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Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Dear Reader,Jane Eyre Book Cover Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte Jane - Etsy

This delightful novel tells the story of one woman’s journey from harsh dependence to loving independence.

The End

When I taught AP Literature, Jane Eyre was one of my favorite novels to cover. It has it all: strong heroine in a coming-of-age story, symbols everywhere, and universal themes like love and independence. On top of all that, it has a crazy woman in the attic! What’s not to love?

From a Christian perspective, we see genuine faith contrasted with all types of hypocrisy and coldness. When Jane is in Lowood school – a “low’ point in her life (ah, the symbols!) – the “pious” director, aptly named Mr. Brocklehurst – forces the pupils to live an austere existence while his family lives in luxury. In contrast, Jane’s tragic friend, Helen Burns (the names in this book — every one means something!!) is able to rise above the harsh treatment, to find joy in her hope for eternity. One could say, she “burns” with true faith, like a light in the darkness.

Later in the book, St. John reflects dour faith – symbolized by all things cold. He offers Jane the life of sacrifice as missionary in India. But, as Jane recognizes, St. John isn’t going out of a passionate calling. His entire demeanor is sterile and so completely opposite of the fire she knew in Rochester that should could not accept his proposal.

Jane herself demonstrates a firm adherence to truth when she gives up all that is comfortable, pleasant, and warm to remain faithful to what she knows is right. She leaves Rochester, despite his great love for her, because he is married. Rochester can justify his adulterous intentions – Bertha is insane, and he was tricked into marrying her. Readers sympathize. But Jane’s conscience won’t permit her to join Rochester in those justifications.

In the end, Jane gets it all – the freedom she has always craved, the man she loves, and the life she wants. And she gets it all without having to compromise her integrity. A happy ending, indeed.

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

I have loved this book since college. In fact, I took two different Jane Austen courses at University of South Florida. Had they offered more, I would have taken them! I named my oldest daughter after the Austen heroine, Emma (at the time, knowing ofPride and Prejudice: Original and Unabridged by Jane Austen, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® no other Emma’s, I thought I was being very clever and unique).

This story has stood the test of time for many reasons, but I believe the primary reason is because we know these characters.  We know the pragmatic Charlotte who chooses practicality over passion. We know the slick Wickham who can make girls believe he only has eyes for them – when his eyes are actually roving all over the countryside. We know the ridiculous Mr. Collins who seeks to ingratiate himself with those he hopes will elevate his status.

When Elizabeth says of Jane that she will never be as happy as Jane because she isn’t as good as her, we understand. And when Elizabeth refuses a wealthy, handsome man because she has far too much self-confidence to accept his offensive proposal, we want to believe we would do that, too.

This story has also retained its popularity because it’s a love story between two equals. In a time when marriages were arranged, based on social stature, land ownership, and titles, Elizabeth and Darcy marry for love. And they don’t marry until Darcy sees that Elizabeth is his equal in every way. She accepts nothing less, and we love her for that.

The clergy in Austen novels is always of special interest to me, as they are rarely sympathetic characters. Something to note about this time period (early 19th century) is that a man was given the position of clergy, not because of a calling, necessarily, but because it was a respected occupation, a “living”. As a result, clergy may or may not have been very religious at all. As we see with Mr. Collins, he’s far more concerned with status than souls, and his personality is mercilessly mocked by the author and her protagonist. Darcy shows far more real compassion than Collins ever does.

Austen also mocks the upper classes – as with the Misses Bingley and Lady Catherine. In “real life” during this time period, women like this would always be treated with respect, would marry someone “worthy” of their stations, and would never be thrown over by someone “common”. But in Jane Austen’s world, worth is determined by character, not status, and Elizabeth, therefore, is most worthy.

No matter how many times I’ve read Pride and Prejudice, the story and the characters never get old. If you’ve never read the book, now is the time! The movies – not even A&E’s (in my opinion, the absolute best) – can come close. Austen’s prose is so sharp that even two hundred years later, she can make us laugh, cheer, and swoon.

 

 

Till We Have Faces by CS Lewis

C.S. Lewis’ greatest and least-known work is his final novel, Till We Have Faces. Image result for till we have faces book cover

This novel is a combination of everything Lewis loved, and it is his fiction writing at its most glorious and most mature. Based on the myth of Cupid and Psyche, the novel’s protagonist is Psyche’s oldest sister, Orual. The novel is a first-person account, detailing Orual’s complaint against the gods and her eventual retraction of that complaint.

This novel, Lewis insisted, is a parallel, not an allegory, like Narnia or the Space Trilogy. It doesn’t fit into neat boxes in its connection to Christianity. And yet, this is an even greater apologetic, in my opinion, than Mere Christianity. As Orual rails against the gods – who seem to torment her and mock her throughout the first part – we see humanity. Orual is incredibly intelligent, strong, able, and she loves deeply. But she is blind to the truth. In her hatred for the gods, she cuts herself off from everyone – her disconnect with others symbolized by the veil she wears over her face most of her life. She views life through the “veil”, sure that she is correctly interpreting reality, but actually becoming more and more blind with every passing year.

Her understanding of the world and the gods is limited, and yet she sets herself up as the gods’ accuser, as the victim, as God Himself.

She finally discovers (spoiler alert!) that she has been lying to herself her whole life. That the Truth can only be seen when she is honest with herself, when the veil is removed, when she accepts, like Job in the Old Testament, that God is God and she is not.

This book is so rich – an incredible work of literature and an incredible reminder of who we are before a holy God. If you have not read this – get it! Read it. If you have read it – read it again! I find some new nugget of truth and beauty every time I revisit this story.

“To say the very thing you really mean, the whole of it, nothing more or nothing less or other than what you really mean; that’s the whole art and joy of words.” (Till We Have Faces, 294)

Classics with Krista

I have decided to go in a different direction with this blog. I’m going to begin a series called “Classics with Krista” where I discuss literary classics from a Christian worldview.

This has been a passion for years — My undergraduate degree is in Literature; I have been an English teacher for over a decade and a half, and I taught AP English at Christian schools for over half that time.

I’d love for this to become a forum where my posts are just the start of rich conversations about great works of literature.

So, to start this discussion: Where do we begin? I’d love your input as I choose which books to examine. I’ll list a few of my very favorite works below. Feel free to add yours in the comments!

  • Till We Faces by CS Lewis
  • Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
  • Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
  • Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
  • The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
  • Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
  • Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
  • Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
  • Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
  • To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee