Quote:
Originally Posted by cearbhallain
I will never forget how gutted *I* felt when Jane left her bundle, all of her worldly goods, on that coach. She'd had precious little but now she had absolutely nothing. Jane Eyre isn't just a romance, like Hardy the Bronte sisters were writing about the effects that social and economic inequality had on the lives of women and children.
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Yeah, I was similarly stricken by that loss. Actually, the whole period when she fled Thornfield and was left completely dispossessed struck me really hard. Those were definitely moments in which I simply could not put the book down.
I think it's the precise difference you mentioned between the Bronte and the Austen heroines that made the book have such an impact on me. I've read both Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility, but I really feel as though I connected with Jane more strongly on many occasions.
I also enjoyed the type of intelligence Jane portrays: how, due to the circumstances of her life, she's not always as wise about the world or as highly educated as she could be, but she's also not ashamed to admit where her education is lacking and to welcome the opportunities to improve upon it. Really her overall drive not to let circumstance keep her from being the best person she thinks she can be is just astounding.
I also like the point about the security and the safety that Rochester offers. I had not thought of the relationship in those terms before, and it does add an interesting new layer to my reflections on the novel. So thank you for pointing that out.
