Why Read the Classics? 'Jane Eyre'

by Michael Hartland

Why should we read ‘Jane Eyre’ today?

In my previous post on classics of English literature, I celebrated the many reasons why reading classics is so important.  Today’s post focuses on Charlotte Bronte’s classic novel Jane Eyre.

Here is a dramatic extract from the novel:

‘I hardly know whether I had slept or not after this musing; at any rate, I started wide awake on hearing a vague murmur, peculiar and lugubrious, which sounded, I thought, just above me. I wished I had kept my candle burning: the night was drearily dark; my spirits were depressed. I rose and sat up in bed, listening. The sound was hushed.

I tried again to sleep; but my heart beat anxiously: my inward tranquillity was broken. The clock, far down in the hall, struck two. Just then it seemed my chamber-door was touched; as if fingers had swept the panels in groping a way along the dark gallery outside. I said, “Who is there?” Nothing answered. I was chilled with fear.’

‘Jane Eyre’ is full of drama and celebrates resilience as well as human love.  It’s a novel that time and time again I use with students of all ages to inspire them and to improve their English.

To find out more about our tuition services, visit our About page, and via this link you can also book a FREE 30 MINUTE INTRODUCTORY SESSION.