Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte

In my quest to read all the books on the BBC’s Top 100 Big Reads list I purchased this last year in Borders for £1.99 (part of the Penguin Popular Classics selection). Since buying it (and before reading it) I watched the BBC’s dramatization of it, which I enjoyed, so I hoped that knowing the ending wouldn’t ruin the book for me. I had actually missed the first of the four TV episodes so Jane’s early years were new to me. Jane had some tough times in her childhood, orphaned as a baby she was brought up by her cruel Aunt Reed (by marriage) and seemed always spirited and feisty, which was often perceived as rebellion. Thus she was sent to a harsh, yet religious ...  Read the complete review

It’s an understatement to say that Charlotte Bronte was bossy and immediate in her ways. I see Jane Eyre very much like a biography of her life at times, and absolutely fascinating to think that maybe, Charlotte wrote it from real experiences. I know that the school that Jane attends (Lowood) is based on the school her sisters attended – which ended their lives, but is any of it fiction? When it was first released in 1847 many people thought it was a biography under the name of the editor it was published (Curer Bell, Charlotte’s “disguise” as a writer). Jane and Charlotte, from what I’ve read are very alike in their ways, and beliefs. ...  Read the complete review

Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte ~A classic~ Jane Eyre was written in 1847 by Charlotte Bronte, born in 1816, one of the famous Bronte sisters. It's a classical Gothic love story, of a girl born into a difficult life. Jane is an orphan, living with her aunt, who does not want her, or love her; she tries hard to keep out of her Aunt's and cousin's way but finds herself constantly blamed and treated badly. Eventually sent away to an charity school for orphans, she finds life can only get worse. Beaten, starved, and humiliated she struggles to cope, but somehow survives her way to adulthood. Jane becomes a governess for a single, lonely man, ...  Read the complete review

I have started to read the English classics, mainly because I like to think of myself as a bit of an intellectual and at 28 I have read hardly any classics and it is ruin my reputation as an academic genius. Bronte is a good literary name and so Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte is one of the titles on my 'get-clever-quick' bookshelf. I have recently also tried Sons and Lovers, Tess of the d'Urbervilles and Tom Jones. I have to say some of these are hard going. Jane Eyre on the other hand, apart from being set in a different age, has all the hallmarks of a classic piece of chick lit. I know some will think that degrades a literary masterpiece but in my mind, the whole ...  Read the complete review

The story opens with Jane, aged ten and an orphan, living with some ghastly relatives who dislike her, and cousins who bully her. An opening scenario which has inspired many novels over the years, including, of course, those by JK Rowling. Jane, who narrates the book, hates her relatives with a passion, and is sent away to boarding school. However the similarity with Harry Potter ends at this point. Firstly the setting is that of the late 18th century, and secondly the school is even more unpleasant than her home. At school, Jane does her best to learn, but finds the rules oppressive. She meets Helen, a delightful but fragile girl, who shows her the first ...  Read the complete review