The Valentine's conspiracy

The Independent talks about the 1958 Busby Babes tragedy and how it will be remembered in tomorrow's Premier League Manchester United- Manchester City match. A minute of silence will be held. Some other recent examples are recalled:

On 31 March 2005, there was a minute's silence at the Parsonage, in Haworth, West Yorkshire, to mark the death of the former vicar's daughter. Her name was Charlotte Bronte, and she died in 1855. You would think they were over the shock by now. (Andy McSmith)

The witty remark was a little bit out of context here.

Another 2008 anniversary - a much happier one - is the centenary next June of the first appearance of Lucy Maud Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables on print. The Globe and Mail presents the character like this:

Much better as an example of long-haul haunting, Canadian-style, is that "freckled witch" of Prince Edward Island, our own Jane Eyre and Oliver Twist rolled into one, Anne Shirley . . . Anne of Green Gables.
This spring marks the 100th anniversary of the debut of Lucy Maud Montgomery's seemingly inextinguishable red-haired girl, she whom Mark Twain, in an uncharacteristic spasm of sentimental enthusiasm a year or so before his death, proclaimed "the dearest and most moving and delightful child since the immortal Alice." (James Adams)

Another puzzling Brontë reference appears today also in The Independent. This is the beginning of an article by Jerry Hall on the different kinds of love, a sort of teaser for his upcoming BBC2 program Aspects of Love:

I still believe in love – against all the odds. I don't believe those people who say all our troubles started with Jane Eyre and unrealistic expectations of romantic love; or that the European take on love is just a way of passing on the farm to the children while having a few mistresses on the side; or that love doesn't last more than a year or two. I think love should be celebrated.

It's obvious that Jane Eyre has been, over the years, pasteurized and liofilized in order to be assimilated as a Mills & Boon prototype (see yesterday's post) or the mother of chick-lit. But Jane Eyre's character (if only) was prominent for her independence and her resistance to submitting to the ideal of romantic love. Ramblings of a romance writing mama has finished reading Jane Eyre and has a similar opinion:

This novel is an unusual romance but it is most definately a romance. Unusual because neither the hero or heroine are typical romantic characters but their love is strong and survives through great adversity. (Rachael Blair)

More puzzling references. Tim Teeman writes in The Times (it sounds like a joke, we know) about the joys of travelling alone and this is his suggested behaviour in a foreign pub/bar:

Find one, using a guide or the Internet, that sounds like your thing and go when it's busy but not mobbed and be confident. Radiate an approximation of ease (a gin and tonic might help) and interesting people will start circling. If you need a prop take a paper, never a book - that's just a little bit Jane Eyre and sad.

The Washington Post publishes a list with its readers' favourite romance novels. Some Brontës and Brontë-related ones are on the list:

In a recent exchange on Book World's blog, Short Stack, romance fans listed their favorite novels:
Classics and Old Chestnuts
Rebecca, by Daphne du Maurier. Inspired by Jane Eyre, a story about a beleaguered bride.
Villette, by Charlotte Bronte. A teacher finds love at an all girls' school.

The Poughkeepsie Journal finds some Wuthering Heights qualities in Joe Wright's film adaptation of Ian McEwan's Atonement:

Expect the sweeping cinematic shots (reminiscent of "Wuthering Heights") and love-torn dialogue meshed with an enigmatic, Oscar-nominated score and an ending that promises to flip the script on the tone of the entire film. (Dan Mecca)

Keighley News reproduces the article published some days ago by The Telegraph & Argus about the ongoing No Coward Soul exhibition at the Brontë Parsonage Museum.

On the blogosphere today: 20x100 comments Wide Sargasso Sea. Random Jottings of a Book and Opera Lover posts a well known letter by Charlotte Brontë to her publishers.

Categories: Jane Eyre, References, Villette, Wide Sargasso Sea, Wuthering Heights