Jane Eyre: An Autobiography by Charlotte Bronte

​I was given this book when I was ten and was drawn to it because the protagonist was also ten when she started her story. Jane Eyre was an orphan and she suffered terrible abuse from her relatives, including the horror of 'the red room' that shook me to the core.

This is a coming of age story that tells how a young girl deals with being unloved and unvalued with themes of social class, gender inequality, oppression and finding your place in the world. She escapes the cruelty she receives from her relatives only to find more hardship at school and the death of her friend shocked me so much that I had to re-read the passage several times until it sank in. 

The dominant theme however, is self respect. Jane learns to value herself without making any sacrifice or harm. 'I care for myself. The more solitary, the more friendless, the more unsustained I am, the more I will respect myself.' I like her resolve, her strength and the rebel I saw in her when I was ten. Still do of course.

The story is set in a number of fictional places in the north of England, but the descriptions of the landscape fit in with Bronte's own life. Areas show the typical moors and countryside of Yorkshire as well as the manor house based on North Lees Hall in the Peak District in Derbyshire.

The writing style is typical of the times with long sentences and detailed descriptions, plus many religious references and Victorian values. Narrated in the first person, the thoughts and philosophies explain how Jane's life is shaped by those in power and how she has to find a way to come to terms with it. There is a gothic atmosphere with some supernatural elements, a moody broodiness and a fair bit of gazing at the moon. Added to that, the mysterious and eerie architecture of the grand buildings with long, winding corridors and a 'cold gallery' all contribute to that gothic tone. Not forgetting the dark secret the love of her life keeps.

Jane Eyre is one of the memorable and favourite books from my childhood. Not for the romance - I had no interest in that at all - but the experiences of her childhood. It was a very chilling read that has stayed with me,

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Originally published using the pen name Currer Bell, by Smith, Elder & Co., in Cornhill, London on 19 October 1847, and published in three volumes. Many other editions have been published since.

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Wild and Windswept: Moors and Peaks ​​