Jane+Erye+IM



= Jane Eyre = = By Charlotte Bronte = = 596 pages = = Romance =

= About the Author Charlotte Bronte =

= = Charlotte Bronte was born in the town of Thornton in Yorkshire, England, on April 21st, 1816. She was the third of six children. She was schooled mostly by her father except for when she attended a private catholic school. Both her mother and two sisters died when she was only nine years old. When she was a child her family loved to read including her. At the age of fifteen she became a school teacher and while getting an education in Belgium she fell in love with one of her professors and married him. Jane Eyre was the second book she tried to publish. When she published Jane Eyre in 1847 it was very successful. She went on to write two more novels but then she settled down and lived a quite life until she died on March 31st, 1855. For more detailed information click on the following link Charlotte Bronte.

= Plot Synopsis =

Jane Eyre was orphaned at a very young age by her abusing Aunt Reed. Her Aunt Reed, being fed up with her sends her off to a private catholic school of Lowood to live and get an education. She completes her education at Lowood and remains there for two years as a teacher. Jane Eyre then gets a job as a private governess at Thornfield hall, the residence of Mr. Rochester. While doing her duties as a governess, teaching a young lady named Adele she begins to fall in love with her master Mr. Rochester. As they are about to get married a secret that was meant to stay a secret is discovered leaving Jane and Mr. Rochester in a world they both wished they never had entered.

= Literary Information = = =

Charlotte Bronte uses mostly formal diction in Jane Eyre. This is because the story was written back in the mid-1800s. The genre of Jane Eyre is obviously romance because one of the main conflicts is that Jane refuses to marry Mr. Rochester but Mr. Rochester wants to. The tone of the story is almost a gloomy attitude in the beginning but slowly changes to an optimistic feel as Jane's life continues to improve. One reoccurring theme in the story Jane Eyre is one cannot be happy unless they have a place they call home. The setting of Jane Eyre takes place in the 1800s in England. The book is told from a first person limited point of view because Jane is the narrator and main character but she doesn't know what Mr. Rochester or any other character is thinking. The following passage from Jane Eyre proves this; "I found Adele peeping through the school-room door, which she held ajar," (214 vol I). Jane is a dynamic character because she changes from a little lonely girl to a happy educated woman throughout the book.

= Literary analysis =

The theme of Jane Eyre is one cannot be happy unless they have a place they call home. This is true because wherever Jane is staying and she does not call it home she is not happy. For example when she stayed with her Aunt Reed and at Lowood she was not happy because she was not welcome and it did not feel like a home to her. On the other hand when she stayed at Thornfield hall and at St. John's house she felt happy because she felt she had a home where she was welcome and loved. Another instance that proves this theme is when she discovers that Mr. Rochester already has a wife she felt betrayed and left Thornfield Hall. The following passage proves that she was unhappy when she left Thornfield; "What was I to do? Where to go? Oh, intolerable questions, when I could do nothing and go nowhere!" (111 vol II). When she left she had no plans of coming back so she was homeless and then unhappy. This is because she no longer had a place to call home.

= Criticism =

I really enjoyed how Charlotte Bronte wrote Jane Eyre overall, but there were a few things that I disliked. For example, there were a few times where two characters would be talking, which most of the time where Jane and Mr. Rochester, that made me yawn. The would break of on these long almost meaningless conversations that really where just plain boring. Also, the beginning of the second half of the story was very boring. It went from a lot of action to very little action. I think Charlotte Bronte did this to make the end of the book more dramatic. It worked but it made part of the book a snore fest. One thing Charlotte Bronte did that I loved was make the characters talk in old English. I know it was normal speech at the time but it really contributes to the mood and the style of Jane Eyre.

= Video trailer =

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Related links

If this book appeals to you than so may these books: The Memory Keeper's daughter and A Farewell to Arms