About the Reader
At my house, reading has always been considered an important part of life. The information, the guidance, and the enjoyment that reading provides is extremely valuable. Due to these principles, I was read to from the time I was born. Every night my mother would sit down with me in her arms and read to me. I began to read by myself at the age of four and have had a continued fondness for books ever since. I always wanted to be the one to read aloud at school and enjoyed just about every book I could get into my hands. When it comes to reading for personal enjoyment in high school, I have found it much harder to take the time to just sit down and read, however this prompts me to choose the books that I read with more purpose and intent. When choosing, I tend to lean towards the classics because I feel that reading those offers me a vaster knowledge of literature, in both a cultural and academic sense. Books like Anne of Green Gables, Pride and Prejudice, and Jane Eyre are widely respected in the world of literature and to say that you have read them earns you respect among many people.
Aside from the classics, I do thoroughly enjoy a good fantasy novel. Harry Potter assuredly takes the spot of my most favorite book, but I also like The Hobbit and Eragon. I have yet to read The Lord of the Rings, but that along with more British classics are on my list for next. In contrast, I do not tend to jump at the chance to read a realistic fiction. From my point of view it's much more worth it to read about the world as one wishes it could be or as it was long ago. As I do occasionally wish that I had the chance to live in a sprawling and lavish British countryside estate with my biggest concern the gossip about the lady of the house fifteen miles away.
When I'm set back into reality, I always like to find the sunniest spots to read. Lying in a state of repose in my backyard, a perfect seventy-two degrees, a tranquil breeze fluttering through the trees, and the sun streaming through the leaves. During the months when the sun and heat make themselves scarce, I delight in sitting by the fire accompanied by a steaming cup of tea and a big blanket.
Aside from the classics, I do thoroughly enjoy a good fantasy novel. Harry Potter assuredly takes the spot of my most favorite book, but I also like The Hobbit and Eragon. I have yet to read The Lord of the Rings, but that along with more British classics are on my list for next. In contrast, I do not tend to jump at the chance to read a realistic fiction. From my point of view it's much more worth it to read about the world as one wishes it could be or as it was long ago. As I do occasionally wish that I had the chance to live in a sprawling and lavish British countryside estate with my biggest concern the gossip about the lady of the house fifteen miles away.
When I'm set back into reality, I always like to find the sunniest spots to read. Lying in a state of repose in my backyard, a perfect seventy-two degrees, a tranquil breeze fluttering through the trees, and the sun streaming through the leaves. During the months when the sun and heat make themselves scarce, I delight in sitting by the fire accompanied by a steaming cup of tea and a big blanket.
R E A D I N G J O U R N A L
Jane Eyre is a tough novel to get through. There are few times where you can see or even envision the colloquial "light at the end of the tunnel." The few experiences that Jane has with others are not the most pleasant, and this can considerably weigh down on you as a reader. Her sadness and pain flow through to you. At times this can be very beneficial as it clearly shows the emotion that Charlotte put into writing this novel and her skill in conveying these emotions through to the reader. However, combined with the extremely slow rate at which this novel moves for the first two hundred pages, it is very difficult to become completely absorbed. That was by far the most difficult part of this book. Likewise with many classics, the 'action' does not occur until you have remained steadfast and stuck with the novel until the middle of the book.
The character of Jane Eyre, was largely based off of Charlotte. Her life was not by any means stress-free, relaxing, or particularly joyful. When she portrays this through Jane, we see the pain that she went through, yet Jane had a particularly awful childhood. She was raised by an aunt who really had no love for her, cousins that sorely mistreated her, and went on to reside at a school that was simply unfit for the gentle nurturing a young girl is in need of. Jane took all her hardships in stride and went on to become a schoolteacher, an adored governess, and eventually a truly loved young woman.
The other lesson that Jane specifically taught me was the importance and benefits of living a simple life. She had few possessions and the few she had were of little value, and yet she was so very content. She didn't need an excess of unnecessary items to fill her drawers in order to have a full heart. Even when she was given the chance to increase her treasures one hundred-fold, she was content with what had been given unto her and she had no need for any more. We live in an extremely materialistic culture. Where in order to have fulfillment in life you need to have things and own stuff. Which is frankly not true. Jane lived a very simple and for the latter part, a mostly enjoyable life, with few possessions and a certain content air about her.
This book is certainly not meant for everyone. Anyone who enjoys a good classic or any British literature would likely enjoy this book. Just so long as they were to stick with it. It is a somewhat challenging book and is often times very heavy to handle. However, you never know what lesson could be awaiting you when you open a book so widely respected and well-aged.
The character of Jane Eyre, was largely based off of Charlotte. Her life was not by any means stress-free, relaxing, or particularly joyful. When she portrays this through Jane, we see the pain that she went through, yet Jane had a particularly awful childhood. She was raised by an aunt who really had no love for her, cousins that sorely mistreated her, and went on to reside at a school that was simply unfit for the gentle nurturing a young girl is in need of. Jane took all her hardships in stride and went on to become a schoolteacher, an adored governess, and eventually a truly loved young woman.
The other lesson that Jane specifically taught me was the importance and benefits of living a simple life. She had few possessions and the few she had were of little value, and yet she was so very content. She didn't need an excess of unnecessary items to fill her drawers in order to have a full heart. Even when she was given the chance to increase her treasures one hundred-fold, she was content with what had been given unto her and she had no need for any more. We live in an extremely materialistic culture. Where in order to have fulfillment in life you need to have things and own stuff. Which is frankly not true. Jane lived a very simple and for the latter part, a mostly enjoyable life, with few possessions and a certain content air about her.
This book is certainly not meant for everyone. Anyone who enjoys a good classic or any British literature would likely enjoy this book. Just so long as they were to stick with it. It is a somewhat challenging book and is often times very heavy to handle. However, you never know what lesson could be awaiting you when you open a book so widely respected and well-aged.