Reviews tagging 'Colonisation'

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

53 reviews

annapox's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Ableism, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Infidelity, Mental illness, Racism, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Racial slurs, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Antisemitism, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Colonisation

edesia_guest's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad slow-paced

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

4.0

I studied this for Uni and it is brilliant, the plot is heavy but amazing to analyse. But Bertha, or Antoinette, is ignored. To take Spivak’s criticism this book is an allegory of colonisation and it is sad that her story is ignored and erased under Jane and Rochester’s love. While we need to understand the time the author wrote in, this criticism still remains when modern readers view this. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Deadnaming, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Colonisation, and Classism

Minor: Body shaming, Bullying, and Death of parent

uchuflowerzone's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Child abuse, Confinement, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, and Suicide

Moderate: Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Racism, Forced institutionalization, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Xenophobia, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

ifweweresorrows's review against another edition

medium-paced

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

2.25

I went into Jane Eyre with surface level information about it and I was so confused about what was so appealing about Mr. Rochester.

I think Jane is dumb for going back to him when he basically told her that he was going to ‘chain her up’ with jewellery. He is by far the most unlikable character I’ve ever come across in a book

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism

Moderate: Ableism, Confinement, Abandonment, Colonisation, and Classism

knottmad's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

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

2.0

This book is very well written, but the themes and the moral of the story is so awful. It's better to just Google best quotes from this book than read it.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Ableism, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Racism, Sexism, Stalking, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

memorable's review against another edition

emotional mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Religious bigotry, Colonisation, and Classism

Minor: Confinement

rebeccaxpaige's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark hopeful mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

Moderate: Death, Emotional abuse, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Colonisation, and Classism

veganecurrywurst's review against another edition

dark emotional slow-paced

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

5.0

“I am no bird; and no net ensnares me: I am a free human being with an independent will.”

Jane Eyre truly revolutionized fiction and paved the way for modern day literature. Most books were not  written in first person perspective, but Charlotte Brontë used it to create a sense of intemacy. 
Jane Eyre tells the story of a female protagonist looking for agency and meaning. 

“Do you think, because I am poor, obscure, plain and little, I am soulless and heartless? You think wrong! - I have as much soul as you, - and full as much heart! And if God had gifted me with some beauty and much wealth, I should have made it as hard for you to leave me, as it is now for me to leave you!”

Jane Eyre is active and fights back and stands by her values. 

“I can live alone, if self-respect, and circumstances require me so to do. I need not sell my soul to buy bliss. I have an inward treasure born with me, which can keep me alive if all extraneous delights should be withheld, or offered only at a price I cannot afford to give.” 

And although I am not a big fan of Rochester (

I feel terrible for his 1. Wife

), I do enjoy their lovestory.

“Every atom of your flesh is as dear to me as my own: in pain and sickness it would still be dear.”

It's just so beautifully written. 

“If all the world hated you and believed you wicked, while your own conscience approved of you and absolved you from guilt, you would not be without friends.” 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Death, Infidelity, Death of parent, and Colonisation

Minor: Suicide and Fire/Fire injury

downsophialane's review against another edition

challenging emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

How does one even review Jane Eyre? It's lush and atmospheric, creating the vibes and tropes that have been so central to my favourite genre for two hundred years. If there's anyone left in the world who doesn't know the big revelation at the end of this book, I won't spoil it but... yeah. Mr R. does some rough stuff in this book, and honestly, so does Bronte, considering who is reduced to a literary device. On that note... It's also pretty racist. So much phrenology, Lottie, why?
So, okay, it's complicated. There are reasons to avoid it. But there are also reasons that you may be interested, particularly if you're a romance reader. If Pride and Prejudice is the mother of modern romance, Jane Eyre is the cool younger auntie.
I would highly recommend podcasts Whoa!mance's Public Access Read-a-Long and Hot and Bothered "On Eyre" series for audio reading companions. 

💛💛💛💛

TO TEACH?  🍎
Jane Eyre is delicious for the Gothic, of course. I've been assigned Jane and R's first meeting for year 10. We'll see how that goes (honestly, that meeting is real sexy and I feel like my colleague who made this decision... maybe didn't register how sexy it is...  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Fire/Fire injury, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Racism, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, and Classism

Minor: Racial slurs and Suicidal thoughts

mells224's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative inspiring sad slow-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Religious bigotry, and Colonisation

Minor: Fire/Fire injury