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3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
The book is playful and funny and challenging. The narrative voice is an all-time great - she's so stubborn and determined to tell you the story only on her own terms. I didn't expect to connect so strongly with this it, but it turns out that feeling lonely and isolated while teaching in a foreign country is an experience that translates across centuries.
Initially read this because I thought that it was a novel that showed the influence of teachers on their students. Its not. However, I don't think this was Charlotte Bronte's intention. Lucy Snowe was a good thought however nothing like the brilliant Jane Eyre (one could argue I shouldn't compare them). Nonetheless, I think the book lacked substance, the whole 'nun' thing was a bit dreary, Madame Beck did my head in, and I think Monsieur Emmanuel was utterly annoying. Miss Snowe was boring, I think this was utterly plain. Nothing like the 'usual' Bronte wok TBH!!
Lembro-me de ter detestado esse livro quando o li pela primeira vez aos 17 anos. O achava frustrante, triste, sofrido. Lembro ter prometido nunca mais lê-lo. Me via demais na Lucy Snowe. Sentia demais as suas dores e sofri demais com ela a cada decepção.
Agora, aos 27, tenho uma ideia completamente diferente. Lucy sofre no começo, sim, mas a recompensa ao final paga cada dor. Se antes o romance frustrado com John e o amor dela pelo Monsieur Emanuel me deixaram irritada, hoje me parecem perfeitamente pensados.
Li esse livro com duas mentalidades completamente diferentes uma da outra, e essa experiência foi sensacional e muito reveladora.
Agora, aos 27, tenho uma ideia completamente diferente. Lucy sofre no começo, sim, mas a recompensa ao final paga cada dor. Se antes o romance frustrado com John e o amor dela pelo Monsieur Emanuel me deixaram irritada, hoje me parecem perfeitamente pensados.
Li esse livro com duas mentalidades completamente diferentes uma da outra, e essa experiência foi sensacional e muito reveladora.
“Cred că un amestec de speranță și de bucurie poate îndulci perioadele cele mai dificile.
Cred că viața din lumea aceasta nu înseamnă totul, nefiind nici începutul și nici sfârșitul.
Cred asta chiar dacă mă înspăimântă, cred asta chiar și atunci când plâng.”
Charlotte m-a surprins.
Cred că viața din lumea aceasta nu înseamnă totul, nefiind nici începutul și nici sfârșitul.
Cred asta chiar dacă mă înspăimântă, cred asta chiar și atunci când plâng.”
Charlotte m-a surprins.
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Sheer stubbornness kept me from quitting. This is no Jane Eyre. The translation from French was terrible and incomplete. It forces you to search for translations to phrases in the back of the book almost every page with no apparent reason why these phrases are left untranslated. This combined with the wordy, rambling, dramatic writing style make it a very difficult read. No wonder I had never heard about this one by her before.
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I don’t even know where to begin.
First off, this book only triple confirmed for me that Charlotte Brontë is the best author of all time. If she knew how to do anything, it’s rip out your heart but leave you begging for more.
Villette starts off super slow, and I mean SUPER slow. The first couple of chapters truly take their time setting up the story and the overall mood of the novel. And after 75 pages or so, when Lucy (the protagonist) is finally settled, the next 200 pages are only to showcase her mundane, everyday life. However, despite how tedious it may seem, I almost feel it was necessary to truly understand her character. Lucy seems to be an unreliable narrator. After being left an orphan and dealing with a lonely and tragic childhood (similar to Jane Eyre), Lucy grows up to be overly cynical, reserved, and hyper-independent. Rather than letting herself love, she puts up a guard in an attempt to shield herself from more heartbreak. She also, as the story teller, has a habit of leaving important details out. She only ever tells you half of the story, and assumes you don’t want to hear the rest. It leaves me to wonder…is Madame Beck really a shady heartless wench? Is Ginevra really a clingy and insensitive brat? Is M. Paul really an angry asshole? It is up to us to decide.
When Lucy finds herself crushing on the seemingly cheerful, kind, and humble childhood friend of hers, Dr. John, the pace starts to pick up. His true character is shown after he finds himself in a love triangle with two other women, NOT including Lucy. He is not actually a humble man, but rather too proud. He is not kind, but rather laughs at Lucy while she cries, after she comes to the realization that he will never love her. And he is not cheerful, but rather a careless and neglectful friend to Lucy. On the flip side, M. Paul comes off as this misogynistic and patronizing douchebag, which honestly, he pretty much is. He’s an insecure man with anger issues and probably undiagnosed bipolar disorder. However, after Lucy and Paul discover that they both have seen the nun that haunts the school grounds, their strained relationship develops into friendship, and hints at possibly more. Although Paul is riddled with poor qualities, he is also secretly kind. He is generous behind closed doors, without wanting praise. He values authenticity. He is not materialistic. However, I want to be clear that this is NOT a man to be idolized, and Charlotte even says so herself in the book. Paul sucks. But the comparison between him and Dr. John is riveting! An outwardly good man who actually sucks vs an externally awful man who is actually generous.
I do not necessarily love the idea of Lucy settling for a misogynistic asshole, but alas, it was 1853. And the second to last chapter is the best in the whole novel. Paul is about to leave on a 3 year voyage, but has left Lucy his house that he has redone for her so she can live independently and open her own school for girls (which is her dream!). He then professes his love for Lucy, and says he will remain faithful and wait for her. “Lucy, take my love. One day share my life. Be my dearest, first on earth.” She spends the next 3 years in bliss, building a life for herself. And on the VERY last page, with uncertain and ominous writing (in true Brontë style), we are left to ponder the possibility that Paul has drowned on his journey home to Lucy. 550 pages of build up just for the guy to (maybe) die! UGH.
I feel that in a way, we are meant to be on the same journey as Lucy. She does not often let people into her life, for fear of heartbreak. And what have we done as readers? We grew fond of the heinous M. Paul, only for him to die and break our hearts. Charlotte Brontë you wicked, brilliant woman!
I also love the idea of Brontë “sticking it to the man” in a way. Female protagonists at the time often needed to be married or killed at the end of their books in order to be published. She received criticism from many people, including her father, for needing a “happier” ending. I feel that her decision in giving us a finale of uncertainty, was her way of rebelling. Because we as readers know, similar to Jo’s marriage in Little Women, that Paul did in fact die. Instead of killing off Lucy, she said “fuck it” and killed off the man instead. Charlotte Brontë will always remain iconic.
First off, this book only triple confirmed for me that Charlotte Brontë is the best author of all time. If she knew how to do anything, it’s rip out your heart but leave you begging for more.
Villette starts off super slow, and I mean SUPER slow. The first couple of chapters truly take their time setting up the story and the overall mood of the novel. And after 75 pages or so, when Lucy (the protagonist) is finally settled, the next 200 pages are only to showcase her mundane, everyday life. However, despite how tedious it may seem, I almost feel it was necessary to truly understand her character. Lucy seems to be an unreliable narrator. After being left an orphan and dealing with a lonely and tragic childhood (similar to Jane Eyre), Lucy grows up to be overly cynical, reserved, and hyper-independent. Rather than letting herself love, she puts up a guard in an attempt to shield herself from more heartbreak. She also, as the story teller, has a habit of leaving important details out. She only ever tells you half of the story, and assumes you don’t want to hear the rest. It leaves me to wonder…is Madame Beck really a shady heartless wench? Is Ginevra really a clingy and insensitive brat? Is M. Paul really an angry asshole? It is up to us to decide.
When Lucy finds herself crushing on the seemingly cheerful, kind, and humble childhood friend of hers, Dr. John, the pace starts to pick up. His true character is shown after he finds himself in a love triangle with two other women, NOT including Lucy. He is not actually a humble man, but rather too proud. He is not kind, but rather laughs at Lucy while she cries, after she comes to the realization that he will never love her. And he is not cheerful, but rather a careless and neglectful friend to Lucy. On the flip side, M. Paul comes off as this misogynistic and patronizing douchebag, which honestly, he pretty much is. He’s an insecure man with anger issues and probably undiagnosed bipolar disorder. However, after Lucy and Paul discover that they both have seen the nun that haunts the school grounds, their strained relationship develops into friendship, and hints at possibly more. Although Paul is riddled with poor qualities, he is also secretly kind. He is generous behind closed doors, without wanting praise. He values authenticity. He is not materialistic. However, I want to be clear that this is NOT a man to be idolized, and Charlotte even says so herself in the book. Paul sucks. But the comparison between him and Dr. John is riveting! An outwardly good man who actually sucks vs an externally awful man who is actually generous.
I do not necessarily love the idea of Lucy settling for a misogynistic asshole, but alas, it was 1853. And the second to last chapter is the best in the whole novel. Paul is about to leave on a 3 year voyage, but has left Lucy his house that he has redone for her so she can live independently and open her own school for girls (which is her dream!). He then professes his love for Lucy, and says he will remain faithful and wait for her. “Lucy, take my love. One day share my life. Be my dearest, first on earth.” She spends the next 3 years in bliss, building a life for herself. And on the VERY last page, with uncertain and ominous writing (in true Brontë style), we are left to ponder the possibility that Paul has drowned on his journey home to Lucy. 550 pages of build up just for the guy to (maybe) die! UGH.
I feel that in a way, we are meant to be on the same journey as Lucy. She does not often let people into her life, for fear of heartbreak. And what have we done as readers? We grew fond of the heinous M. Paul, only for him to die and break our hearts. Charlotte Brontë you wicked, brilliant woman!
I also love the idea of Brontë “sticking it to the man” in a way. Female protagonists at the time often needed to be married or killed at the end of their books in order to be published. She received criticism from many people, including her father, for needing a “happier” ending. I feel that her decision in giving us a finale of uncertainty, was her way of rebelling. Because we as readers know, similar to Jo’s marriage in Little Women, that Paul did in fact die. Instead of killing off Lucy, she said “fuck it” and killed off the man instead. Charlotte Brontë will always remain iconic.
Devo essere sincera, non so perché continuo a portare avanti questo mio tormentato rapporto con Charlotte Brontë.
Ho letto tre dei suo quattro romanzi ormai, e in tutti è riuscita a scrivere personaggi che ho odiato profondamente.
Detto ciò, non ho odiato Lucy Snowe. Mi è parso tutto sommato un bel personaggio, una donna forte che decide del proprio destino e non ha come unico e solo obiettivo della sua vita il matrimonio o i soldi.
Il racconto è decisamente troppo pieno di riferimenti biblici e religiosi per i miei gusti, ma hanno perfettamente senso pensando alla protagonista e alla scrittrice.
E ora non mi resta che leggere anche Shirley, l'ultimo romanzo di Charlotte che ancora mi manca (viva il masochismo)
Ho letto tre dei suo quattro romanzi ormai, e in tutti è riuscita a scrivere personaggi che ho odiato profondamente.
Detto ciò, non ho odiato Lucy Snowe. Mi è parso tutto sommato un bel personaggio, una donna forte che decide del proprio destino e non ha come unico e solo obiettivo della sua vita il matrimonio o i soldi.
Il racconto è decisamente troppo pieno di riferimenti biblici e religiosi per i miei gusti, ma hanno perfettamente senso pensando alla protagonista e alla scrittrice.
E ora non mi resta che leggere anche Shirley, l'ultimo romanzo di Charlotte che ancora mi manca (viva il masochismo)
I have very mixed feelings about this one! On one hand, I absolutely ADORE Charlotte's writing because it is just so, so, so, SO beautiful. However, this novel started off being quite disjointed and confusing and I was often left puzzled by the randomness of the events and the varied pacing.
After reading [b:Charlotte Brontë: A Life|29598006|Charlotte Brontë A Life|Claire Harman|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1458677682s/29598006.jpg|45956188], I could clearly see the parallels between Villette and Charlotte's personal life. This book was practically an autobiography and in that sense, it was super different to Jane Eyre (which is my favourite book in the whole world). It wasn't an epic love story - it was realistic and depressing, but I LOVED how Charlotte portrayed depression in the novel, especially in a time when depression wasn't even a 'thing'. Charlotte was such a revolutionary and I can definitely see why people love this book and I can't wait to read her other work!
After reading [b:Charlotte Brontë: A Life|29598006|Charlotte Brontë A Life|Claire Harman|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1458677682s/29598006.jpg|45956188], I could clearly see the parallels between Villette and Charlotte's personal life. This book was practically an autobiography and in that sense, it was super different to Jane Eyre (which is my favourite book in the whole world). It wasn't an epic love story - it was realistic and depressing, but I LOVED how Charlotte portrayed depression in the novel, especially in a time when depression wasn't even a 'thing'. Charlotte was such a revolutionary and I can definitely see why people love this book and I can't wait to read her other work!