Comparing Jane Eyre and Jane - Part 1:
After reading Jane Eyre and the modern version, Jane, I find that I far more enjoyed Jane Eyre than its counterpart. The classic novel's brilliant author, Charlotte Bronte', wrote Jane Eyre, in a time past, which worked brilliantly for the novel. Its characters and the script are captivating and convincing. We are swept back in time to a period of traditions, wisdom, decency and grace, in the mid-1800's. The reader is propelled back in time to an era that is unknown to us, or one we have at least not physically experienced; yet, it is one we can readily imagine ourselves stepping into, relishing every aspect of the setting and the epoch. It was eloquently written. The artful language used by the author, while difficult at times to understand, stretched our intellect and our imaginations. Jane Eyre provided darkness, intrigue, suspense, drama, joy, laughter, sadness, tears, cleverness and also gave us true heroes and heroines. That's everything a masterful novel should be and more!
In contrast Jane - our modern-day version of the original - lacks intrigue and enticement, at least for this reader. The story does not allow us to fall in love with the child, Jane, as its predecessor did. In the original, we follow Jane Eyre with great interest, and we are rooting for her success, right from the beginning, given her tragic childhood and the dire hardships suffered at the hands of tyrants and malicious children and adults. The remake starts with an older Jane, about 19-20 years old, giving us but a brief synopsis of her child hood. We are simply told that she is neglected by her parents and treated rudely by her siblings, making her a bit insecure and downtrodden. Yet, in divergence, we are also told she is privileged enough to go to one of the most prestigious universities in the United States, Sarah Lawrence. This Jane is hardly an indigent case. Her life was not as oppressed in its foundation as her prototype. I found I was not an immediate faithful supporter, nor beholden through heart and soul to our new lead character, Jane Moore, as I had been to Jane Eyre.
As the modern story progresses, it is analogous to that of its predecessor. The characters and their narratives are almost perfectly correlated to those in Jane Eyre, yet have slightly altered names and different occupations, in limited cases. However, the names and other differences pertaining to each character do not vary enough for the reader to be even slightly challenged to ascertain who they are in relation to the classic tale. Initially, I found that to be quaint, even amusing at times. After a while, however, it became lackluster and terribly predictable. I thought, "Can there be no intrigue, no novelty, no interesting twist in this story to make the reader more enticed?"
Don't get me wrong. The 2nd book was not without merit or entirely uninteresting. I liked that Mr. Rathburn seemed to love and care about his daughter, Madeline, more than Edward Rochester did for his daughter, Adele. I liked that Jane Moore often seemed a bit more sociable and made friends a bit more easily than did Ms. Eyre.
There were certainly parts of Jane which I found believable and enjoyable to read. Sadly, there were other parts that were completely unfathomable. As one example, keeping a woman who is insane locked in an attic, in today's world? That is highly unlikely. There are so many government agencies to which such an action would now be reported. Also, with the money our rock start, Nico Rathburn (fka Edward Rochester) had, why would he not have sought the very best psychiatrists and facilities to help this woman? Such action likely was not possible in the days of Jane Eyre. The facilities then were not nearly what they are today, nor were there doctors trained and specialized in treating such illnesses.
My next blog entry will be PART 2 of this "Final Verdict." In it, we will contrast and compare the characters, side-by-side, discuss the relationships between them, and wrap with a final book summary. Keep reading!
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