Jane Eyre (Penguin Classics) | Charlotte Brontë

Jane Eyre (Penguin Classics) | Charlotte Brontë | Good book, not good edition for first-time readers

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Jane Eyre (Penguin...

	Jane Eyre (Penguin Classics) Charlotte Brontë Penguin Classics, 2006 - 624 pages average customer review:based on 34 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Love Story Sublime

There is so much to be said for this novel that it's difficult to know where to begin. It is a superb evocation of a time and place; it is a complex, detailed character study; it has a believable and compelling plot; and, more than anything else, it is a magnificent love story.

Of course, love stories are the common denominator of human existence and have been the subject of literature since mankind first put charcoal to rock, so the fact that Jane Eyre is a love story is nothing terribly significant. No, what makes this novel so special is the thoughtfulness with which its narrator, Jane Eyre herself, documents her love affair. She is extremely intelligent, she carefully analyzes her feelings and actions, and she is scrupulously honest with both herself and her reader. This is what sets it apart: it is the depth of these thoughts and feelings that make the novel interesting. Beyond that, though, it is the character of Jane, slowly revealed, that makes the novel a delight.

The plot is Jane's story. Orphaned, she is sent to live with her cruel aunt and cousins. At the age of ten she is sent away for good to a charity school, at which she gets her education, but which is run in such a miserly fashion that many of the students there actually die of disease and starvation. Jane survives, and at the age of eighteen, is able to secure a position as a governess to a child in a great house of England: Thornfield Hall. It is owned by Edward Rochester, the man who will become the centerpiece of her life.

How the two begin to slowly realize their affection for one another, how they then cautiously begin to act on their feelings, and how they must then surmount the obstacles in their path--both societal and self-inflicted--are what make up the bulk of the novel. There are at least a few surprises along the way. The strong-willed Jane's moral code requires that she respond to these difficulties in certain ways. It is to the novel's and the author's great credit that these decisions are never simply made; Jane agonizes over them in heart-wrenching fashion. As in life, the standards one chooses to live by can be difficult to maintain.

This defining tension is what drives the novel, but that it is delivered in such a skillful and assured way is what raises it to its lofty status. The dialogue, particularly, is fantastic. It is the stuff of an actor's dream: much of it can be interpreted in several different ways. Jane describes Rochester as being moody and tempestuous, and he often is, but at the same time--particularly after Jane agrees to marry him--he is hilariously wry and bemused. Jane comes across as being earnest and pleading, but she can be very playful and is often flirtatious. As mentioned above, these are deep, achingly human characters.

The setting is also very evocative. The English countryside, class system and moral understanding were obviously familiar to those who read the book in Ms. Bronte's day, and probably familiar to many of us in this day and age. Nevertheless, Ms. Bronte took the time to document these things carefully. The descriptions of Rochester's home, the lanes in front if it and its orchards and fields; the destitute and grimly cold school for girls; and the small country town where Jane makes the acquaintance of a small group of benefactors towards the end of the novel are all a testament to life as it existed at this distant time and age.

The novel is looked upon as a classic and should be. Ms. Bronte not only created a beautiful piece having to do with the nature of love--personal to her but universal in nature--but did so in such a spectacular way that she actually makes the reader feel this love, both for her creation, and for her.

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Good book, not good edition for first-time readers

I bought this edition (Penguin Classics), and was very disappointed. I knew only a little bit about the story, and I hate having plots ruined ahead of time. The notes in the back, however, did just that - I was hoping they would explain a few things that I didn't understand (old usages, etc), but they just notes about how Bronte was referencing other works or about how there was something that showed up later in the book as well.

This book is a classic that's remained popular for a reason, though. I recommend reading it, but if you haven't read it before, use a different edition than this or don't look at any of the notes.

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I enjoyed this so much more the second time around

It's always good to take time to reread those required books from school once you've obtained some years and maturity. This is a lovely and somewhat autobiographical tale of Jane Eyre, orphaned and raised by self-centered and uncaring relatives until they send her off to school. Eventually she is hired as a governess to a young girl and meets the girl's guardian Mr. Rochester, and of course they fall in love and plan to marry. But, there is a mystery about the house that once it is discovered destroys the wedding plans.

A lovely tale, and Bronte has such a wonderful prose that makes you want to slow down and savor it and the story like a fine red wine or chocolate. The version I read is Selected Works of the Bronte Sisters (Wordsworth Special Editions) (Wordsworth Special Editions), so I did not have the distraction of the foot notes to refer to, and I don't feel that I missed much without them. Highly highly recommended, one that should be taken off the shelf and reread every couple of years or so.

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An excelent book!!

I read it for the first time when I was studing english and loved the book. Now reading it again understanding everything is great.

A classic novel of a strong and independent woman...For english language studens is very helpful, but really if you don't like reading this is not an option for you.

reviews: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, page 6, 7

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