Who was Heathcliff?

The Brussels Brontë Group has written the more on the events they organised for Charlotte Brontë's birthday weekend. This time, Maureen Peeck writes about the reading of Villette that took place at the end of Charlotte's birthday.

After our meal on Saturday night it was time for some more Villette; during our walks Derek Blyth, our excellent guide, had arranged for Val to read appropriate passages highlighting once again how closely the setting of the novel reflected aspects of Charlotte Brontë’s stay in Brussels. This was an excellent idea and indeed turned out to enhance the theme chosen for the evening readings.This theme was the growth of the relationship between Lucy Snowe and Paul Emanuel. Selina Busch and Brian Speak were the readers and they rose to the occasion. I introduced the passages and linked them together. In such a long novel it is difficult to keep track of everything, so it’s interesting to follow one strand and see how it fits into the whole pattern.

Now for another novel by Charlotte, but this time in its film version. Jane Eyre 1944 is reviewed by Slant Magazine.

Together, Fontaine and Welles transform the beautiful chiaroscuro-lit sets into a sultry playground. Fontaine, a wonderfully expressive actress, seems forever locked in close-up compositions as Bernard Herrmann's orchestral score pummels the viewer with the force of her yearning. Meanwhile, Welles tears into scenes with restless vitriolic fire. When he gets quiet, his charged stillness feels magnetic. [...]
Have fun with this hot-blooded Victorian soap opera. (Jeremiah Kipp)

We disagree with that last bit. Oh well. Incidentally, our competition to win a copy of Jane Eyre 1944 closed last Sunday and the 5 winners have already been e-mailed with the news. But thank you to everyone who sent their answer!

Bernard Herrmann, who wrote the music for this film, is also connected to another work by the Brontës. Which one and how so?

An opera based in Wuthering Heights (1951) (*)

Something else we don't fully agree with are these interpretations of Jane Eyre made by Kathleen Gilroy.

Most inspiring novels for women [...]
3. Jane Eyre
Is this a tale of a repressed, dependent woman who ultimately marries her tyrannical employer? Or is it a groundbreaking work, full of metaphorical allusions to a woman embracing her sexuality? Whichever reading you subscribe to, Charlotte Brontë's novel is an odd choice for a book that makes women "feel proud to be a woman".

But as we have clearly seen lately, Jane Eyre will be interpreted by everyone in a different way, calling out to something unique inside us.

Confessions of a Crazy Chick, who recently posted a review on Wide Sargasso Sea, has now published a review of Jane Eyre as well.

It's the turn for some Wuthering Heights now. Alex Roumbas confesses on DollyMix that her favourite writers tend to be men. With a couple of exceptions.

I prefer male authors. It's true. A mere smattering of the myriad books that number among my favourites are written by women (with only Wuthering Heights and The Secret History getting any sort of really honourable mention).

And something very interesting to conclude. It's always been a reason for debate whether Heathcliff was Mr Earnshaw's illegitimate son or not. Life is Beautiful looks into this possibility and, especially, on how it has been approached when adapting the novel to its film versions. Truly worth a read and a reflection.

(*) We accepted this answer as correct, but as a matter of fact Bernard Herrmann wrote some more Brontë-related music. He composed music of the Mercury Theatre radio program: Jane Eyre (Sept 18, 1938) and The Campbell Playhouse: Jane Eyre (March 31, 1940).

Categories: Brussels, Jane Eyre, Movies-DVD-TV, Villette, Wuthering Heights