<< 1 >>
Rating: 
Summary: A portrait of the artist as Lucy Snowe
Review: "Villette" is a more complex, mature novel than "Jane Eyre" and, to many readers, a more unsatisfying one. Unlike "Jane Eyre", "Villette" is no Cinderella tale, and there is no Rochester to stir the heroine's -- and the reader's --emotions. In "Villette", Bronte gives us Lucy Snowe, whom she resembled in many ways: plain, prim, no-nonsense, practical to a fault, and suffering the pains of unrequited love. Unlike the happy ending which delighted us in "Jane Eyre", Lucy finds a hope of happiness at last with M. Paul Emanuel, only to have her prospects shipwrecked literally and figuratively at the end of the book. Many readers have a problem with Bronte's liberal use of French throughout the book which disrupts the narrative, and her forays into Gothic romanticism, which seem contrived and artificial. A more serious problem, for this reviewer, is Bronte's insularity and her narrow-minded frame of reference which rejects anything un-English and un-Protestant. Even with these flaws, "Villette" is a deep, thought-provoking portrayal of the pain of lost illusions.
Rating: 
Summary: Villette's first Amazon review?
Review: I was surprised to be the first to comment on this deeply felt work by Charlotte Bronte. Although Jane Eyre will always be my sentimental favorite, I agree with the many critics who see Villette as Charlotte Bronte's best work. Villette's heroine is the lonely and unlovely Lucy Snowe who struggles to free herself from sorrowful past memories of which the details the reader is kept uninformed, and to quell her natural desires for a richer life- full of love, friendship, stimulation, and enjoyment- which she believes is hopelessly out of her reach. Anyone who has ever struggled with loneliness will sympathize with Lucy, whose aloneness Bronte conveys with heartbreaking pathos.
This novel may be a hard read for some who are accustomed to lighter fare. It is certainly not a book that can be read in a day but one that must be slowly enjoyed over a period of time, preferably with a cup of tea.....
Rating:
Summary: Villette (Bantam Classic)
Review: If you like Jane Austin, hang on to your hat. Charlotte Bronte's book is similar in that she has about 30 well-described characters for you to memorize in the first 50 pages, presenting a period of time spanning several years, with lots of plot twists and foreshadowing, but this is no lightweight reading. The struggle between selfish desire and true sacrificial lovingkindness is going to tear you to the quick. She survives naivite because she is willing to do what is right regardless of personal suffering. Lucy is a real hero for those of us who want desperately to do what is right above merely "acquiring stuff" or "being accepted". The ending is not satisfying. Lucy knows that deep contentment won't be found in this lifetime, only in Christ's presence when this corrupt and temporary body finally rests, and goodness of heart is rewarded.In this edition, the introduction is helpful, but wordy. You will have to know French, and lots of it, but there are notes on obscure references.
Rating:
Summary: Not as good as Jane Eyre, but then again...
Review: Who can compare to that masterpiece of a novel? Villette was a literary masterpiece as well, but in its own way. Villette was more a tale of one woman's finding of herself than a love story. The heroine, Lucy Snowe, lived her entire life under the stereotypes of each of the people who knew her. (i.e. John Graham Bretton, Mrs. Bretton, Ginevra Fanshawe, Paulina Home/de Bassompierre) She had to realize who she truly was and not who she appeared to her friends. Perhaps it took a while for the plot to develop, but when she discovered who she was and who knew her best (can't tell you who that is), the genius of the novel came to life. It won't be as breathtaking as Jane Eyre, but nor will it be a disappointment. Villette is an opportunity to take off the mask and be who we really are.
<< 1 >>
|
