The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie

Rating:
Summary: An ingenious little book
Review: "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" is the first book I read by this famous Scottish writer, and right after I finished, I searched the web to learn that Dame Spark has played an important role in the development of trends in modern, contemporary British literature. Due to the heavyweight nature of the reading matter I recently devoured, I decided to buy the shortest book by Muriel Spark, and it turned out to be one of her most important ones, with a charming literary archetype, the lovable Miss Brodie. At first, I had thought to myself - what an amusing little book! - but when I finished the novel, I had quite a different set of perceptions, although I still think that the essence of this this book is more of anecdotal humor than of anything else. A perfect, encyclopedic example of how, in literary fiction, delicious entertainment may be successfully married with profound philosophical issues.

Only a small subset of pupils are lucky to be educated, and prepared for life by teachers with a true calling, like Miss Brodie. Teaching is an occupation like any other, yet it's the most instrumental for shaping the personality and outlook of a young human being. Some parents are good teachers, that's their duty after all, though again only a small subset of parents are the true mentors worth their salt. Yet it's the school and then the university, that has enormous impact on us. Being a teenager means to find oneself in a constant, continuous trauma of discovery, where all kinds of events and situations force us to make decisions, to make judgments, to distinguish the right from the wrong, and last but not least, what to do with one's life. So many of us wander aimlessly because there is no one who might give us a helping hand, who might nurse the blooming talents we might have, and so we drift through life and wonder why some are luckier than others, or do not wonder at all, which is even worse. Young people need some authority to look up to; not the authority in the authoritarian sense, but in the classical, ancient meaning of this word. Education at its best is not a dead transmission of edification, but an active development of the soul and the mind, a guided development of culture, where a sensitive young person learns to not be afraid to evaluate the world around her.

Miss Brodie had only a short-lived contact with a small set of young girls, but she managed to influence their whole life, whether the initial enchantment with the mentor lasted forever or not. "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" is a satire, thus it should not be taken literally, in case you were so inclined. I have been lucky to have been guided by mentors, and I will never forget their lessons, although most of them have been implicit, and then many of them understood only after a long time. This novel means the world to me, because if there is one thing I was born to do, it's teaching, and teaching in a highly personal way. There is little that can make me more happy than a contribution to someone's young life, a devotion of one's prime, to quote the ingenious Dame Muriel Spark.

Rating:
Summary: a reader
Review: After reading the novel The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie I felt that at times it was somewhat interesting but mostly uneventful. Just as the book would take a turn that would get my attention it seemed like Spark found a way to bore me,which made this a very hard novel to finish.
The main idea of the book was well established and easy to understand. Miss Jean Brodie a teacher at an private school, was simply trying to "relive" her prime again through several eleven year old girls. She picked six girls and tried to mold them into "perfect" young women or as she called them "the creme de la creme." She taught these six girls how women were to speak, walk, talk and act. Although later in life the girls realized that Miss Brodie had taught them a life of make-believe and that in the real world that was not how people acted at all.
At the beginning this book seemed very interesting but that quickly changed and there was no reason to read on. I feel that Spark did a horrible job explaining important details in the novel that would paint a picture and make the reader feel apart of the book. Also Spark had a way with being able to go on and on about pointless details which in my eyes did not make the book more exiting it just made each page drag. Also Spark kept jumping from one year to another then back to the previous year which did not do anything except frustrate me. Also the characters are unreal and misunderstood throughout the novel. Miss Jean Brodie was sought to be an idol at the beginning of the book but as the novel went on she was actually trying to fix all her mistakes and imperfections through her students. And as far as the other girls, they were not fully explained and the little information that was presented was repeated over and over again.
Overall I think that the novel The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie is not one I would recommend. It is not a horrible novel but the way everything was explained did not satisfy me and was boring. At times I did think the novel was going to pick up and change directions but Spark gave away the ending less than half way through the book which made it pointless to read on.

Rating:
Summary: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
Review: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie is about a young unorthodox teacher and her special but ultimately different relationship with six of her students. The story is set in Edinburgh around the 1930's. It mostly takes place in the school where Miss Jean Brodie is a teacher but in the least sence of the meaning.

Miss Jean Brodie is a woman in her prime and has been many places that follow with dramatic stories. She lives her life through six girls. The girls are know to everyone as "The Brodie Set." Miss Jean Brodie picked the six girls and they soon became her favorites.

Even though Miss Jean Brodie lives her life through the girls she taught them to grow up to be and do what they believe. She teaches them about art, love, and how to be a proper woman. She tends to demonstrate it as well. Miss Jean Brodie is ultimately a unique woman. She encourages the girls to become sexually active and tells them stories of the love of her life. Miss Jean Brodie would have them over for tea, accompany them for walks, and take them to plays.

The head mistress of the school despises Miss Jean Brodie and is willing to do anything to get rid of her but she needs a reason. The book goes through the lives of the girls from when they were young and in their prime until they are older and no longer associate with Miss Jean Brodie. The turning point of the story is that Miss Jean Brodie gets fired because of one of her precious girls.

Overall the book was slightly boring but still satisfying. The book reflects betrayl, fitting in, relationships, rebellions, and love. I would recommend this book to others.

Rating:
Summary: An ingenious little book
Review: "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" is the first book I read by this famous Scottish writer, and right after I finished, I searched the web to learn that Dame Spark has played an important role in the development of trends in modern, contemporary British literature. Due to the heavyweight nature of the reading matter I recently devoured, I decided to buy the shortest book by Muriel Spark, and it turned out to be one of her most important ones, with a charming literary archetype, the lovable Miss Brodie. At first, I had thought to myself - what an amusing little book! - but when I finished the novel, I had quite a different set of perceptions, although I still think that the essence of this this book is more of anecdotal humor than of anything else. A perfect, encyclopedic example of how, in literary fiction, delicious entertainment may be successfully married with profound philosophical issues.

Only a small subset of pupils are lucky to be educated, and prepared for life by teachers with a true calling, like Miss Brodie. Teaching is an occupation like any other, yet it's the most instrumental for shaping the personality and outlook of a young human being. Some parents are good teachers, that's their duty after all, though again only a small subset of parents are the true mentors worth their salt. Yet it's the school and then the university, that has enormous impact on us. Being a teenager means to find oneself in a constant, continuous trauma of discovery, where all kinds of events and situations force us to make decisions, to make judgments, to distinguish the right from the wrong, and last but not least, what to do with one's life. So many of us wander aimlessly because there is no one who might give us a helping hand, who might nurse the blooming talents we might have, and so we drift through life and wonder why some are luckier than others, or do not wonder at all, which is even worse. Young people need some authority to look up to; not the authority in the authoritarian sense, but in the classical, ancient meaning of this word. Education at its best is not a dead transmission of edification, but an active development of the soul and the mind, a guided development of culture, where a sensitive young person learns to not be afraid to evaluate the world around her.

Miss Brodie had only a short-lived contact with a small set of young girls, but she managed to influence their whole life, whether the initial enchantment with the mentor lasted forever or not. "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" is a satire, thus it should not be taken literally, in case you were so inclined. I have been lucky to have been guided by mentors, and I will never forget their lessons, although most of them have been implicit, and then many of them understood only after a long time. This novel means the world to me, because if there is one thing I was born to do, it's teaching, and teaching in a highly personal way. There is little that can make me more happy than a contribution to someone's young life, a devotion of one's prime, to quote the ingenious Dame Muriel Spark.

Rating:
Summary: Here's why you should read this book
Review: This book offers many things that are appealing: a female protagonist (flawed, like the rest of us), somewhat complex, young female supporting characters, feminist undercurrents, and psychological delvings into the female mind, particularly in the 1930's. It is charming when Miss Brodie plays golf with her "set," or has them for tea. On the other hand, her love of Hitler and Mussolini is stupifying; one realizes the magnitude of her power over the young minds of her students.

As a teacher myself, I have witnessed teachers who have this same mentality, a sort-of god-complex, whereby the students become their fascisti...it is highly self-serving. But when I was done with this novel, I didn't know what to think. I didn't like Sandy or Jean Brodie. It hardly mattered what became of any of them in the end. All their efforts, too, were highly self-serving. I'm not sure what this says of the female psyche, if anything -- I'm not sure if this novel does a perfect job of helping its readers draw any conclusions about the matter. This is why I give the novel four instead of five stars.

Finally, in part because of the anachronistic telling of events, one ends up just noticing Spark's literary style (which, ironically, is highly self-serving).

Rating:
Summary: An underrated classic
Review: This clever satire is unforgettable--if you get into it and let it work its magic. Miss Brodie is not to be taken at face value; the members of her "set" start out admiring her and then gradually find out her dark side as they come of age, move away from her, and even turn against her and betray her--and we can understand why.

Rating:
Summary: The Prime of Muriel Spark
Review: When I went into my school's library to pick out an independent reading book, I asked my librarian for some recommendations. I showed her my list and right off the bat she picked out The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark. She said it was a beautiful book and so interesting that she could not put it down. I was skeptical until I found it and saw that it wasn't very long. I used to love reading, but I always found the recommended books (especially the ones on the reading list) exceedingly boring.

I started reading this book and I immediately connected with the young girls' love for their teacher and their naive views of life. I wasn't expecting these girls to speak of issues such as sex and love. They seemed to be quite interested in their teacher's love life.

The setting of this book is mainly within the school where Miss Brodie teaches. Throughout this book Miss Brodie is said to be in her "prime" which I didn't really quite catch on to until later in the novel...... I didn't see a huge turning point, or any climax whatsoever. The book seemed to talk about the lives of the girls while they were young, and eventually in their own prime. It also shows these girls while they are older and no longer talk to Miss Jean Brodie. ..This book was an excellent read and I was very surprised with its turnout. It is the perfect book for any woman.

Rating:
Summary: Not what I expected
Review: When I went into my school's library to pick out an independent reading book, I asked my librarian for some advice. I showed her my list and right off the bat she picked out The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark. She said it was a beautiful book and so interesting she could not put it down. I wasn't sold completely until I found it and saw that it wasn't very long. I used to love reading, but recently I had found it dull, especially with the exceedingly boring books one usually finds on recommended reading lists. I started reading this book and I immdediately connected with the young girl's connection with their teacher and their naive views of life. I wasn't expecting these girls to speak of issues such as sex and love. They seemed to be quite interested in their teacher's love life. The setting of this book is mainly within the school where Miss Brodie teaches. Throughout this book Miss Brodie is said to be in her "prime" which I didn't really quite catch on to until later in the novel. Miss Brodie's class is pretty much the dream class of any young female student. Miss Brodie teaches what she, herself, feels is important and not necessarily the curriculum which they were supposed to teach. She speaks of her experiences and interesting topics for young girls in the 1930s. Soon enough Miss Brodie picks out her favorites, six girls that they refer to as "The Brodie Set." Miss Brodie's life is revolved around these girls. She teaches them what is important in a young lady's life. How to be a proper woman, the arts, and of course, love. In the beginning of the book, the girls have a naive view of sex. They would often say things that were very negative towards this act and they stated that they would never do it themselves. They often wondered if their beloved Miss Brodie has ever performed this act and they decided that she didn't, because it would be degrading to her beauty and stature. Later on, Miss Brodie encourages the girls to become sexually active and tells them all of the romance in her life and stories of her true love. She always hinted that she'd had sexual intercourse, but proclaimed that she hadn't. Miss Brodie would also take them to different theatrical performances and teach them about the great artists, and how art was not only drawing, but writing and poetry. Up until this point, I hadn't figured out what the plot of the story actually was. I didn't see a huge turning point, or any climax whatsoever. The book seemed to talk about the lives of the girls while they were young, and eventually in their own prime. It also shows these girls while they are older and they no longer talk to Miss Jean Brodie. The huge turning point of this story is when Miss Brodie gets fired because of one of her own girls in her "Brodie Set." This book was an excellent read and I was very surprised with its turnout. It is the perfect book for any woman.

Rating:
Summary: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
Review: I feel that The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie written by Muriel Spark is a "good" novel. It is not a spectacular story and it is not a horrible story either. For me, the novel was simply satisfying.

The plot is not outrageously exciting. The novel tells a story of a far-reaching teacher at a private girls school who is looked down upon by her superiors. She keys into the lives of a select number of students to try and broaden their horizons, and make them the "crème de la crème". The climax of the plot is fuzzy. The story had many ups and downs, but nothing extreme that sticks out in my memory. For me the novel was on the verge of boring.

The novel tended to drag in some sections, especially in the first two chapters. These chapters take an abnormally long time to introduce the characters and the setting. Spark takes plenty of time to piece together these aspects for the reader. This was slightly frustrating for me. It takes a while for the novel to really pick up and become interesting. Spark is incredibly detailed throughout the novel making it boring for me during some parts, but mostly her descriptive writing worked to her advantage to paint a picture in the readers mind.

Spark did a wonderful job of developing her characters and weaving their lives together throughout the novel. As the story developed I felt that I was growing and learning with the characters. The story followed the lives of six schoolgirls from the age of twelve to adulthood and the influence of their radical teacher and friend Miss Jean Brodie. Being a female I might be able to relate to and be more interested in the novel than others.

Overall The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie was slightly boring and redundant, but still a satisfying read.

Rating:
Summary: she sure likes telling us she is in her prime
Review: Miss Brodie is a school teacher in 1930s Scotland, and she has selected 6 girls as her "creme de la creme" to whom she "dedicates her prime." We are told early on that one of the girls will betray her in the end -- who, what, how, why, and to whom is what the rest of the book is about.

Brodie is not that great though -- I thought she would be like Mary Poppins but she is selfish and involves the girls in her illicit love affairs between the art teacher and the choir master. She also says things against the other female teachers to the girls -- who are between aged 12 and 15 throughout this book. This behavior is unprofessional and illegal, frankly. It's gross. I started to be glad she was betrayed! Even if she was in her prime! You really have to wonder about an adult woman who has no grown female friends and makes 6 girls hang out with her married boyfriend. Gross.