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A review by amyvl93
Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys
dark
mysterious
slow-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
3.0
<i>Wide Sargasso Sea</i> has been on my to-read list for ages as I've always been intrigued by this 'prequel' to <i>Jane Eyre</i> which focuses on Bertha, or the mad woman in attic.
This novel opens in Jamaica shortly after slavery has been abolished in the British Empire - Antoinette lives with her mother and disabled brother in a decaying house as they have fallen into poverty after losing their main income. Her mother remarries a wealthy English man, and shortly after the family are chased from their home by emancipated slaves, angry that wealth remains concentrated with white colonisers - and Antoinette's story largely declines from there.
Far from being the apparently romantic lead of Jane Eyre, in this novel Mr Rochester emotionally manipulates Antoinette (who he renames Bertha), allowing himself to have his opinions of her twisted by rumours of her mental ill-health and close relationship with a local woman he believes to practice black magic. This felt slightly vindicating as someone who was never a huge fan of him - and speaks to the misogynistic experience of women being married off to men who hardly know them.
Rhys establishes the sense of place really well although I did find the pace dipped in and out all over the place - there were times that this felt like a fever dream in a not so great way. Outside of Antoinette, her mother Annette and at a push Rochester, there's not great character development here either - the supporting characters feel very supporting and is some cases more like stereotypes.
This novel opens in Jamaica shortly after slavery has been abolished in the British Empire - Antoinette lives with her mother and disabled brother in a decaying house as they have fallen into poverty after losing their main income. Her mother remarries a wealthy English man, and shortly after the family are chased from their home by emancipated slaves, angry that wealth remains concentrated with white colonisers - and Antoinette's story largely declines from there.
Far from being the apparently romantic lead of Jane Eyre, in this novel Mr Rochester emotionally manipulates Antoinette (who he renames Bertha), allowing himself to have his opinions of her twisted by rumours of her mental ill-health and close relationship with a local woman he believes to practice black magic. This felt slightly vindicating as someone who was never a huge fan of him - and speaks to the misogynistic experience of women being married off to men who hardly know them.
Rhys establishes the sense of place really well although I did find the pace dipped in and out all over the place - there were times that this felt like a fever dream in a not so great way. Outside of Antoinette, her mother Annette and at a push Rochester, there's not great character development here either - the supporting characters feel very supporting and is some cases more like stereotypes.