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A review by yuripiano
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I liked this book more than I thought I would!
The writing style itself definitely showed its age - there were about 200 pages too many for my liking, and the liberal usage of dependent clauses was noticeably distracting. Also, something that annoyed me to no end was the way in which the character's dialogue was written which was entirely not how any normal person would have spoken, regardless of the time frame.
Now, writing aside, the book was surprisingly relatable. The middle portion in particular with Jane at Thornfield was believable in terms of a young girl falling head over heels for a decidedly childish older man that's entirely no good for her and full of red flags.
... or, I'm projecting based on my own relationships.
In a way, the fervor she felt for her master during said portion kept making me feel like this was some sort of 1800s version of Fifty Shades of Grey.
(Funnily enough, the Wikipedia article for that book has someone from The New York Times calling it "like a Brontë devoid of talent" which amuses me but is besides the point.)
I appreciated the independence that Jane showed throughout most of the book, which I guess is whyI was a little bit annoyed with the ending of it. Like... really? After all that, she went back to him? Like I get that she loved him and he loved her, but the way in which he expressed his love for her was so gross and patronizing - to be honest, I feel like I would have rather Helen didn't die at the beginning of the story and years later the whole St. John arc of things ended with her actually being saved by Helen and having a relationship with her instead, but that's wishful thinking.
I was pleasantly surprised by how approachable the book would be - after reading a number of classics that I didn't enjoy, this was for the most part readable. There were a number of things I didn't like, such asthe depiction of Mr. Rochester's wife, the way it meandered for quite a bit longer than felt necessary, basically every part of the unbelievable dialogues, the gratuitous French that honestly seemed more of a means of the author saying "Look, I know French!" than adding anything meaningful in any way shape or form, etc . I felt as though the beginning of the book were setting up for a very different way than it turned out - in a sense, that made it easier to read because I could see parallels to my own life in the middle part, and I suppose the last portion of the book could be contrasted with the beginning, but it wrapped up in an unsatisfactory manner for me.
It gave me Violet Evergarden feelings, except in a much less compelling manner that made me roll my eyes.
I would have given it a 2.75, but I bumped it up to a 3 because as a submissive person, reading her say "my master" made us feel things that Charlotte Brontë surely didn't intend, but we're running with it anyway.
The writing style itself definitely showed its age - there were about 200 pages too many for my liking, and the liberal usage of dependent clauses was noticeably distracting. Also, something that annoyed me to no end was the way in which the character's dialogue was written which was entirely not how any normal person would have spoken, regardless of the time frame.
Now, writing aside, the book was surprisingly relatable. The middle portion in particular with Jane at Thornfield was believable in terms of a young girl falling head over heels for a decidedly childish older man that's entirely no good for her and full of red flags.
... or, I'm projecting based on my own relationships.
In a way, the fervor she felt for her master during said portion kept making me feel like this was some sort of 1800s version of Fifty Shades of Grey.
(Funnily enough, the Wikipedia article for that book has someone from The New York Times calling it "like a Brontë devoid of talent" which amuses me but is besides the point.)
I appreciated the independence that Jane showed throughout most of the book, which I guess is why
I was pleasantly surprised by how approachable the book would be - after reading a number of classics that I didn't enjoy, this was for the most part readable. There were a number of things I didn't like, such as
It gave me Violet Evergarden feelings, except in a much less compelling manner that made me roll my eyes.
I would have given it a 2.75, but I bumped it up to a 3 because as a submissive person, reading her say "my master" made us feel things that Charlotte Brontë surely didn't intend, but we're running with it anyway.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexism