Reviews with content warning for Slavery - Wide Sargasso Sea

I was eagerly waiting the moment I could read this classical rendition of a forgotten and mistreated character such as Antoinetta/Bertha from Jane Eyre, as I loved the original book back then, when I first picked it up.

In some senses, it does a great job at giving depth both to Bertha's character and background, and Mr. Rochester's feelings about her (which I did not expect to find here), as well as the racial complexities in Jamaica after the end of "legal slave ownership" (we know it was still being enacted nonetheless), colourism, women's autonomy and the treatment of (women's) madness and how these poor women are driven into these unstable mental states by their environments, and mostly their husbands.

But it was also confusing in a lot of instances and felt short when depicting more the nuance of the black characters' feelings towards their previous slave owners. I wish we had focused more on them in general, than the white Creole perspective, but I understand Rhys' background and how that shaped this re-imagining of Bertha's story. Still, I think it should be an essential read after Jane Eyre because it adds more depth to her character and a more complex post-colonial context than the original book did.

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onyxk's review

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challenging dark inspiring mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

Love the ending. Quick read. Near 100 pages of the story, rest is background info regarding sources and such.

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pencilspeaker's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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cepbreed's review

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emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

"Justice,' she said. 'I've heard that word. It's a cold word. I tried it out,' she said, still speaking in a low voice. 'I wrote it down. I wrote it down several times and always it looked like a damn cold lie to me. There is no justice."

I've been meaning to read this book for awhile and my English course focusing on what houses represent in literature was the perfect excuse to finally get down to doing it. By excuse I mean I had to, but whatever LOL. As a disclaimer that rushed element might have influenced my reading experience, but I was slightly disappointed by this. I ADORED Jane Eyre and I was always so intrigued by Bertha Mason. I had this idea in my head that she was a Creole woman, but also a woman of color. I may have just invented that detail in my head though. I just thought any themes connected to her status as a woman of color would've reflected wonderfully with Heathcliff's status as not quite white enough in Wuthering Heights. That said, I loved the way Jean Rhys crafted the existence of Antoinette as a disgraced white woman in Jamaica. Rhys never shied away from the uncomfortable and I will carry that scene where the family is attempting to get into their carriage with me forever. I enjoyed books one and three, not so much book two. However, that is probably just a reflection of my hatred for Mr. Rochester. I hated him at the end of Jane Eyre and feared terribly that some parts of this book would attempt to redeem him (is it even redemption if its happening in the past?). Thank goodness I did not have to endure any sort of placating towards Rochester. My hate was augmented tenfold and the only thing bringing me a semblance of peace is the fact that he is disfigured by the end of Jane Eyre (lets just ignore that Jane actually returns to him...).

THE ENDING THOUGH UGHHH Knowing what comes next is just. so. good.

Song:

tolerate it - Taylor Swift

Content Warnings

edwardian_girl_next_door's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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elisabethshanahan's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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mercedes's review against another edition

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emotional sad slow-paced

3.0

Wow, this book gets a lot of hate! I can sort of understand. Coming straight from <i>Jane Eyre</i> to this, there is certainly a stark contrast in the writing styles and ambience of the story, and at points I kept having to remind myself it was taking place in the early 19th century. However, the writing itself felt so unique - it's at its strongest when describing the luxuriant, tropical surroundings of Coulibri and Massacre.

Some common criticisms I see popping up in most negative reviews of this book is that it is confusing and makes no sense, and I have to say that this was not my personal experience with the book. I didn't think it was that difficult to follow along with the story, and while the flow of the book is definitely not typical, it works for a novel about two very lost characters. I don't think I could have asked for more from this book and it works excellently for what it is.

(Minor spoilers for Wide Sargasso Sea, spoilers for Jane Eyre)

One aspect I really loved was the call-back to the parrot at Coulibri. Just as the parrot had its wings clipped by Antoinette's stepfather, so did Antoinette have her wings clipped by Rochester - and both have the same fate, falling to their death surrounded by flames. The fire at Coulibri really affected me when I was reading the book and the fact that it was prophesising Antoinette's own fate made it all the more striking.

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jai_ls's review

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dark emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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