Students often want to know why they have to read a particular book, especially when it seems ancient or unrelatable to them. Most of the time my response would be what English teachers typically say, which is something along the lines of "the themes are universal."- Great Writing -- This probably isn't shocking since it ischosen for this class, but it is important to read good writing to become better writers ourselves. Not that any of us will ever become like Bronte, but it helps to see what great writers do in order to try and replicate it. If you don't believe me about what writers can learn, check out this link that lists 10 Things Writers Can Learn from Reading this Book.
- Lessons Learned -- I am not referring to some deep moral found as a theme in this book but rather the smaller lessons people can garner from reading it. The characters are far from flawless, and the plot has tons of disturbing events, yet it is because of these things that the reader is able to learn important lessons they can apply to their own life, and "yes, this means readers in the 21st century." Once again, don't take my word for it, read what this site has to say about the lessons this book can teach (it says women, but this doesn't mean women only).
- Unique Story -- I don't know how else to put it except to say it truly is "a one of a kind." I can't think of another book, old or new, which comes close to encompassing all the things this one does. The dark, Gothic horror and harshness of this book pulled me in years ago and continues to linger with me today. In addition to the mystery, the novel also touches on individuality with strong characters while also presenting a nontraditional, or distorted, love story, which probably appeals to readers, like me, more than an "on the surface" romance found in so many works of this era (or even in modern works). To be honest, I never cared much for the world of Jane Austen: fancy dresses, fake conversations, and pushy patriarchs. Instead, I found Bronte's world much more relatable and fitting for mytastes, and I hope you will agree. Although Austen and Bronte were both popular female writers of this time period, readers tend to like one over the other. (However, I did have a student last year who loved both writers, so who knows, maybe there is something similar about them that readers like.) Even Charlotte Brontee's own sister, Emily, wrote much like Austen with her most famous work Wuthering Heights. In fact, many literature classes choose this one over Jane Eyre, but I obviously did not, and I hope my choice was a good one.
I encourage each of you to give this book a shot, not because you have to for this class or because you want a good grade. If you allow yourself to get caught up in the story, characters, and setting, you might even find that you love it....O.K. maybe just like it....Alright, fine, you can tolerate it.
For your response to this post, you can click on one of the links above and comment on what you found of interest at the link. Or, if you can find one other person (teacher, parent, student, etc) who has read Jane Eyre and LIKED IT, provide a comment where you share what they said about the novel.
Comments do not have to be lengthy. In most cases, a solid, well-written paragraph should suffice.
Comments do not have to be lengthy. In most cases, a solid, well-written paragraph should suffice.
Reading Jane Eyre can give readers the opportunity to relate Foster's book to other literature. Having a book assigned in class can also give readers a chance to find a book that they might not have read in the first place but might end up enjoying. Teaching lessons over this book will help us to better comprehend what we are reading and assist others in their understanding as well.
ReplyDeleteThe thing that excites me the most about this book is the idea that there will be more to the love story than what is on the surface, unlike many other novels in this era. I enjoy reading books from this era, but I've always found that the love stories within these novels are anticlimactic. I'm excited to read this book and relate it back to Foster to see what symbols can be found and how they are still used in the same way today.
ReplyDeleteWhen we were first assigned to read this book I began asking students who took this course last year if it was good or not. Everyone I asked said they liked it, aside from one person. One student said that this was probably her favorite book to read in this class and that it was quite easy to understand and find symbols in. I've always found gothic styled novels from the Victorian Era to be interesting so I'm extremely excited to read this book.
ReplyDeleteI clicked on the link, 10 Things Writers Can Learn From Jane Eyre, and found a couple of interesting things about the book and what we will be reading. The first thing I found interesting was that Jane Eyre can teach readers that theme is very strong when it asks readers, rather than answering. Reading this makes me feel that this book has a lot of depth to the writing and readers must interpret things to understand the story. The other thing it talked about was how weather can set the mood of the story, which relates back to Foster as well. I feel this book will be mysterious and full of meanings throughout the whole book.
ReplyDeleteJane Eyre is a great book to show that women aren't fragile, shallow beings. The Victorian era showed women as simple minded and property to their husbands. Jane Eyre goes against that depiction of the Victorian era by having a smart, headstrong female character. Jane Eyre is a good book to teach because it shows that women weren't treated fairly back in the day and we, as readers, have to understand the struggle that women had to go through. This book is a great eye opener for all of us and will help us understand the Victorian era better.
ReplyDeleteI think reading Jane Eyre will be beneficial because we can compare how she lived to women now. From reading, "11 Lessons That 'Jane Eyre' Can Teach Every 21st Century Woman About How to Live Well", Jane seems to be a independent person. She was going to marry a man who already had a wife, but had too much respect for herself to marry him. Apparently she ends up marrying him later in the story, but it was a courageous thing for her to do given the time period. This book can be related back to Foster because her soon to be husband already seems like a vampire. This is just one connection out of many that readers will make relating back to Foster in Jane Eyre.
ReplyDeleteThe book Jane Eyre teaches us that we need to let go of our past and move on with our lives, which is exactly what Jane did in this novel. She had many demons from her childhood that she was having a hard time forgetting such as getting tortured and abused her whole childhood. When she went to boarding school she finally learned how to let go of these demons and move on with her life. This is an important lesson to learn from Bronte and should not be taken lightly.
ReplyDeleteI really like how in this novel, Jane Eyre, Jane is an extremely strong minded character who endures a lot of mistreatment and hardship in her life, but she uses that in order to better herself. Within the link "11 Lessons that Jane Eyre can Teach Every 21st Century Woman about how to Live Well" it really reflects the tone of this novel. It is rebellion somewhat, because the average Victorian age woman was not supposed to behave like Jane Eyre. She is going against the social norms so that she can live her own life. In this novel, there are multiple vampires that can relate to Foster. These vampires try to hold Jane back and make her life miserable, but Jane keeps on going because she knows her self-worth and will not give up.
ReplyDeleteI clicked on the link "10 Things Writers Can Learn From Jane Eyre" and found a couple of interesting points. The first thing is Backstory is most powerful when it’s awesome and the readers have to wait for it. I found this interesting because in a lot of books you don't find out the backstory of the characters when it might be helpful to find the understanding of why they might be doing something. Another thing that I found interesting was the connection to Foster about how weather can create theme and foreshadowing later in the book.
ReplyDeleteI clicked on the 10 Things Writers Can Learn From Jane Eyre, and found some interesting things about the book and what we'll be reading.What I found interesting was that Jane Eyre can teach readers that theme is very strong when it asks readers, rather than answering. Also, how weather can set the mood of the story, which relates back to Foster Text. I believe this book will be mysterious and full of differnt meanings. Can't wait to keep reading.
ReplyDeleteI used the link "10 Things Writers Can Learn From Jane Eyre". There I found several items that interested me. The article said, "Readers will love even an unethical character—if the character is honest". I find this particularly true in movies, such as the Dark Night. This movie has such an amazingly honest Antagonists, the Joker played by Heath Ledger in one of the greatest performances in cinematic history. In this book I hope to see some form of a lovable unethical person.
ReplyDeleteI read "10 Things Writers Can Learn From Jane Eyre" and I was most interested in number seven "you are stronger than you think". It is by far ,in my opinion, one of the most important lessons a book can teach you. This lesson can inspire people to go out and attempt things they didn't think they could do. for instance if you told me back in middle school that I would be taking advanced classes in any subject I would have told you you were crazy. When I was deciding on class for my freshmen year I was offered the opportunity to take an advanced English class and I didn't think that I could do it, my ultimate decision was inspired by stories I had read or seen of people doing things they didn't think they could do. I have and probably will never regret my decision to take that class.
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