Jane Eyre

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Description

Journalist and novelist Bidisha was fascinated by Bronte's Jane Eyre as a teenager, but re-reading the story as an adult left her feeling uncomfortable. What Bronte had to say about sex and race was darker and more disturbing than she remembered. Revisiting this classic Victorian novel, Bidisha sees her role model, and the society which spawned her, through very different eyes. Is Jane Eyre really the spirited, independent woman Bidisha admired as a young reader? Is Mr. Rochester little more than a bully and abuser? What does the characterisation of Bertha tell us about Bronte's colonial attitudes? To better understand, Bidisha travels to the Bronte's family home in Yorkshire and visits the British Library to examine Bronte's original manuscript and uncover intimate letters written by Charlotte Bronte to a married professor. Bringing a fresh and critical eye to this classic work, Bidisha reassesses one of literature's most memorable heroines.