I care for myself. The more solitary, the more friendless, the more unsustained I am, the more I will respect myself.

I’ve written (very briefly) about this book before, but as I begin to make my way in the world, it seems fitting to explore Charlotte Bronte’s masterpiece.

As this is a classic novel, I see no need to convince anyone of its merit. However, it was particularly helpful to me as an adolescent; unlike most of the books I’d had access to (e.g., Little Women or Anne of Green Gables), Jane’s life was a constant struggle, mainly because she never had a family to rely on. She was patient, but she had her limits, and she refused to back down on her principles. I’ve always considered this book my first feminist awakening (for the record, my second was Revolutionary Girl Utena), mainly because it proved to me that a woman can be a devout Christian and also stand up for her rights and dignity.

This is something of a gothic romance, complete with a handful of supernatural occurrences, and paired with Pride and Prejudice, it’s one of the foremothers of the modern romance genre. It is also, however, a product of its time, and as such, there are problematic representations of non-white people, but I at least feel more competent handling that topic now than, say, when the Chronicles of Narnia touched on those issues (I had hardly any non-white acquaintances at the time, and barely even followed any non-white creators).

There are many adaptations of this book, so I’ll just mention a few that have stuck out to me. My first experience of this story was most likely the miniseries featuring Georgie Henley as Child Jane, but it mainly served just to introduce me to the book (I haven’t seen it in years, and I probably won’t revisit it just because of how long it is). I did rather enjoy the Mia Wasikowska version, in large part because they committed to making Jane actually look “plain”, like she’s supposed to be. I’ve also heard great things about the ballet version, but as it is a fairly recent production, I’ve yet to see it. Anyhow, I probably won’t reference any of the movies, just because there’s no definitive adaptation (as per usual with classic books).

This story, much like Fruits Basket, deals with various forms of abuse, and the resolutions are pretty mixed by today’s standards. This one is definitely a more adult book (even if it’s never explicit).

Until next time, my dear readers…