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The Memoirs of Edward Rochester
Revised and Updated October 2013 The Memoirs of Edward Rochester. Imagine being able to look into the mind of the leading male character in the classic book, Jane Eyre. Charlotte Bronte published her classic work in 1847. Jane Eyre quickly became a top seller with its moodiness and mystery. The shock revelation two thirds of the way through the story is epic, and still astounds people today who do not know the plot. Edward Rochester is not your common hero in a novel. In fact he is hardly a hero at all. Rochester is rude and obnoxious to all people who cross his path. The idea that he could woo a poor young orphan girl is quite ridiculous. He is prepared to throw away common morality and custom in his quest to win over Jane Eyre. This is very hard to understand, even for many modern readers. Despite this, Charlotte Bronte manages to achieve this feat smoothly and cleverly through strong characters and a great story. Bronte was quite brilliant in her writing of her original and unique, classic novel. But the story is told in the first person of Jane Eyre herself. This works very well and the book is completely coherent as it stands. But many readers are left wondering about the thoughts of the mysterious and strange Edward Rochester. How did he become the man we find in the pages of Jane Eyre? Further, how can he justify his behaviour? Some of the dialogue In Jane Eyre is hard to comprehend for some readers, because you can't imagine Rochester's point of view and his frame of reference. How could he say some of the things he says and yet still profess to love Jane? The Memoirs of Edward Rochester attempts to answer these questions by writing in the first person from his point of view. You can see into his mind and know what he is thinking. Many scenes have Rochester giving a running commentary to the major conversations with Jane. This book is written mainly in diary form. It explains the backdrop of Rochester's life and how he came to be as he is in the story. There are numerous new scenes that help to explain how he thinks and behaves as a person. Many of Bronte's original scenes are re-written but with a new twist. For fans of the original novel, Jane Eyre, this book will fill in many of the gaps that Charlotte Bronte left in the story. You will see why Edward Rochester said the words he said and why he said them. More than this you will believe in the original story even more. It will make more sense to you. For casual readers and literature students alike, this is a valuable resource to a better understanding of Charlotte Bronte's original work. You will understand the sweep of the story and the changes in Jane Eyre and Edward Rochester more.
205 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 26, 2011
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
October 23, 2017
3.5 stars
While the author admits using much of Charlotte Brontë's words for discussions between Mr. Rochester and Jane Eyre he does add a sentence here or there to add clarity from Mr. Rochester's POV, to his reasons behind his actions and his emotional responses in this story.
However Jane does not enter the story for almost half of the book. I have a quibble with how the book is presented. The author in using Rochester's POV states, “I first considered writing these memoirs when I married Mrs. Rochester... I have told my story at first to John and Mary. Later my dearest Jane took up the pen to complete the work. So vivid are the memories, that I have often written them as if I am reliving them once again.” But as you read the pages giving the history of not only his business affairs abroad and in Jamaica but also his history with the Mason family you read of vivid day-to-day conversations and events. Thus I challenge the use of the word "memoir" as the book is more a journal told as it happened.
And while I have read Jane Eyre at least 8 times and have always wondered at how Mr. Rochester was hoodwinked into marrying Bertha Mason, I am not satisfied with the explanation here...either. Maybe Charlotte Brontë wanted it to remain somewhat a mystery. I guess we must swallow the practice of marrying for money and connections here. We all know that there is a decided lack of morals in Mr. Rochester's shaking his hand at fate.
The Edward Rochester of both canon and this story seems at times to have a split personality. He is gruff and off-putting, but then gentle and protective. He certainly is a man of intrigue in learning to hide secrets and proceeding in a manner to keep such hidden. He perceives that certain of his household staff seem to have figured out his secret but he is naïve in thinking that he will forever hide the crime of bigamy - does he expect that Miss Eyre will accept her status as his mistress if the truth does not come out before the ceremony? These questions are not exactly ever answered by either author. But that is part of the angst within.
I did not find myself making the emotional connection with Mr. Rochester while reading from his POV as I did when reading Jane Eyre from her POV. I have read other classics rewritten by men to give the male POV. Others have been better at drawing me into that side of the story. Not so - here.
While the author admits using much of Charlotte Brontë's words for discussions between Mr. Rochester and Jane Eyre he does add a sentence here or there to add clarity from Mr. Rochester's POV, to his reasons behind his actions and his emotional responses in this story.
However Jane does not enter the story for almost half of the book. I have a quibble with how the book is presented. The author in using Rochester's POV states, “I first considered writing these memoirs when I married Mrs. Rochester... I have told my story at first to John and Mary. Later my dearest Jane took up the pen to complete the work. So vivid are the memories, that I have often written them as if I am reliving them once again.” But as you read the pages giving the history of not only his business affairs abroad and in Jamaica but also his history with the Mason family you read of vivid day-to-day conversations and events. Thus I challenge the use of the word "memoir" as the book is more a journal told as it happened.
And while I have read Jane Eyre at least 8 times and have always wondered at how Mr. Rochester was hoodwinked into marrying Bertha Mason, I am not satisfied with the explanation here...either. Maybe Charlotte Brontë wanted it to remain somewhat a mystery. I guess we must swallow the practice of marrying for money and connections here. We all know that there is a decided lack of morals in Mr. Rochester's shaking his hand at fate.
The Edward Rochester of both canon and this story seems at times to have a split personality. He is gruff and off-putting, but then gentle and protective. He certainly is a man of intrigue in learning to hide secrets and proceeding in a manner to keep such hidden. He perceives that certain of his household staff seem to have figured out his secret but he is naïve in thinking that he will forever hide the crime of bigamy - does he expect that Miss Eyre will accept her status as his mistress if the truth does not come out before the ceremony? These questions are not exactly ever answered by either author. But that is part of the angst within.
I did not find myself making the emotional connection with Mr. Rochester while reading from his POV as I did when reading Jane Eyre from her POV. I have read other classics rewritten by men to give the male POV. Others have been better at drawing me into that side of the story. Not so - here.
December 28, 2014
A horrible injustice to the rich legacy of Jane Eyre. Edward Rochester is a brooding, haunted, charismatic, mysterious man, not a whiny spoiled brat who kicks his dog, owns slaves, insults his servants and neighbors, and considers marrying rich bitch, Blanche Ingram.
The Edward Rochester in this novel is completely unsuitable for Jane Eyre. The man portrayed here would turn a great gothic novel into a melodramatic horror story. Ken Jones is such an amateur he doesn't even get the dates right. He says Edward Rochester married Bertha when he was 26 but Edward is married to Bertha for 15 years. When he meets Jane Eyre, he's 37, which means he was married at 22. There are many other basic mistakes which I won't bother to detail.
Horribly insulting to fans of the original book.
The Edward Rochester in this novel is completely unsuitable for Jane Eyre. The man portrayed here would turn a great gothic novel into a melodramatic horror story. Ken Jones is such an amateur he doesn't even get the dates right. He says Edward Rochester married Bertha when he was 26 but Edward is married to Bertha for 15 years. When he meets Jane Eyre, he's 37, which means he was married at 22. There are many other basic mistakes which I won't bother to detail.
Horribly insulting to fans of the original book.
April 19, 2012
Not good. Edward seems vapid and is unrecognisable at times (for example: can you see Bronte's EFR kicking Pilot? Repeatedly? Or seriously contemplating marrying Blanche?), dates and facts are wrong quite often and the editing is horrible (spelling mistakes and switches between past and present tense). As a big fan of the original Jane Eyre I couldn't enjoy this one. Read Jane Eyre's Husband - The Life of Edward Rochester instead. It's very obvious that book is about the same Edward CB is writing about, it's very detailed and all the facts are accurate.
February 8, 2013
A pollution of the eyes. That is the best way to describe this book which claims to tell the story of Edward Rochester from the classic Jane Eyre. Just dreadful. The writing was execrable, the language anachronistic, the historic details...wait WHAT historical details? He turned the marvelously brooding, interestingly flawed character of Rochester into a whining spoilt brat. If you have this on your waiting list, BURN IT!
July 10, 2016
Having read Jane Eyre a few times before, this one was such an interesting read that showed a different angle to the whole story - Edward Rochester's point of view. I hadn't expected great quality of writing, but it was a pleasant surprise as I found it was in a very similar style and tone as the original Jane Eyre and could be considered a nice addition, nice side-story of it. Much less wieldy and much more to the point and picking mostly the important or crucial scenes, this is quite an excellent book that can only enjoyed in times like today when many re-work is being attempted to classic stories. Thoroughly enjoyed and reminds me of all the pleasures and pains of Jane Eyre story.
January 3, 2013
interesting take on the other side of Jane Eyre
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews