Charlotte Brontë on swearing and other news

The Guardian reflects about its no-asterisk policy when it comes to swearing and quotes from Charlotte Brontë's 1850 preface to Wuthering Heights:

As Charlotte Brontë put it: "The practice of hinting by single letters those expletives with which profane and violent people are wont to garnish their discourse, strikes me as a proceeding which, however well meant, is weak and futile. I cannot tell what good it does – what feeling it spares – what horror it conceals."
If the author of Jane Eyre had been a tabloid reader, she might also have observed that asterisks actually draw attention to swearwords, as well as offering readers the challenge of working out the difference between, say, ****s and ******s. (David Marsh)

And she was right, in our humble opinion.

On a remotely related - though not much favourable - note, The Stanford Daily carries the following declaration of intentions:

Passion, after all, is important, but Brontë-esque fits of angst are hardly states of emotion I aspire to. (Samantha Toh)

Erica Ridley, whose debut novel is Too Wicked To Kiss, doesn't seem to have that problem as her novel is influenced by the Brontës, at least according to Examiner.

Erica Ridley’s Too Wicked To Kiss is a fine debut novel, and has all the right ingredients: a touch of heat and spice, a surly and dark hero, a determined and likable heroine, but she also made sure it was replete with despicable villains, hidden corridors and strange happenings, reminiscent of the Gothic romances of old, ala [sic] the Brontë sisters—which this reader thought quite a nice touch. (Julianne Draper)

Another Brontë-related book was Justine Picardie's Daphne, which is mentioned in The Nipawin Journal as a new arrival in the local public library:

Those of you who are Daphne Du Maurier fans, or perhaps fans of Rebecca, may be interested in Daphne by Justine Picardie.
This is a fiction work based on some of the facts of Du Maurier's life, both personal and literary. It is set in 1957, when Du Maurier is under pressure both from her success with Rebecca and the pending break-up of her marriage.
She decides to preoccupy herself with the Bronte sisters' reprobate younger brother, bringing her into contact with a Bronte scholar who is also interested in her work.
At the same time, we are told the story of a present day woman who is also struggling with her marriage and a literary thesis on Du Maurier and the Brontes. An intriguing novel of theft, literary forger, love and loss. (Nancy Budd)

A reader's letter to The Telegraph and Argus warns about the notorious Haworth clamper:

SIR – I was pleased to read in the T&A that a film company was to remake Wuthering Heights at Haworth.
Can the Telegraph & Argus please inform the film company, and anyone else coming to the town during filming, that in a particular parking site, fees for ‘extras’ will be prominent. Be careful – watch your time, watch your space!
Tourists to Haworth, make sure you bring your cheque book in case you get clamped.
G Hargreaves, Bronte Drive, Oakworth

And The Huddersfield Daily Examiner features local bridal gown designer Adam Shaw and comments on his first design for the screen, although it was funereal rather than bridal:

THE FIRST theatrical costume created by Huddersfield designer Adam Shaw was a simple shroud for the dead Cathy in the ITV dramatisation of Wuthering Heights.
It wasn’t quite the glamorous period costume that he imagined he’d be making, but it was, he says, a start.
“I was just a costume trainee, which means that you’re there on set to make sure the necklaces are on straight and to do any repairs or alterations that are needed. The shroud was the first thing I was allowed to make,” explained Adam, 28. [...]
Since then, however, he’s been entrusted with more challenging projects, including [...] a real-life wedding dress for actress Rebecca Night (Catherine [second generation] in the 2009 ITV adaptation of Wuthering Heights). (Hilarie Stelfox)

An alert from Darien, CT :

“Jane Eyre” will be discussed as part of the Classics Discussion at Darien Library Thursday, April 15, at 3.Discussion of the book, film and the Bronte sisters will take place in the library’s Classics Room on the second floor. (Darien Times)

It looks like Jane Slayre is slowly taking over the blogosphere: Reading Extensively, Cheryl's Book Nook and Just One More Paragraph all review it, with the addition of The Life (and Lies) of an Inanimate Flying Object and Drey's Library who, apart from reviewing it, are giving away a copy each (USA only, though).

Finally: Blogs discussing Jane Eyre: Actividad Vampírica (in Spanish) Musicality Demystified has posted an alternative ending, Lights, Camera... History! reviews Jane Eyre 1983, Yummy Goods (one of the Brontë-Along! creators) lists her Jane Eyre-related readings/listenings and announces that Brontë-Along will me moving on to Wuthering Heights and blogs discussing Emily Brontë's novel: Yallah, Sharshura!!! and Peeking Between Pages, Books are Like Candy Corn and New Century Readings (part of the Fizzy Thoughts Wuthering Heights Wednesdays)

Categories: Alert, Books, Haworth, Jane Eyre, Movies-DVD-TV, References, Wuthering Heights