Book Clubbin': Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

March Book Club

Date: Monday, March 9th
Place: Ida's house
Book: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
# of Members Present: 4

L'histoire:

KB organized this group two years ago after looking through the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die. Needless to say, we've read some snoozers. Just that one, really. Overall, the selections have been fantastic and I wouldn't want to die having not read them.

**Sometimes we deviate, choosing books relevant to the last book--Valley of the Dolls because it was the only book on the spaceship in Slaughterhouse-Five--The Pit and the Pendulum because it was Joseph Conrad's inspiration for Heart of Darkness. or Booker Prize nominees or books written by recently deceased authors. There's always a reason for our choices.**

I christened my Christmas paella pan (thanks Daddy-O!) with vegetable paella for everyone. It's a nice dish to share. (Cooking isn't required...plus we are always overwhelmed with food and beverage.)

Everyone loved Jane Eyre. I found these questions on Penguin's website.

• Why does Brontë juxtapose Jane's musings about women's social restraints with the mysterious laugh that Jane attributes to Grace Poole (p. 125-26)?
  

• Rochester's disastrous marriage to Bertha was based on passion, while St. John refuses to marry Rosamund because of his passion for her. What is Brontë saying about the role passion should play in marriage?

• When Jane first appears at Moor House, Hannah assumes she is a prostitute, but St. John and his sisters do not. What distinguishes the characters who misjudge Jane from those who recognize her true nature?

• When Jane hears Rochester's voice calling while he is miles away, she says the phenomenon "is the work of nature" (p. 467). What does she mean by this? What are we intended to conclude about the meaning of this experience?

• What is the balance of power between Jane and Rochester when they marry? Does this balance change from the beginning of the marriage to the time ten years later that Jane describes at the end of the novel (p. 500-501)?

Answer me, dear readers!

It was nice to have some direction and we spent a lot of time talking about the book. It was enriching and fun and gave me a whole new perspective on Jane Eyre. (My last readings of Jane Eyre were high school and middle school and I had a completely different view of it this time around.)

I didn't like Jane Eyre the first time around. It bothered me that she didn't marry St. John and married Rochester instead. Rochester scared me.

This time, however, I was impressed by her character and strength and mature decision-making.

And I found it really romantic that she made her way back and married Rochester in the end.