A stormy, intense, and introspective novel that probes the psychology of passion and revolutionizes the scope of romantic fiction.

Contains biographical sketch of the author.

I was most pleasantly surprised with Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre, which I just read for the first time. For some reason, I expected a combination of Wuthering Heights (which I didn’t like as well as I thought I would) and Dickens (who I generally don’t love). On the contrary, Jane Eyre is not derivative of anything – Charlotte Bronte has her own viewpoint and style, and with Jane Eyre she has created a unique coming-of-age tale.

SPOILERS

The book is divided into five major parts: 1. Orphan Jane lives with Mrs. Reed, her aunt, and the three Reed children. Mrs. Reed despises Jane and treats her terribly, eventually sending her away to school. 2. Jane goes to Lowood Institution, a Christian charity school that doesn’t seem to have a lot of Christian values or charity toward its wards. After a typhus epidemic, the school is much improved. Jane stays at Lowood, eventually becoming a teacher. 3. Jane wants to see more of the world, so advertises for a governess position. She is hired at Thornfield Manor, where Mr. Edward Rochester lives with his French ward, Adele Varens, the housekeeper Alice Fairfax, and his servants. Eventually Jane and Edward fall in love and Edward proposes. However, there is a slight problem – Mr. Rochester already married to a madwoman who lives on the third floor. 4. Jane runs away and is rescued by the Rivers family, three siblings who take her in and treat her well. In the meantime, through a series of coincidences, Jane inherits money. The brother, St. John, installs Jane as the village teacher. He also tries to convince her to marry him and accompany him on his mission to India. Jane does not love St. John and knows that he does not love her, so refuses. 5. Jane realizes who she truly loves, and journeys to find Edward Rochester, whose wife has since died in a deadly fire that also leaves Rochester blinded and without a hand. They marry and live happily ever after.

For me, one of the biggest surprises in reading Jane Eyre was that there was so much more to the novel than just the love story between Jane and Rochester. In reality, the section at Thornfield is about half the novel. Another surprise was that there were few scenes on the “wild moors.” In fact, Jane Eyre is much more of an internal story. Although “nature” is invoked, it is almost always human nature, not outside nature. And perhaps most surprising (at least to me) was that Bertha Mason, Rochester’s crazy wife, really didn’t play a major role in the novel. Yes, her existence caused some major problems, but for whatever reason I thought she would be a major character, too.

Charlotte Bronte explores many themes throughout the novel, including religion, love (romantic and familial), a woman’s place in society, the role of family in society, and the psychological reasons people do the things they do (human nature). On this first reading, I think I was most struck by Bronte’s exploration of the role of religion and its affects on people of different personalities, and the study of women’s place in society. With religion, it seems that Bronte is showing how extremes can be not only restricting and rigid (St. John) but downright cruel (Mr. Brocklehurst and his Lowood school). And the entire book is about Jane’s journey to find her place in society, and in so doing, Bronte advocates for women to be allowed to find useful pursuits that allow them to contribute to society. Of course, there is so much more here, but this is only a review!

I only had a few quibbles, mostly with the coincidences at the end. These strained credulity just a bit. However, by this time I was so absorbed with the novel that I was quite willing to suspend disbelief.

Overall, Jane Eyre is a great book, one I would happily read again. ( )

One of the best romance novels of all time.Charlotte was a gifted writer ( )

This is the first book in my memory that made me cry. I have only read it once for that reason, but it's been a while. I need to pick it up again and see if I like it as much. ( )

Jane Eyre was long, wordy and old. It was a recipe for instant dislike. While I didn't love the book, I certainly enjoyed it. The character of Jane Eyre was upstanding and brave. She showcased many qualities women strive for and find hard to reach even today. Mr. Rochester was both off-putting and strangely likable at times. The mixture of drama, romance and a bit of mystery was engaging. While I often put the book down, I never once thought of not finishing it. A deserved classic. ( )