a punch to the mouth), the writing and speech is that infectious. It flows for pages with a strong current without becoming dull in the long descriptive passages and accounts. In short, Brontë writes with the best of them.

Fleshing out this story is the theme of sin and forgiveness. While being heavily grounded in religion, Brontë dismisses the standard notions of the day in that regard as well, affording a deeply moral lead that is still able to criticize religious standards and have ambiguous religious beliefs. Jane is quick to judge her actions based on moral principal, but cannot allow it to keep her from being her independent, free-willed self. The most powerful moment of this novel, however, is that only after the sins of her lover are purified in flame and paid in flesh, that the two are able to meld in heavenly bliss.

If you haven’t read this, well, let’s just say I’m shaking my head at you like a disappointed father. I jest, but really, give this a try. Brontë is truly a master, and this book gets literally crazy. And for once ‘literally’ truly means literally, you’ll see. Jane Eyre is a wonderful character to follow through this novel and upon completion you will have ‘ acknowledged that God had tempered judgment with mercy ’
4.5/5
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Jul 20, 2013 Rowena rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: classics , own , english-lit , favorites

I get the feeling that Jane Eyre may have ruined future English classics for me. I find it hard to imagine other classics topping this one. This was actually a book that I had no interest in reading because I had been underwhelmed by a Jane Eyre miniseries I watched several years ago. However, so many people have urged me to read this, saying it’s an excellent book, and they weren’t wrong.

Jane Eyre is definitely cut from a different cloth from the other classic novel heroines I have come across. I get the feeling that Jane Eyre may have ruined future English classics for me. I find it hard to imagine other classics topping this one. This was actually a book that I had no interest in reading because I had been underwhelmed by a Jane Eyre miniseries I watched several years ago. However, so many people have urged me to read this, saying it’s an excellent book, and they weren’t wrong.

Jane Eyre is definitely cut from a different cloth from the other classic novel heroines I have come across. She is well-rounded woman of substance, courageous and brave. We follow Jane from her humble beginnings as an abused orphan, both at her Aunt Reed’s house and the boarding school she was subsequently sent to, to her life as a governess. During this period, Jane learns, and is willing to learn, many lessons. I admired her courage and her determination, her desire to be free, despite what little she had or was given, her intelligence, and her love for others.

“I longed for a power of vision which might overpass that limit; which might reach the busy world, towns, regions full of life I had heard of but never seen that then I desired more of the practical experience than I possessed; more of intercourse with my kind, of acquaintance with variety of character, than was here within my reach.”

I was surprised to read passages that highlighted her feminist leanings; it was very timely that I read this book on International Women’s Day.

“Nobody knows how many rebellions beside political rebellions ferment in the masses of life which people earth. 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 constraint, too absolute a stagnation, precisely as men would suffer; and it is narrow-minded in their privileged fellow-creatures to say that they ought to confine themselves to making puddings and knitting stockings…”

It’s also a love story, featuring the brooding Mr. Rochester. I found him to be quite an interesting character, though I did question a few of his actions.

Bronte’s writing style is truly exquisite; she has an adept handle on the language and her prose was like poetry at times. I found it quite charming the way in which she addressed the reader (“dear Reader”) throughout the narrative. It was also interesting to see that Bronte uses semi-colons a lot more often than I do (and I think I use them a lot!).

“The flame flickers in the eye; the eye shines like dew; it looks soft and full of feeling; it smiles at my jargon: it is susceptible; impression follows impression through its clear sphere; where it ceases to smile, it is sad; an unconscious lassitude weighs on the lid: that signifies melancholy resulting from loneliness. It turns from me; it will not suffer farther scrutiny; it seems to deny, by a mocking glance, the truth of the discoveries I have already made…”

I’m so glad to have my own copy of this book as I believe I’ll be reading this one over and over again in the future.
...more

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Jun 09, 2015 Tadiana ✩ Night Owl☽ rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: classics , historical-fiction , i-can-tame-the-bad-boy , literary-stuff , oldies-but-goodies , made-me-think

I'm bumping Jane Eyre up to the full five stars on this reread. It has its Victorian melodramatic moments (horrible aunt! and cousins! (view spoiler) ), but overall I found this story of a plain, obscure girl determined to maintain her self-respect, and do what she feels is right even in the face of pressure, profoundly moving. I'm a romantic, so yeah, that aspect totally sucked me in too. And it reall ...more

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Tadiana ✩ Night Owl☽ Sense and Sensibility is on my short list, Karlyne. Interested in a buddy read sometime, maybe in a month or two or three? I might also be talked into ...more
updated Jun 24, 2015 02:58PM

Karlyne Landrum Tadiana Part-Time Dictator wrote: "Sense and Sensibility is on my short list, Karlyne. Interested in a buddy read sometime, maybe in a month or two or ...more
Jun 24, 2015 03:21PM

May 12, 2015 Raeleen Lemay rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: own , classics

*3.5*

I HAVE VERY MIXED FEELINGS ABOUT THIS.

I really REALLY enjoyed the first half of the book, mainly because I love stories of orphans and/or boarding schools, so young Jane was somebody I enjoyed reading about. From a young age she was very headstrong and always stood up for herself and what she believed in, which she continued to do throughout the book. However, as the book went on, the pacing slowed down a lot (for me, anyway) and I found myself losing interest. The Victorian drama of peopl ...more

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Leslie I didn't like Pride and Prejudice either! Why does everyone love it?! I feel like my emotions are broken or something.
Jan 23, 2015 12:11PM

Marija Popiežius same here! I enjoyed the part about her childhood and years in a boarding school so much and had such high hopes about what comes next, but with each ...more
May 31, 2015 01:58PM

Jan 16, 2015 Diane Librarian rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites , british-charm , classics , movie-adaptation

Jane Eyre makes me want to be a better person. Her goodness, her humility, her frankness, her passion, her fierce will and her moral compass are all inspiring.

And yet, I also love her faults. Jane has a temper, she gets jealous, she fights back, and at times she is too obedient, especially when given orders by overbearing men.

What is it about this gothic novel that still makes it a compelling read more than 160 years after it was published? I first came to this story, as I suspect many have, thr ...more

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Oct 20, 2011 karen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: littry-fiction

well, i can do that, too.

CELEBRITY DEATHMATCH REVIEWS*
(*entertainment purposes only)

HAMLET v. JANE EYRE

Setting: World Courts buildings, Den Haag, Netherlands; a closed-session hearing...

Judge: I have agreed to hear this case, but I must admit to both parties that we are in uncharted legal territory. Both parties must understand that I have very little administrative guidance with which to make a decision. This is a very public dispute, and the fate of a nation rests on my decision, so my decisio ...more

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Apr 15, 2012 K.D. Absolutely rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to K.D. by: TFG 100 Favorite Books, 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die, 501 Must Read Books

Shelves: 1001-core , 501 , tfg-100 , drama , classics

What I really liked about this book was the fact that Charlotte Bronte challenged herself to rise above the usual romantic formula. The story followed the typical romance flow: boy meets girl, they separate, meet again but it is almost like a deadend... but love prevails, they wed and live happily ever after. However, Bronte defied the convention by making the lovers plain-looking especially the male protagonist, Rochester. Bronte even extended this by having a Gracean-looking (Greek handsome) S What I really liked about this book was the fact that Charlotte Bronte challenged herself to rise above the usual romantic formula. The story followed the typical romance flow: boy meets girl, they separate, meet again but it is almost like a deadend... but love prevails, they wed and live happily ever after. However, Bronte defied the convention by making the lovers plain-looking especially the male protagonist, Rochester. Bronte even extended this by having a Gracean-looking (Greek handsome) St John as Rochester's competition. Then, as if not contented, Bronte gave our eponymous heroine, Jane Eyre more reasons to stop loving Rochester in the final chapter of the book. However, love conquers all, including good reason and rational thinking so who am I to disagree with what her heart is telling her?

The writing is superb. It can be wordy for a non-classic reader though. However, if you read slowly and examine the sentences, there are no wasted words. Bronte took time to describe the surroundings, the feelings of the characters and articulated well their thoughts. The gothic ingredient, that I understand was the fad during Bronte's time, was used to give an eerie feeling in some of the scenes but not as eerie as the way her younger sister Emily used it in Wuthering Heights. That was nice, since even if they were sisters, Charlotte and Emily, seemed to have very distinct styles.

The plot, although intricately woven, is a bit cheesy and unbelievable, having a couple of too far-out coincidences. But I think Bronte intended to have this book read by women, this being a romance, so I shall not rant on this aspect. After all, I bought the book because I am into this crazy quest of reading all the books in Boxall's 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die and Bloombury's 501 Must Read Books and this book is in both lists. I postponed reading this for a couple of years now, but had to pick this up to finally read because this was voted as the April 2012 Book-of-the-Month by my book club, The Filipino Group (GR-TFG) here in Goodreads.

The intricacy of the plot is due to the events that Bronte used to challenge her very interesting characters. Bronte seemed to know what could make her characters spill out their beans to the delight of her readers. There are no clear heroes and villains. Each character is portrayed to be just being him/herself given the time, place, expected behavior and the norms that England in the 19th century had.

There are so many themes that can be deduced from the story: romance between equals, female independence, religion and social status. Compared to the women of Jane Austen's novels, Jane Eyre is a kick-ass. She is independent-minded, can work like a horse, and whose life is not centered on marrying any of the rich men around.

For the superb writing, memorable characters and timeless themes, I have no doubt that this book will be read by many many more generations to come.
...more

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Jan 19, 2010 Madeline rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: the-list , assigned-reading , ugh

If you like fantastically depressing subject matter that would make Dickens cry (think orphans, typhoid-infested boarding schools, and crazy people locked in attics) and an annoying protagonist who can't decided if she's independent or submissive, you'd probably like this book. I'll admit, I enjoyed the mystery aspect of the story, but as soon as Jane figures out what's causing strange noises late at night and setting fire to Mr. Rochester's bed, the plot kind of goes down the toilet. The myster ...more

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Wickedshizuku (and her 7 Black cats) oh gods! The comic is just hilarious. I'm struggling through this read right now.
Sep 03, 2015 05:26AM

Greg Z Geisel wrote: "Yeah I guess I just adore her because she's so real. And I definitely respect your opinion. I actually love reading different opinions. ...more
Sep 03, 2015 06:22AM

Sep 17, 2007 Ben rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was actually the book that made a reader out of me. I mean, I've always read books, But sometime in high school, I encountered Jane Eyre, and it just clicked. There was story here, and real people having real emotions. Now, I remember being deeply moved in grade school by Bridge to Terebithia . But those were emotions drawn in broad, child-like brushstrokes. Jane Eyre was the first book that made me think about the process of reading--and just as importantly, writing --as a human activity. T ...more

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Juliet Ooh, Bridge to Terebithia is wonderful, too. Wrenching, but so completely real. No other young adult fiction can touch it, in my opinion. Jane Eyre is ...more
Feb 25, 2014 10:39PM

Shelby CCHS I agree, I enjoyed how the characters were 'real' and had real emotions. I liked looking at the way the problems they faced affected them and how they ...more
Jun 06, 2015 01:06PM

Apr 12, 2015 Laz rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommends it for: classic lovers

Shelves: classics , romance , literature

“I am no bird; and no net ensnares me: I am a free human being with an independent will.”

So, the story goes: Jane Eyre is alone in the world. No parents, only an uncle who took her in but then died and left her alone with her aunt and some other siblings who despise her and think her an imbecile and impertinent and later on send her away to live at Lowood School, a state school, where the conditions of housing are horrible and even worsen so when typhus strikes and Jane loses her only friend t
“I am no bird; and no net ensnares me: I am a free human being with an independent will.”

So, the story goes: Jane Eyre is alone in the world. No parents, only an uncle who took her in but then died and left her alone with her aunt and some other siblings who despise her and think her an imbecile and impertinent and later on send her away to live at Lowood School, a state school, where the conditions of housing are horrible and even worsen so when typhus strikes and Jane loses her only friend there, Helen Burns.

The book then fasts forward some years later and Jane, now a teacher, leaves Lowood School and becomes a governess at Thornfield Hall where she meets master of the house, Edward Rochester, who she finds quite striking, on the ugly side, but develops feelings for him, slowly and steadily. And then everything about him, to her, is beautiful.

This novel really surprised me, you know. The first chapters, narrating Jane's story as a child, were so amazing and I felt like reading a bedtime story and it was quite wondrous for me.

The entire love story subject is epic and I couldn't help but love both Jane and Edward. They were both strikingly deep characters and I couldn't get enough of them, especially when they were together and discussing. Chemistry was something palpable between them and I am not lying when I say that I knew these two would eventually fall in love, when they first met and set eyes upon one another.

What made an impression upon me was the fact that Jane was such a strong personality, not at all stupid or easy to manipulate. From her early stages in life she was making her own choices and was not afraid to stand up for them and support them if need be.

Another pros is that the story can get quite dark and bleak and that makes the book even more amazing so. There was something I never saw coming, something much like plot twist, which we rarely see in classic novels. I loved that twist and I get why Jane reacted the way she did but if that story taught me anything, is that if two people are destined to be together, then nothing and no one can stand between them.

Finding and then losing someone and then finding your way back to them, seems to be a tale as old as time. ...more

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Feb 04, 2009 Manny rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: older-men-younger-women

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Apr 10, 2011 skein rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 5-star , 2011

I don't think this is a 5-star book - I really, really don't - but oh, how I love it. Not because I love Jane (I do!) but because I lurve Charlotte Brontë. I love her blind spots, her hopes and her fears and her stubborn-as-a-pig morality that (despite Lowood and Helen Burns) isn't really apparent until the "oh! all is utterly lost - love, life, hope! I must flee to the moors to find succor!" bit.

It's the same FUCK YOU, WORLD. I'M BETTER THAN THIS SHIT mentality that all the Brontë sisters wrot I don't think this is a 5-star book - I really, really don't - but oh, how I love it. Not because I love Jane (I do!) but because I lurve Charlotte Brontë. I love her blind spots, her hopes and her fears and her stubborn-as-a-pig morality that (despite Lowood and Helen Burns) isn't really apparent until the "oh! all is utterly lost - love, life, hope! I must flee to the moors to find succor!" bit.

It's the same FUCK YOU, WORLD. I'M BETTER THAN THIS SHIT mentality that all the Brontë sisters wrote of, and I must assume really felt: Charlotte's Jane , Anne's mercy killings; Emily, just ... bein' Emily. They were willing to compromise and be act like Proper Little Ladies up to a point -- and then they fought back. And how.

It's not a particularly Christian sense of morality, despite the vehemence of their claims to the contrary; it is instead a very simple, innate sense of worth and capability, and the right-ness of equality that will not be pushed aside.

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! ... 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!”
PREACH IT.

(And then he kissed her, do-wop do-wop)

... and, because this is Jane Eyre, she does not swoon as I generally do, and certainly would do were I in the identical situation; she shoves him away and yells and says something suitably Janian about his lying lies. OH JANE. Let's be friends forever and never never fight. ...more

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May 26, 2010 Bram rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010

What was once something I tossed off instinctively, an out-of-five star rating, has become a source of considerable consternation. I feel as if I need to qualify each rating with the not-too-fine print warning of: ‘this does not reflect my judgment of the literary worth of this novel; rather, it’s a simple reflection of how strongly I responded to the work as a whole.’ But isn’t this just what everyone does? I guess so. So maybe it isn’t necessary, and it’s just come to feel that way because I’v ...more

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Oct 14, 2007 Russell rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I commenced reading this novel with the idea that I had read this before fixed in my mind. It is in my nature to re-read books, so I thought nothing of opening the pages and immersing myself in the flow of the story.

Imagine my surprise, Reader, when I quickly discerned that I had not, as I previously imagined, been acquainted with the characters that adorned the pages. I was at a lost on how my memory had failed me, but I quickly rallied and applied myself to the task at hand.

My enjoyment of the

I commenced reading this novel with the idea that I had read this before fixed in my mind. It is in my nature to re-read books, so I thought nothing of opening the pages and immersing myself in the flow of the story.

Imagine my surprise, Reader, when I quickly discerned that I had not, as I previously imagined, been acquainted with the characters that adorned the pages. I was at a lost on how my memory had failed me, but I quickly rallied and applied myself to the task at hand.

My enjoyment of the book grew as the plot unfurled, the characters were pleasing to myself, their cares and concerns resonated with the inner workings of my own character.

Ahem. Sorry. I’ll stop channeling Bronte.

This was a story of passion, of grace, of human longing to love and to be loved in turn. It was Gothic, it was Romantic, it is a true classic. Sure, it played on not just one typical plot but two, the marriage plot and the inheritance plot, but they worked. Bronte teases one, and then the other, into fitting her characters’ story deftly leaving the core to to play out properly. The core story is of Jane finding someone to love and who loves her back for herself.

Bronte’s other characters are written just well enough to have them not be just caricatures and a few shine on their own, but they all pale to the effort she puts into Jane and Edward Rochester. Rochester fits more along the lines of the Romantic Hero. Far more than Heathcliff. Of course, Heathcliff was the anti-Romantic Hero, so I guess anyone not him would be more Romantic Hero-like.

Rochester is complex character. Bronte sets him up quickly and then lets him him loose in the story. He’s a powerful force, and it takes all of Jane’s willpower to stay independent of his will and drive. That she does it is a given, how she manages it is one of reasons I kept reading it.

I think that the story is better suited for teenage girls than any other group. This doesn’t dampen the enjoyment at all for anyone else, but I think a teenager would really like this book. (If you could pull them away from the cellphone, or IM, long enough to get them started. Maybe bribery?)

I also think that Jane Eyre is more universally appealing than Wuthering Heights, although both books are classics and are well deserving of the title. Wuthering Heights is for a more refined and discerning taste. (He says, adjusting his ascot and peering down from his jeweled pince-nez.)

If you haven’t read this, or haven’t read it a long while, I recommend it.
...more

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May 23, 2014 Henry Avila rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

"Jane Eyre", is set in England, in the 1800's . The story of a neglected girl orphan, of that name, who never gives up her dream of happiness, no matter how remote a possibility, that goal, can ever be reached. Hated by her cruel Aunt Mrs. Sarah Reed (NOT A BLOOD RELATIVE), and cousins, Eliza, jealous of her more beautiful, but spiteful sister Georgiana, and abused by them. They look down at the beggar, this little poor girl, why is she here ? They show every day, their contempt, not even bother "Jane Eyre", is set in England, in the 1800's . The story of a neglected girl orphan, of that name, who never gives up her dream of happiness, no matter how remote a possibility, that goal, can ever be reached. Hated by her cruel Aunt Mrs. Sarah Reed (NOT A BLOOD RELATIVE), and cousins, Eliza, jealous of her more beautiful, but spiteful sister Georgiana, and abused by them. They look down at the beggar, this little poor girl, why is she here ? They show every day, their contempt, not even bothering to hide it . It would be so nice, everyone thinks, if Jane wasn't there. Her miserable, tormented life, seems everlasting, no escape, where would she go ? And treated like a lowly servant, not a loved relative, she the orphan has to keep her feelings, to herself. Bessie, the nurse maid, is the only person, that treats Miss Eyre, kindly, secretly of course. The frosty aunt, who very reluctantly raised Jane, until the age of ten, gladly Mrs. Reed , sends the unwanted prepubescent Jane , to a charity school, Lowood's, run by a clergyman , the tyrannical Mr. Brocklehurst, who forgot the teachings of Jesus . Harshly treated there too, as are the other students (Jane is hungry and cold, often), by the director, Brocklehurst, a man who believes in discipline, except for his own luxury- loving family ! Jane grows up a lonely woman with few friends, only one in fact, fellow student Helen ( who is there, for a short time), she hopes there has to be something better than mere existence. Leaving the horrible school after eight long years, the last two as a teacher, the teenager gets a job as a lowly, and paid little governess , in a gloomy mansion, far away. Her new "master," is the rather distant and frightening Mr. Edward Fairfax Rochester, a mysterious man that spends little time at home. Jane becomes attractive to the not very attractive Rochester, many questions are left unaccountably unanswered, at Thornfield Hall. The little girl Adele, the governess, teaches and takes care of sometimes. Along with her French nurse, Sophie, is she Rochester's child, or just his ward ? Those strange noises up on the third floor , dreadful, devilish, and inhuman laughs, in the middle of the night, what is causing them ? How did the owner of the house make all his money ? Will Rochester marry the beautiful, but greedy woman, Blanche Ingram, who despises Miss Eyre, and make her leave Thornfield Hall. Will the plain Jane ever find a place to call her own , and find love and contentment ? This classic book, written by one of the brilliant, but short- lived, Bronte sisters , Charlotte, will not disappoint readers of great literature, still worth the effort, after more than a century and a half, of its existence ... it will continue for who knows how long ? ...more

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Lada the receipt to love marriage. A very good review of historical novel about love. the girl's misfortune. Liked best in this book. , gloony gothic tale. ...more
Aug 20, 2014 06:10AM

Jun 07, 2011 Jason rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: for-kindle , 2011 , reviewed , thrill-me-chill-me-fulfill-me

This is the second time I’ve read this book, the first being in high school. As it turns out, I remembered hardly anything about the story save for some burning bed curtains and an attic bound lunatic. What I enjoyed most, though, was Brontë’s exceptional skill at communicating human feeling by way of metaphor. Taking an example, Jane explains her tormented feelings of leaving Mr. Rochester as being struck with a barbed arrow:

Oh, that fear of his self-abandonment—far worse than my abandonment—h

...more

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Dec 12, 2012 Paul Bryant rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: novels

It’s a steamy night here in the Knowsley Working Men’s Club, in Knowsley, Manchester. For tonight’s bout only, the organisers have waived their No Women policy but many slightly deranged working class men (it’s the lead in their bloodstream) are muttering darkly, and lightly too, and expectorating heavily against the walls (it’s the coal dust in their lungs). The promoter Manny Rayner clambers heavily into the ring.

“Thang yew, thang yew, lads, this next fight is an elimination bout, three falls, ...more

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Jun 02, 2015 Karly *The Vampire Ninja & Luminescent Monster* rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: my-breakup-book-challenge , classy-to-the-core , buddy-reads

Karly & Jess buddy-reads strike AGAIN!! Plus Tadiana ( ~~hopefully~~ Kristin ), Rabbit & Andrea.

Coming to a Goodreads near you May 15, 2015.

This is not my full review, this is just the story (in a play like form) of why I DNF'd this when I was 16. I decided on a condensed version of the truth, in case you are wondering, Kristin & Heather.

*Curtain Rise*

Scene 1:

Stage setting: no lighting. Cue music: ‘Something I can never have’ by Nine Inch Nails begins to play softly.

Fighting is heard f ...more

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Does Jane Eyre's childhood remind you of Harry Potter?	11	90	Oct 03, 2015 09:47AM
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If Bertha had still been alive	15	56	Sep 29, 2015 04:01AM
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Would Rochester still love Jane if she had become a raving lunatic?	43	482	Sep 10, 2015 12:56PM
2015 Reading Chal...: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte	4	26	Sep 05, 2015 09:10PM

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About Charlotte Brontë

Charlotte Brontë was a British novelist, the eldest out of the three famous Brontë sisters whose novels have become standards of English literature. See also Emily Brontë and Anne Brontë .

Charlotte Brontë was born in Thornton, Yorkshire, England, the third of six children, to Patrick Brontë (formerly "Patrick Brunty"), an Irish Anglican clergyman, and his wife, Maria Branwell. In April 1820 the fam Charlotte Brontë was a British novelist, the eldest out of the three famous Brontë sisters whose novels have become standards of English literature. See also Emily Brontë and Anne Brontë .

Charlotte Brontë was born in Thornton, Yorkshire, England, the third of six children, to Patrick Brontë (formerly "Patrick Brunty"), an Irish Anglican clergyman, and his wife, Maria Branwell. In April 1820 the family moved a few miles to Haworth, a remote town on the Yorkshire moors, where Patrick had been appointed Perpetual Curate. This is where the Brontë children would spend most of their lives. Maria Branwell Brontë died from what was thought to be cancer on 15 September 1821, leaving five daughters and a son to the care of her spinster sister Elizabeth Branwell, who moved to Yorkshire to help the family.

In August 1824 Charlotte, along with her sisters Emily, Maria, and Elizabeth, was sent to the Clergy Daughters' School at Cowan Bridge in Lancashire, a new school for the daughters of poor clergyman (which she would describe as Lowood School in Jane Eyre). The school was a horrific experience for the girls and conditions were appalling. They were regularly deprived of food, beaten by teachers and humiliated for the slightest error. The school was unheated and the pupils slept two to a bed for warmth. Seven pupils died in a typhus epidemic that swept the school and all four of the Brontë girls became very ill - Maria and Elizabeth dying of tuberculosis in 1825. Her experiences at the school deeply affected Brontë - her health never recovered and she immortalised the cruel and brutal treatment in her novel, Jane Eyre . Following the tragedy, their father withdrew his daughters from the school.

At home in Haworth Parsonage, Charlotte and the other surviving children — Branwell, Emily, and Anne — continued their ad-hoc education. In 1826 her father returned home with a box of toy soldiers for Branwell. They would prove the catalyst for the sisters' extraordinary creative development as they immediately set to creating lives and characters for the soldiers, inventing a world for them which the siblings called 'Angria'. The siblings became addicted to writing, creating stories, poetry and plays. Brontë later said that the reason for this burst of creativity was that:

'We were wholly dependent on ourselves and each other, on books and study, for the enjoyments and occupations of life. The highest stimulus, as well as the liveliest pleasure we had known from childhood upwards, lay in attempts at literary composition.'

After her father began to suffer from a lung disorder, Charlotte was again sent to school to complete her education at Roe Head school in Mirfield from 1831 to 1832, where she met her lifelong friends and correspondents, Ellen Nussey and Mary Taylor. During this period (1833), she wrote her novella The Green Dwarf under the name of Wellesley. The school was extremely small with only ten pupils meaning the top floor was completely unused and believed to be supposedly haunted by the ghost of a young lady dressed in silk. This story fascinated Brontë and inspired the figure of Mrs Rochester in Jane Eyre .

Brontë left the school after a few years, however she swiftly returned in 1835 to take up a position as a teacher, and used her wages to pay for Emily and Anne to be taught at the school. However, teaching did not appeal to Brontë and in 1838 she left Roe Head to become a governess to the Sidgewick family - this was partly from a sense of adventure and a desire to see the world, and partly from financial necessity. Again, she did not enjoy the experience and returned to her family after just three months. She tried to be a governess two years later in 1841 but left after nine months. ...more

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Charlotte & Emily Brontë: The Complete Novels

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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18398363-jane-eyre-an-autobiography?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1404630330l/18398363.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18398363-jane-eyre-an-autobiography?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Jane Eyre an autobiography by Charlotte Brontë[/url]