The Owl and the Pussycat by Edward Lear

12 May 2013 Leave a comment

by Amy in Birthdays, General Tags: , , ,

Birthday

The Owl and the Pussy-cat went to sea
In a beautiful pea green boat,
They took some honey, and plenty of money,
Wrapped up in a five pound note.
The Owl looked up to the stars above,
And sang to a small guitar,
‘O lovely Pussy! O Pussy my love,
What a beautiful Pussy you are,
You are,
You are!
What a beautiful Pussy you are!’

 

 Pussy said to the Owl, ‘You elegant fowl!
How charmingly sweet you sing!
O let us be married! too long we have tarried:
But what shall we do for a ring?’
They sailed away, for a year and a day,
To the land where the Bong-tree grows
And there in a wood a Piggy-wig stood
With a ring at the end of his nose,
His nose,
His nose,
With a ring at the end of his nose.

‘Dear pig, are you willing to sell for one shilling
Your ring?’ Said the Piggy, ‘I will.’
So they took it away, and were married next day
By the Turkey who lives on the hill.
They dined on mince, and slices of quince,
Which they ate with a runcible spoon;
And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand,
They danced by the light of the moon,
The moon,
The moon,
They danced by the light of the moon.

This is one of my favourite Edward Lear works, and one of my favourite poems. What I did not realise was that he actually had another poem called The Children of the Owl and the Pussycat, it is interesting, and told from the perspective of the children. It is unfinished so it is interesting to see how it would have ended up, but it was published posthumously, you can read it here.

Edward Lear’s 201st birthday is today, and as a writer he is known mostly for his nonsense poems and stories and for popularising the limerick. His vast collections of The Old Man from Peru, The Young Lady of Leeds, and all the other people who were absurd and outrageous are long remembered. It is the time to also note that Edward Lear is not responsible for The Man from Nantucket, I just want to put that out in the world. Lear’s Old Men and Women were a lot less ribald and vulgar.

Lear was born in 1812 in England and was the youngest of twenty one children. He was a strange man, apparently he was known to introduce himself with a long pseudonym. It seems the idea came from a game in Aldiborontiphoskyphorniostikos by R. Stennett, which itself is strange. It seems players had to read the snippet for each letter of the alphabet as fast as they could without making a mistake. If you are intrigued there is more information here, but it seems Lear took a fancy to this and introduced himself as “Mr Abebika kratoponoko Prizzikalo Kattefello Ablegorabalus Ableborinto phashyph” or “Chakonoton the Cozovex Dossi Fossi Sini Tomentilla Coronilla Polentilla Battledore & Shuttlecock Derry down Derry Dumps”. Wouldn’t we all want to do that if we could?

But aside from that strangeness he made his living as an artist before moving into the world of wit, word-play, and fantasy in his books of nonsense. He was an avid traveller across the globe, partially to maintain good health, but also to find fresh material. Over the years he wrote many books of nonsense prose and poetry, but he was also an artist and many of his books had illustrations of animals and plants, and there are also music and songs in his collection of works too. The first Book of Nonsense was published in 1846 and was added to with additional volumes. It was originally designed to please the children of an artistic patron but soon became Lear’s calling.

In honour of his birthday I compiled a limerick of my own, if you were on Twitter you would have noticed my attempt to share some of his own works, but it seems that 140 characters does not assist in creating poetry, even a little limerick. I feel a Haiku may have just fit but what can we do, the man wrote limericks. But I managed to get mine in and I will share by creativity here with you. Here is my limerick to honour the man who gave us the wonderful Owl and his adoring Pussycat, and when you are feeling low, just take some time, read a limerick or three and it will do you the world of good.

There once was a blogger in Oz,

Who wrote a limerick because,

It was Eddie Lear’s day, and she wanted to say,

Happy birthday with one of his songs.

The Bloody Chamber & other Stories by Angela Carter

07 May 2013 Leave a comment

by Amy in 5 Stars, Birthdays, General Tags: , , , ,

Birthday

Today is the birthday of author Angela Carter and in honour of that I am looking at her collection of short stories in The Bloody Chamber. It is an excellent collection, if you are a fan of fairytales, or love seeing fairytales reinvented in amazing ways, then I suggest you read these stories.

Born in England in 1940, Angela Carter wrote many books in her lifetime, sadly she only lived until she was 51 years old. However in that time she managed to write a large collection of stories, poems, radio plays, as well as children’s books and much more. What I found interesting was that before she died, Carter was planning on writing a sequel to Jane Eyre. I think this would have been fantastic, it was supposedly going to be told from the perspective of Jane’s step-daughter Adele, that would have been interesting to see.

Carter was listed on The Times “50 greatest British writers since 1945” in 2008, at tenth place it is a position I agree with immensely, what I didn’t agree was that Terry Pratchett didn’t make that list at all, but we can only just forgive that because of the others that were included.

Published: July 13th 2006
Goodreads badgePublisher: Vintage
Pages: 176
Format: Book
Genre: Fairy Tales/Fantasy
★   ★   ★   ★   ★  – 5 Stars

The Bloody Chamber & Other Stories is an anthology of short fiction by Angela Carter. All of the stories share a common theme of being closely based upon fairy tales or folk tales. However, she’s stated: “My intention was not to do ‘versions’ or, as the American edition of the book said, horribly, ‘adult’ fairy tales, but to extract the latent content from the traditional stories.”

The Bloody Chamber was published in 1979 and is a collection of short stories that are dark, sinister, and marvellous all at once. What Carter manages to do is turn the fairytales we know on their head, and she makes us look at them in a new light completely. The book comprises of ten stories, The Bloody Chamber; The Courtship of Mr Lyon; The Tiger’s Bride; Puss-in-Boots; The Erl-King; The Snow Child; The Lady of the House of Love; The Werewolf; The Company of Wolves; and Wolf-Alice.

Carter looks at stories such as Beauty and the Beast, Little Red Riding Hood, Puss in Boots, Bluebeard, as well as folklore tales, and what she has come up with are so unique, and so amazing that it is very hard to think of them as their original stories sometimes. There is definitely so much that that can be read into these stories, I know there are hundreds of references alluded to and mentioned in short story The Bloody Chamber that have scholars running about trying to interpret, but what references that are there does not distract from the story, nor does typically knowing the originals, they are easily enjoyed without understanding the origins, but for well known stories such as Little Red Riding Hood, Beauty and the Beast, or Puss in Boots, then it creates an eye opener for readers.

What is wonderful about these stories is that it isn’t just another version of the traditional telling, Carter brings so much more into these stories, she alternates points of view, and she brings in strong powerful women with highly emotional and intellectual insights that create meaning and force in these tales.

Her story The Werewolf, based on Little Red Riding Hood, had a huge impact on me. Very much like the novels of John Marsden’s when I realised stories did not have to be simple and straight forward; what Carter showed me in this story was that fairytales can be complex and may not be as they appear. From this simple story I suddenly looked at other fairytales like Hansel and Gretel in a whole new light, I realised and embraced that even the simplest stories of the Gingerbread man or Snow White could be recreated in an entirely new light, changing everything it was meant to be.

I already had a huge love for fairytales, and when I read Carter’s reinventions it opened my eyes to a world of interpretation, mixing and transforming these classics into something that is powerful and magical, while still showing signs of the history of the fairytales I knew. Personal favourites would have to be Company of Wolves, Wolf-Alice, and The Werewolf, definitely interesting since they are all variations on Little Red Riding Hood, a story that I didn’t like as a child, and yet has become one that I have enjoyed most in adapted form.

 Company of Wolves was turned into a very good film in 1984. It is classified as a British Gothic fantasy-horror film and director Neil Jordon co-wrote the screenplay with Carter. It is another variation on the Little Red Riding Hood story and is set in the modern day. It is a little gruesome at times, but it is an excellent film all the same.

There is something for everyone with Carter’s works and her writing makes you reconsider writing and storytelling, especially for fairytales. They hark back to the originals where it was more truthful and realistic, certainly told as cautionary tales, but also as a representation of powerful women. To steal from Wikipedia a wonderful synopsis: “By contrasting the barren and horrific atmosphere found typically within the Gothic to the strong heroines of her story, Carter is able to create sexually liberated female characters that are set against the more traditional backdrop of the fairy tale.”

A truly wonderful set of stories that stay with you long after you finish them, I wish Angela Carter a happy birthday and I want to thank her for the influence she has had on my own writing, as well as my ideas about fairytales and the power and possibilities they possess, no matter what the form.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

28 Apr 2013 Leave a comment

by Amy in 4 Stars, Birthdays, General Tags: , , , , ,

Birthday

Happy Birthday Harper Lee! Today in celebration of her birthday I am reviewing her only novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. I will admit I enjoyed it but not loved this in high school, but I still managed to see why it was wonderful and a classic. Perhaps it was just being the 15 year old, or maybe it is now I am  older (it always changes most things), but I can see it differently now, similarly, but different. One of those complex emotions.

Harper Lee’s full name is Nelle Harper Lee, she was the youngest of five and was raised in Alabama. Her only book was To Kill a Mockingbird, she did have a second but it was never published. Famously Lee has never extensively discussed her book or any insights about its meaning and the popularity, and has stayed out of the public eye. Growing up Lee was friends with author Truman Capote and together they wrote an article in the New Yorker which Capote then turned into In Cold Blood, his nonfiction masterpiece. It is said that Atticus in her novel is based on her father who was also a lawyer and who once defended two black men accused of murdering a white shopkeeper. She has though played down any real correlations despite there being similarities, however Capote once said he thinks that certain things she wrote were true and being neighbours and friends he initially used similar aspects of their childhood in his own work.

Published: May 23rd 2006
Goodreads badgePublisher: Harper Perennial Modern Classics
Pages: 324
Format: Book
Genre: Adult Fiction
★   ★   ★   ★   – 4 Stars

Tomboy Scout Finch comes of age in a small Alabama town during a crisis in 1935. She admires her father Atticus, how he deals with issues of racism, injustice, intolerance and bigotry, his courage and his love.

To Kill a Mockingbird was finished in 1959 and it won a Pulitzer Prize award and became a best seller. It soon become a classic novel and has become influential, if not a powerful message about race, inequality, and human decency. It is not only its story, but the characters that people admire and idolise, the key figure being Atticus Finch, father of the narrator, Scout. Naturally is also became campaigned against to be removed from classrooms and libraries. We can’t even look down on the past as the list of banned books still rings high and true today for the same idiotic reasons.

Atticus Finch, who is an attorney, and all round upstanding man, is always listed on the top characters of all time, or most influential characters, or most idolised characters, and really, it is probably true. To Kill a Mockingbird is a classic for a reason, and Lee deals with intense issues in this unjust world with one man trying to do the right thing. As a character he presents unwavering morality, strength, and honour, having an impact not only in the books pages, but with the readers as well. He was a hero not for super powers or for saving the world, he was a hero for doing the right thing.

To Kill a Mockingbird opens with a look into history with a Finch ancestor fleeing religious intolerance in England, settling in Alabama. The main story takes place a few years after the Great Depression. The narrator is Scout Finch who is retelling her story of when she was young and the events that unfolded around her in her town of Maycomb. Initially we see nothing about the racial drama that unfolds later on; instead Lee introduces us to Scout, her brother Jemm, and their friend Dill. The trio enjoy their summer but are fascinated, yet terrified, of “Boo” Radley, a reclusive neighbour. This introduction about Boo and the children go on but it isn’t long before the tentative relationship between the children and Boo is replaced by the appointment of Atticus to defend Tom Robinson, a black man accused of raping a white woman.

The descriptions in the book and excellent, the way Lee describes the heat, the people, the town, the naivety of children and the insights they provide, and also the way she portrays characters relationships to one another is well done. She doesn’t shy away from the facts and the details of the town life, the trial, or the social messages and reaction; that is where some power comes from. And her language in doing so makes it what it is as much as the events. Her language is deep and the lessons you take from this book are timeless.

One of my absolute favourite aspects of this novel is the fact that Atticus lets his children call him Atticus instead of father. This is the purest and simplest way to demonstrate him as man, Atticus does it as a sign of respect as he sees every one as equal, despite their age, class, race or authority. Not sure I would do the same, but it is very telling nonetheless. The title of the book comes from Atticus, who tells Jemm it is a sin to kill a Mockingbird. Scout questions this and is told that “Mockingbirds don’t do one thing except make music for us to enjoy. They don’t eat up people’s gardens, don’t nest in corn cribs, they don’t do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.”

What I found interesting in this book is Lee’s wonderful way of telling this story. By using Scout, a young girl with very little knowledge of the world, who is always looking for answers and explanations, to tell this story, you get great conversations and relationships between characters. Certainly the best are those with Atticus and Scout, though her own opinions of her father are from the view of a child she has some very insightful words, and not only about him. She uses people she knows to discuss the issues around her, more so since the trial began as the people in the town are less than sympathetic, and they also cannot understand Atticus’ desire to defend Tom.

Scout is feisty and is willing to fight for her father which is admirable and a wonderful representation of her relationship to Atticus, but also of her own personality. While Atticus can defend himself, though in more moral and less violent manners, a wonderful scene is when the three children manage to essentially shame a lynch mob by making them see things from Atticus’ perspective. The wonderful quotes that can be taken from this novel are vast, but “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view…until you climb into his skin and walk around in it” is a key theme among the many.

What this trial demonstrates is how divided the world was, there is a coloured balcony above the courtroom, away from the main area, and the tone, interactions, and outcomes are certainly surprising. Perhaps this is because reading this in 21st century Australia has a separate impact, but that doesn’t stop my knowledge of what it was like to some degree. Even though Lee has denied any strong autobiographical connection, the story of Tom is not a single fictional case. But even though she writes about this injustice and this ill treatment for a man accused, Lee has added so much more into this narrative than it is also about so much more than the colour of his skin essentially, it is about growing up, learning about the world, class and society, and basically loss of innocence.

The trial is detailed and well planned out; Lee keeps it poignant and fiery, while still upholding all the virtues Atticus has in a town that has already condemned Tom. We go through testimonials and cross examinations, Atticus does his job well. Tom’s point of view is not forgotten, we see his sides of things, and you do know right away of his innocence, but that is nothing in the eyes of the law it seems. That is where your investment goes, into the anticipation and hope that this super hero Atticus Finch, with all his deep wisdom and goodness, can help save Tom for a crime of simple being black.

The outcome of the case has consequences for everyone and the victims are far spread. I won’t reveal the ending, there is a lot in it that speaks more volumes than I could convey, but Lee does a wonderful job. She takes us through this journey and this emotional turmoil about these characters but she almost adds some justice at the end, but in a way she doesn’t. Scout pulls this together wonderfully in her voice and as I said, I think that makes so much difference compared to if it were a simple third person, or another characters point of view, you need her innocence, her loss of innocence, and her perspective telling this story. She uses all the wisdom her father has given her and by the end of the book you know it has sunk in.

There is a movie version on this book, with Gregory Pack as Atticus. It is pretty amazing. It would have to be for this book I think. Made in 1962 it is in black and white but do not let that deter you, it manages to bring all the emotion and the drama from the book and make it just as moving and important as the book. It is reported that Lee visited the set during filming and she did do a lot of interviews to support the film. The film was as popular as the book, with eight Oscar nominations and four awards including Best Actor for Gregory Peck.

The quotes from this book are fantastic, I need to list some, for the pure fact they are insightful and so very true, but there are so many more.

“I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what.”

“Atticus, he was real nice.”
“Most people are, Scout, when you finally see them.”

“Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father’s passin’.”

“Before I can live with other folks I’ve got to live with myself.”

So it is today that we wish Harper Lee a very happy birthday, I thank her for this book,  and while To Kill a Mockingbird will give you no useful advice on killing Mockingbirds, it will teach you not to judge a man by the colour of his skin.

Happy Birthday Shakespeare

23 Apr 2013 Leave a comment

by Amy in Birthdays, General Tags: , ,

Birthday

Happy Birthday William Shakespeare!

Instead of trying to review one, or discuss all his works and poems and influence I am instead going to do some mini reviews/discussing of some favourites, my association with Shakespeare, and talk about where Shakespeare keeps popping up.

The actual birthday of Shakespeare is not actually known, but many scholars believe it is on or around the 23rd April. He was baptised on the 26th so it is definitely in the right area. I know in high school when I first started learning about Shakespeare I found is rather spooky that he died on the day he was born. Like some strange circle that he was in and out on the same day. So we shall go with the scholars on this and say today is his birthday for all intents and purposes. Option B is of course to just say we are here celebrating his death? But that sounds a tad sombre and crass so perhaps not.

In his life he wrote numerous plays and sonnets, and has sparked quite a large conspiracy theory about whether he actual wrote the things he wrote. This is not the time to get into this but it is interesting what people find to claim his fraudulence. I think I only know his 18th Sonnet which is the infamous ‘Shall I compare thee to a Summer’s day?’ and being not all that keen on poetry that may have to do me. But I am not adverse to a play. Of course like most things if you research you might find you actually know a lot more but never realised they came from Shakespeare.

A lot of people tend to quote Shakespeare in everyday life and certainly in popular culture which is interesting, considering how many people seem to dislike him and find his works hard and annoying to read. There are certainly the main handfuls that get referenced and adapted over and over, while others are rarely seen outside the theatre. Luckily, and thankfully really, movies can help bring the interest back around. Films like Romeo + Juliet certainly, but also She’s the Man and 10 Things I Hate About You are sneaky retellings of Shakespeare plays, Twelfth Night and Taming of the Shrew respectively. If you peak an interest in the story by a film, then you can bring people back to the play.

Romeo and Juliet ★   ★   ★   ★  – 4 Stars

Probably the most idealised relationship that from memory lasted for three days between a 13 year and a possibly a 17 year old (no one really knows) and resulted in 6 deaths. How sweet. But what Shakespeare manages to do is show the consequences of how feuds and hatred can impact on people in ways you never thought possible. What Romeo and Juliet did just because of their family feud is extreme. The mere mention of the opposite family is enough to spark anger, and hatred for generations simply because it is instilled from an early age. ‘My only love sprung from my only hate’, as it goes.

I remember my first introduction to this was through the Brady Bunch and Marsha was Juliet and she let it go to her head. It certainly imprinted ‘Deny thy father and refuse thy name; Or if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love and I’ll no longer be a Capulet’  in my brain as she announced it from atop the stairs over and over.

The second was in the film Romeo + Juliet where it made it cool and exciting, while still keeping Shakespeare’s words true. I adored this film. I remember watching the 1968 version a few years ago and it is still Shakespeare, but it is also a lot stranger, though they do use the right ages for their actors. Perhaps that is part of the unsettling nature. Moving on from modern views on historic works!

Macbeth ★   ★   ★   ★  – 4 Stars

I wrote a review for Macbeth on Goodreads late last year, what is interesting when I revisited it I was surprised to see I had said I wouldn’t read Shakespeare on my own accord, it has always been for school or uni that I read them. Considering I gave Macbeth four stars didn’t seem to change this opinion, I have also given Shakespeare works two stars. But that isn’t what was interesting; what is was is that now, only a few months later, I find myself actually wanting to read his plays. Those I have read I have both loved and hated, but I feel like I need to read them, almost like the feeling of you should read the classics, but it is also in part an individual want to read them, not just the entertaining popular ones. And anything can be entertaining if you adapt it the right way of course, but in the play format you have to be determined. And I think if you choose to read them by your own will, then you probably will enjoy them more. But as I say, I liked many I had to read, it does depend on the story too. I don’t know, perhaps I am just getting older and this is what people do when they are six months older.

The thing about doing a Shakespeare course at uni meant I also watched a few film adaptations. There were the traditional ones where we stayed in era and costume and language, but there was one that I loved was a television show that retold Macbeth using a restaurant with the Chef being Joe Macbeth and Lady Macbeth was Ella, his wife and the hostess. It was part of a series called ShakespeaRe-Told by Peter Moffet. It was really great, there were a lot of very clever references that were woven into the story that made sense in the new modern context, but also tied in to the play and theatre origins.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream ★   ★   ★   ★   ★ – 5 Stars

This is one of my favourite plays; it was also one of the few I remember understanding pretty much straight away. There was nothing in there that confused me, and the jovial nature of it was rather amusing. It also wasn’t that familiar to me and I didn’t have any existing knowledge of the story like Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, or Hamlet.

What I enjoyed about A Midsummer Night’s Dream was the magical element of it. It wasn’t set in some cold castle, and wasn’t about killing and revenge, it was about mystical and magical fairies who controlled the love and lives of people who entered their forest.

The story tells of the marriage of the Duke of Athens, Theseus and Hippolyta, and the events that surround it. These include the adventures of four Athenian loves and six amateur actors, all interwoven and running about in this forest, unaware of the fairies who influence their night. There are three interlocking plots all up within this play, connected by the marriage. I do remember learning that this was the origin of the famous Wedding March. Composed by Felix Mendelssohn for the play it has been used to introduce the bride pretty much ever since. The other is the Bridal March composed by Wagner. Both are used nowadays hence the confusion between them, but it was Mendelssohn’s that came out of Shakespeare. So that’s rather cool.

The greatest film adaptation, and by far favourite, was the 1935 version with a very young Mickey Rooney playing Puck. What also came from this play are more wonderful quotes: Lord, what fools these mortals be!;  Cupid is a knavish lad, Thus to make poor females mad;  and the always wonderful,  ‘If we shadows have offended, Think but this, and all is mended, That you have but slumbered here, While these visions did appear’.

Puck was always a favourite, though the antics of Bottom and the interaction between the characters are wonderful as well. I think this story works well as a film adaptation because so much of the magic can be shown on the screen, and because it is so magical it is beautiful as well. While Macbeth or Othello have a strong story presence and a foreboding and darker scene to portray, A Midsummer Night’s Dream can have a jovial story with an elegant setting.

I realise a lot of talk of these plays is through films, but I think once you have read the play, seeing it in film, or as a play live, can help you appreciate the story better, especially when it comes to the language of Shakespeare. As I mentioned, there is Shakespeare in popular culture whether we notice it or not. Tim Minchin uses Shakespeare in his song Storm, Horrible Histories did an excellent song about the words and phrases we get from Shakespeare, He gave us a myriad of words and phrases and this song is a prime example and it is brilliant. They also do a lot on Shakespeare in generally about his exsquisit insults, trying to debunk myths about Richard lll told in song and funny skits. They are a lot better than reading that play, was not a favourite that is for sure.

Even words you never knew all seem to come back to Shakespeare, and of course a lot never caught on, like this QI clip shows. The full Shakespeare dedicated episode can be watched here, always a laugh and with costumes!

In terms of the Shakespeare doubt, Jasper Fforde’s Thursday Next series (yes that again), has a wonderfully reoccurrence of Shakespeare and this idea of his authenticity. If you don’t read it for the obvious reasons to start this series, it may be for the Shakespeare angle. There is even a Doctor Who episode about him and he pops up elsewhere with the Doctor as well. There is no escaping him really.

No matter what you believe in terms of his authenticity or whether you loathe him because you had to study him, you do not like the language, or you are simply not a play and sonnet type of person, you still have to acknowledge and admit that the Bard has done a lot for language and society in terms of the influence he has had over so much of what do and say and how we interact with the world. So with that substantial affect and power he has had on the world, I wish him a happy birthday, marvel at his works no matter what I think of them, and rather wish we had more concrete answers so we could spend less time debating and know all the facts to offer the best appreciation.

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

21 Apr 2013 Leave a comment

by Amy in 3 Stars, Birthdays, General Tags: , , ,

Birthday

Today we wish Charlotte Brontë happy birthday, she would have been the ripe old age of 197 so we are honouring this with a look at Jane Eyre.
Brontë was born on April 21 1816 and there were six Brontë’s altogether, five daughters and a brother. Charlotte was one of the three Brontë sisters who tried their hand at writing, and set forth the future where I forever get names mixed up. When I was younger I could never remember if Jane Eyre or Charlotte Brontë was the name of the book (I blame Jane Austen for adding to this confusion, but I am in part thankful for the other Brontë sisters for making me remember there was multiple Brontë’s) But that was teenage me, adult me read this book and was able to see Brontë has encapsulated rather well the life and thoughts of Jane.

It is interesting to see who gets remember from the family and for why. I must say I always forget about dear Anne, who had works published like her sisters, yet she does not seem to be as remembered. The sad thing about the Brontë family is that out of the six children, three died within ten months of one another. This was after the two eldest girls Maria and Elizabeth did not make it to adulthood. After that tragedy brother Branwell and sisters Emily and Anne all passed away, they were only in their late 20s or early 30s at the time.

Charlotte had Jane Eyre published in 1847, two years before the death or her siblings. What I found interesting about Brontë when I first was introduced to her was that she wrote Jane Eyre under the pen name Currer Bell. You don’t get many people using pen names these days, though I can name exceptions. But there is also not as much need these days, certainly not for the simple fact that a woman was writing a book. This was not her only pen name she had others as well, as did her sisters. Charlotte did reveal hers later on though, apparently as rumours spread the sister’s works were written by the same person.

Published: February 4th 2003
Goodreads badgePublisher: Penguin
Pages: 507
Format: Book
Genre: Literature
★   ★   ★  – 3 Stars

Orphaned into the household of her Aunt Reed at Gateshead, subject to the cruel regime at Lowood charity school, Jane Eyre nonetheless emerges unbroken in spirit and integrity. 
She takes up the post of governess at Thornfield, falls in love with Mr. Rochester, and discovers the impediment to their lawful marriage in a story that transcends melodrama to portray a woman’s passionate search for a wider and richer life than Victorian society traditionally allowed.

The novel is written as a first person autobiography of a young girl through her years at school and to her older years working as a governess. Jane tells her story from her child years where she lived with her aunt and cousins and was abused, her education at Lowood school, her work as a teacher in the same school, and her move to become a governess at Thornfield Hall; all with the social commentary, emotional reactions, and themes of family, religion, forgiveness, and gender relations woven in-between.

I didn’t love this book and think it was amazing, but I enjoyed it and I can see how everyone says how powerful it is. People say being forced to read Jane Eyre is the worst way to be introduced to it, and really appreciate it. I didn’t study this in school, I studied it at University, so technically that was by choice. And I enjoyed all, well most, books I had to study so that can’t be why I don’t seem to adore it. Perhaps a reread will be needed to give it more appreciation, who knows.

Jane Eyre has also been classed as a romance novel and I do not see this at all. It is a realism novel and what little romance in this novel, is barely romance. What it is is a weird relationship between Jane and Rochester that has a strange affection and romance about it, but I still wouldn’t classify it as a romance novel. Besides, the ending seems like Brontë had to find a way to finish it with the conclusion she wanted, despite the peculiarness of it.

Jane writes, “Most true is it that ‘beauty is in the eye of the gazer.’ My master’s colourless, olive face, square, massive brow, broad and jetty eyebrows, deep eyes, strong features, firm, grim mouth, — all energy, decision, will, — were not beautiful, according to rule; but they were more than beautiful to me”. For Jane, Rochester had an effect on her in a different way, his features were full of interest, an interest that overcame her.

I won’t be too harsh, they do have a good relationship, it is honest and classy and proper. It is a relationship about who you are as a person rather than the idea of you or what you look like. There is a line in there that says “I am not an angel, and I will not be one till I die: I will be myself”, and that is what these characters are: they are themselves. That is why I find this a realism novel, it is a snippet of Jane’s life and who she meets and what she does, all the thoughts and feeling of a diary entry with Jane’s knowledge that people are reading it. She is writing her story for us, and that is more wonderfully grand than romantic in my mind.

Anyone who has read The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde and the early sequels can see an excellent discussion about the ending of Jane Eyre, along with the fact Fforde can confuse the life out of you and what you thought you knew about Jane Eyre. He makes you doubt your own memories of the book, that is part of its brilliance, but he also addresses an excellent explanation for the end of this book, filling in the gaps of the mystery and, magically I suppose, part of the ending, which to me felt like a deus ex machina without the presence of a deity. But I do understand how it was supposed to be powerful and “romantic” but it just was weird.

What I found remarkable when I first read this book was that Brontë/Jane addresses the reader in her work. Jane is writing her story and she is writing it as if people are reading it (are they not?) but I remember thinking how at the time of publication that it must have been different, or perhaps reading at that time was different and that acknowledging your reader was normal, however I have found it in few others to see this possible. To give it credit, there are some amazing quotes that can be taken from this novel, the one that I always remember is the first line of the last chapter, won’t tell, big spoiler, however there are others, a favourite was always “I would always rather be happy than dignified”.

As a character and love interest Rochester isn’t the most handsome of people, this is brought up through the novel, about his looks. This I think holds a lot because of how Jane and Rochester’s relationship develops from her arrival to Thornfield. She sees him as a person, she is never smitten on his looks, and she is there for her job. I particularly liked Jane’s first meeting of Rochester, the way they meet gives nothing about their positions held, their duty to one another, or at least her to him. Jane never said he is unattractive however she says say of their first encounter “I felt no fear of him, and but little shyness.  Had he been a handsome, heroic-looking young gentleman, I should not have dared to stand thus questioning him against his will, and offering my services unasked”. He even asks her later if he is hideous and she tells him “Very, sir: you always were, you know”. This simple act of Brontë’s shows the kind of person Jane is very well, she is strong, honest,  and independent of course, but she is also not afraid to speak what she thinks, and yet not in an obnoxious and forward manner either.

Jane narration is very descriptive; she has an excellent turn of phrase about her environment and the people she meets. This helps you create a rounded image of where Jane is at all the stages described in her life, as well as the people she interacts with. And of course must remember she narrates her whole life, the stories of her life with her aunt, and at school are a little bit confronting and painful, also a bit emotionally and confronting, but they are her memories, it was her life and that makes it easier to read, she is telling her story, and being a first person narration lets Brontë get away with giving her character a hard life. I didn’t intend on making this just about Jane and Rochester, there are so many more characters and stories she tells, but in the end I suppose it does come down to the pair of them. But I want you to know there are other characters and stories in jane’s life that make her who she is and influence her life. I may need another review one day to cover them, but for now we fell into the Jane/Rochester trap.

So it is on this day we say happy birthday Charlotte Brontë once more, thank you for Jane Eyre, it is a great book, people have loved it, I’m sure there are those out there who did not, but there is no mistaking it is a classic. We are here for the review but also for Charlotte, for the tough life she had losing all her siblings but she powered on, she kept writing and she has instilled herself in our minds, with characters that hold power and influence in the messages she was promoting, however intentional they were.

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