The reason I really started reading classics about ten years ago was because I realized there were so many authors I'd never read -- I managed to graduate from high school without ever reading anything by Steinbeck, Fitzgerald, or Hemingway! (Though in my defense, I did read War and Peace.) One of the few classics I did read in college was Jane Eyre, which I absolutely loved. It's also one of those books I turn to for comfort during hard times. This summer I had a tough move from Texas to Germany, and Jane Eyre was there for me when I needed something familiar.
I'm sure most everyone knows the basic story, but without spoilers, here's the setup: orphaned Jane Eyre lives with her horrible aunt and cousins until they send her off to boarding school, which also starts out horribly, but gets better. Eventually, she becomes a governess for the ward of mysterious Mr. Rochester at Thornfield Hall. She falls in love with him (naturally) but things are not as they seem.
It had been several years since I'd read Jane Eyre, and I still loved it this time around, but there were parts of it that I didn't like as well as in my youth. I still love Jane, but I found myself much more critical of Rochester and his behavior -- he was really manipulative and dishonest and some of the things he did to Jane were pretty unforgivable. Of course there are amazing coincidences, which are present in many Victorian novels so I feel as though that's to be expected. I did find parts of the story dragged, and there's a sub-plot about another possible romance for Jane that made me want to throw the book across the room.
I first read this book as part of a literature class my first semester in college, and it's been so long that I hardly remember what all the metaphors were. I realize the book must have been ground-breaking for its time regarding the portrayal of women in Victorian times, and that Jane is a symbol of empowerment, but some of the symbolism is a little over the top for me. And I'm sure I find it less romantic than I did years ago. I suppose it's inevitable that books affect you in different ways once you get older.
If you've read Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier, it's pretty obvious that she was influenced by Jane Eyre (though apparently she claims she wasn't; if anyone has evidence one way or the other, please let me know in the comments.) I've read Rebecca many, many times and it's one of my all-time favorites. I'm sure this may cause outrage but I honestly think I actually prefer Rebecca! In fact, it might be time for another re-read since it's October and I always want to read mysterious Gothic literature this time of year.
Bloggers, do you prefer Jane Eyre or Rebecca? And how do you feel when you re-read books you loved when you were younger? Do they stand the test of time?
I'm counting this as my Classic Re-Read from School for the Back to the Classics Challenge. Only three books left to go!
Have to say I prefer Rebecca, too, though it's been a long time since I read Jane Eyre. After visiting the Charlotte Bronte exhibit at The Morgan Library & Museum, I'm in the mood for a reread. Great post!
ReplyDeleteThanks! I hope I can make it to NY in time to see the Bronte exhibit, I'm trying to visit my daughter in the next few weeks.
DeleteMy re-read for this category was A Separate Peace and I think it did stand the test of time. But I know teen-age me felt perceived much of the story differently than middle aged me. And I agree with you, one’s impression of Rochester (or Maxim de Winter) may change as one gains life experience.
ReplyDeleteI have read and re-read both Jane Eyre and Rebecca. I love them both and I don’t know if I could choose one over the other. They have their similarities but also diverge in important and interesting ways. Du Maurier may have been honest in claiming that Jane Eyre was not an intentional influence, but I do believe it was in that case an unconscious one.
I read Rebecca first but I don't even realized the similarities until later! It has really stood the test of time for me, every time I read it I'm struck by how good the writing is. I also recommend a wonderful audio version narrated by Anna Massey -- she played Mrs. Danvers in a PBS adaptation in the late 1970s and she was just great.
DeleteJane Eyre was my first classic when I was a kid and it's been years since I last reread it because I'm afraid of this same thing happening for me. I don't want to dislike Rochester or notice coincidences. I want to remember it as magical and romantic.
ReplyDeleteJane Eyre is a comfort read for me too. Although I think I'm a little more sceptical of the romance each time I reread it. In terms of Rebecca, I think I'd say I like the two books equally - or, at a stretch, maybe Jane Eyre a touch more. I think it's mainly because I read Brontë in high school, and the experience stuck with me. I think Rebecca is definitely more tense and mysterious, it really is a great example of a Gothic novel. But I think it's somehow a bit easier to like and identify with Jane as a character, as opposed to the naïve (and unnamed) heroine of Rebecca.
ReplyDeleteUnlike many others, I rarely re-read a book. This may be because I am a very slow reader and there are so many books I want to read. I read both Rebecca and Jane Eyre a long time ago, and I liked them both, but I think I liked Rebecca better (it's been long enough ago that I'm not sure).
ReplyDeleteI think I preferred Jane Eyre to Rebecca, simply because I liked Rochester better than Maxim. Rochester was a true romantic, rakish hero, while Maxim came across like a cross old father figure all the time, and I got tired of him. The twists in JE were less easy to predict than those in R too, although maybe that's because DuMaurier did draw from it. Who can tell?
ReplyDeleteI think I had always assumed that du Maurier had set out to do a Jane Eyre re-write. I love both books but I've re-read Rebecca more often, it's my comfort book. I even like the old film of it.
ReplyDeleteI love both JE and Rebecca and read them both repeatedly as a teen starting at about age 12-13. You're right, as an adult I am much more critical of Mr. R than I was when I was young. I do think that Jane is a symbol of empowerment, and was a liberating force for her creator.
ReplyDeleteI don't know why authors claim that other authors didn't influence them--DMM was a proud, prickly sort of person, but there's no question that she knew her Bronte well. Probably JE was so hardwired into her pysche that she had no choice but to be influenced by it.
I'm currently also re-reading Jane Eyre, for a read-along at The Edge of the Precipice blog. I'm learning a lot of new things and seeing some parts of the book differently, but I don't necessarily love it any less (or more) than in my previous reads. I think I never fell hard for Rochester, I always had my reservations with his character, but I love the story nonetheless!
ReplyDeleteHey, I accidentally found your blog and stayed as a reader ;) Your book taste is awesome ^^ I myself loved Jane Eyre to the fullest, specially the athmosphere in this book is magical. You moved to Germany? So how good is your German :-P Iam Austrian! All the best from Graz
ReplyDeleteHello Tinka! What a coincidence - two Grazers following the same blog and commenting the same post ;-). Greetings!
DeleteI read Jane Eyre a few years ago because I got curious when someone told me just after finishing Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier that it was a modern adaptation of the story. In fact, there are many similarities. Both books are execellent, each in its own way.
ReplyDeleteLaGraziana @ Edith's Miscellany