Tasks: Jane Eyre

Read the excerpt from Jane Eyre, then talk about the tasks with a partner. Write shared answers.

1. Sum up what happens in the excerpt in three sentences.

2. This passage mainly consists of dialogue. Does that make it harder for you to understand what is going on, or easier? Explain.

3. There is some description of the setting in the excerpt. Use the different passages and write a description of Thornfield.

4. What impression do you get of the relationship between Jane Eyre and Mr Rochester from the beginning of the passage?

5. Charlotte Brontë was a feminist. Do you see any indication of this in the excerpt?

6. The modernist author Virginia Woolf said the following about Charlotte Brontë:
   
   "We read Charlotte Brontë not for exquisite observation of character — her characters are vigorous and elementary; not for comedy — hers is grim and crude; not for a philosophic view of life — hers is that of a country parson’s daughter; but for her poetry."
   
   Study the language in the excerpt carefully: Can you find any examples of poetic language?

7. Did the passage make you want to read more of the novel?

Work with a partner, or in a group. Talk about the questions and write down shared answers.

1. In the beginning of the film, Jane Eyre is at her aunt’s house. How is she treated there?

2. Why is Jane sent away to school?

3. How is she and the other children treated at school?

4. Why does Jane come to Thornfield Hall?

5. What is Mr Rochester like?

6. Jane is there to be a governess to Adèle. Nothing explicit is said about Adèle’s mother, but what is hinted at?

7. Why do Jane and Mr Rochester decide to marry?

8. Why does Jane run away?

9. Jane is taken in by Diana, Mary, and St. John Eyre Rivers. How does that change her life?

10. St. John suggests that Jane should marry him and come to India as a missionary’s wife. Why does she refuse?

11. Jane returns to Thornfield hall. What has happened?

12. How does the film end?
    

A film adaptation is never the same as a novel. Changes have to be made to make the story fit to the new format. Research the story of the novel Jane Eyre and compare it to what happens in the film. You can, for example, use the summary found on Wikipedia. Link to Wikipedia article about Jane Eyre.

1. What has been changed in the adaptation?

2. What do you think is the reason these changes were made?

1. Write an analysis of the film Jane Eyre where you pay special attention to the way the characters are portrayed.

2. Write an analysis of the film Jane Eyre where you pay special attention to cinematic devices.

3. Write a text where you compare Jane Eyre to another film or novel that has a female heroine. Compare how the heroines are portrayed, and discuss whether the works should be regarded as feminist.

Discuss the following statements in a group. Do you agree or disagree?

1. "It is unfortunate to regard Jane Eyre as a romantic story, because the relationship between Jane and Mr Rochester is not healthy. If it happened today we would call it a #MeToo scandal".

2. "Jane Eyre is an updated version of the fairy tale 'Beauty and the Beast'."

3. "Jane Eyre forgives her aunt for the horrible things she did to her, mistreating her when she lived with her, sending her to an awful school, and depriving her of knowing her uncle. Forgiving all that makes Jane seem like a doormat".

4. "Why do romantic stories always make it seem like a woman only has a choice between two men? Why cannot Jane have a third option, rather than running back to Mr Rochester after turning down St. John Rivers's offer of marriage?"