A cubicle version of Wuthering Heights

The Spenborough Guardian publishes a letter from a reader who was outraged at the suggested closure of the Red House Museum:

In their “Vision and Strategic Objectives” outlined in the LDF Core Strategy, planners promised to retain the characteristics of Kirklees which make it attractive. This involved, among other issues, safeguarding the “distinctive and contrasting landscapes and legacy of historic buildings within and around Kirklees’ towns and villages.
So much for promises. The historic landscape from the Three Nuns to Hartshead and Roberttown has been earmarked for the biggest industrial development in West Yorkshire; totally ignoring its beauty and its close proximity to Robin Hood’s grave, the ruins of Kirklees Priory, the historic Armytage Estate, the Luddite heritage footpath, and Roe Head (now Hollybank school) the school to which all three Brontë sisters attended and at which Charlotte Brontë taught. And totally ignoring the seven presentations put forward last November to the extraordinary meeting of Kirklees Council.
And then we had the unbelievable threat to the only museum in the Spen Valley! The Red House Museum is a very precious and iconic building.
Built in 1660 by a typical entrepreneurial Spen clothier, William Taylor, it is now actually furnished in the style of the 1830’s when Joshua and Anne Taylor regularly enjoyed the company of their daughter Mary’s friend Charlotte Brontë. The house has a charming homely feel to it and is so authentic that visitors can easily imagine Charlotte Brontë mingling with the Taylor family whom she loved.
She said it was a happy house, full of laughter. And many visitors have felt this; almost 30,000 last year alone. They come to wander round the house and garden and the outbuildings which can absorb them for an afternoon. The cart-shed houses a unique history of the Spen Valley, painstakingly collected over many years. The barn has a wonderful exhibition dedicated to Charlotte Brontë’s book Shirley, based around the Luddite story.
Visitors come from schools, colleges and universities and from locally and far afield. It is well and truly on the Brontë trail for national and international enthusiasts. They all receive a warm welcome from the dedicated staff. What a tourist destination!
Most of all it is one of the most important buildings which make up the Spen Valley’s heritage. It doesn’t take a lot of imagination to work out that this solution to saving money was a no-brainer.
Charlotte Brontë had another lifelong friend whom she met at Roe Head school – Ellen Nussey who lived near Birstall Smithies crossroads. Her home was the inspiration for Thornfield Hall in Jane Eyre. This is now swamped by a paint manufacturer’s. We cannot go on losing our heritage. And why was North Kirklees being targeted in this way? (Barbara Lumb)

The Telegraph and Argus looks into what could happen now:

The reprieve is dependant on a plan being drawn up, within six months, to find £116,000 a year to keep the museum up and running. The Council is looking at possibly reducing overheads such as staff costs, and charging admission at museums across Kirklees.
Kirklees Council leader Mehboob Khan said: "It’s about no options being ruled out at this stage. It could be introducing charges at Red House, charges at other museum sites across Kirklees, as well as income generation, such as being able to hire out some of our museums for functions.”
A Communities and Leisure Services proposal, which will go to full council on February 22, includes a package of reduced opening hours which will include closing Red House on weekdays over winter.
But council officers claim the museum has made a contribution to “leading Kirklees out of recession” and charging an entrance fee may reduce use of the site.
The Communities and Leisure Services report says: “Kirklees Museums have seen increased throughput over the last 18 months. This has been viewed as a result of the economic downturn, with families choosing to spend leisure time closer to home where the impact on disposable income is far less.
“The introduction of charging to these local facilities may result in a reduction of throughput at museum sites, compounded by the fact the service is proposing a significant reduction in opening hours.”
To the hundreds who signed petitions and wrote blogs against the proposed closure, the temporary reprieve is welcome – but they know they can’t afford to be complacent.
Gordon North, vice chairman of Spen Valley Civic Society, is meeting Kirklees Council Cabinet members to draw up a business plan to make the museum more profitable.
“It will be taken forward by people on the ground as ways of stopping it losing money and broadening the appeal and making money so it can stay open, not just for one year but for years to come,” says Gordon.
“The campaigners have opened people’s eyes to the fact that museums are beloved institutions and part of our history and culture.” [...]
Historian Gill Cookson of Cleckheaton, who co-wrote a book about Gomersal, says closing Red House was a proposal which should never have been considered.
“There is more interest in local history now than there has been,” she says. “They should have done the thinking before putting proposals forward.
“Of course, we need to think of different ways to support museums and heritage features. It has never been easy finding money for heritage, it has always been a struggle, but there is new potential for events and activities.
Gill says the extent of support for Red House will provide foundations for taking the museum forward. “It is a good basis for making plans, knowing you have a network of people who will help,” she says. “But I do think that Kirklees has some responsibility to offer support to the community.”
Imelda Marsden, a member of the Brontë Society, said it would be “foolish” to close the museum, a global tourist attraction.
Andrew McCarthy, director of the Brontë Parsonage Museum, said: "We were very keen to put forward our view that the museum should remain open and are happy to explore ways to develop closer links with Red House." (Sally Clifford)

The Orange County Register features the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising:

As we stood at the "Jane Eyre" exhibit, for example, [curator Kevin Jones] said, "The muted color palate, the shapes of the pieces really plays to the minds of the 1840s. It was the start of the Victorian Era. Twenty years earlier, the clothes would have been much brighter and the sleeves puffier. But with Victoria, you started to see clothes becoming much more subdued." (Frank Mickadeit)

Go Local Prov interviews author Taylor M. Polites, who mentions Jane Eyre again:

The protagonist of the novel is Augusta (Gus) Branson, a sheltered elite Southern woman who’s forced to come to terms with life after the end of the Civil War and the sudden death of her husband. She seems like an utterly familiar and yet still very fresh character. What drew you to her? Sometimes writers say that they feel a particular character has always been a part of them.  Looking back now, I feel like Augusta has always been there.  Female protagonists have fascinated me ever since I first read Gone With the Wind almost thirty years ago.  Since then, a whole parade of other female characters have captivated me:  Becky Sharp, Elizabeth Bennett, Emma Bovary, Anna Karenina, Isabel Archer, Lily Bart, Jane Eyre and even her mad counterpart in the attic.  Creating my own strong woman character felt very natural--and putting her in the midst of the mythology and the often ugly realities of the Reconstruction era gave her an amazing field in which to operate and grow. (Thom Bassett)

And the Guardian tries to define chick-lit:

Part of the problem is that no one can agree on a definition of chick lit. Bridget Jones's Diary is generally cited as an early example, but Allison Pearson hit the roof when her novel about a working mother, I Don't Know How She Does It, was assigned to the genre. The book's key ingredient – a sassy but klutzy female protagonist, embroiled in comical misadventures – could arguably be found in Jane Eyre, leaving any definition so elastic as to verge on meaningless. (Decca Aitkenhead)

The New York Post looks at relationships between co-workers:

While a 21st-century Heloise and Abelard may only have eyes for each other, the rest of accounting is getting resentful, not to mention nauseated. Better to puke once at the office Christmas party than spend every morning watching this pair play out a cubicle version of “Wuthering Heights.” (Brian Moore)

The Spokesman-Review thinks that the city of Spokane has changed:

Spokane was once a sleepy burg of all-you-can-eat buffets and softball games in the parks.
Now look at us. We’re drinking Venti Peppermint Java Chip Frappuccinos, discussing Jane Eyre in book clubs and watching MacNeil/Lehrer on PBS. (Doug Clark)

Kirjakammari writes in Finnish about Jane Eyre. The Little Stitcher has designed a Jane Eyre-inspired cross stitch sampler and podenga has uploaded to Flickr a Jane Eyre-inspired creation. Madame Dub reviews in French Sheila Kohler's Becoming Jane Eyre. The Hot-Doll Pages posts about Wuthering Heights.