Excerpt: (pg. 199 - 200)
First, there was Mrs. Eshton and two of her daughters. She had evidently been a handsome woman, and was well preserved still. Of her daughters, the eldest, Amy, was rather little: naive, and child-like in face and manner, and piquant in form; her white muslin dress and blue sash became her well. The second, Louisa, was taller and more elegant in figure; with a very pretty face, of that order the French term minois chiffone: both sisters were fair as lilies. Lady Lynn was a large and stout personage of about forty, very erect, very haughty-looking, richly dressed in a satin robe of changeful sheen: her dark hair shone glossily under the shade of an azure plume, and within the circlet of a band of gems.
First, there was Mrs. Eshton and two of her daughters. She had evidently been a handsome woman, and was well preserved still. Of her daughters, the eldest, Amy, was rather little: naive, and child-like in face and manner, and piquant in form; her white muslin dress and blue sash became her well. The second, Louisa, was taller and more elegant in figure; with a very pretty face, of that order the French term minois chiffone: both sisters were fair as lilies. Lady Lynn was a large and stout personage of about forty, very erect, very haughty-looking, richly dressed in a satin robe of changeful sheen: her dark hair shone glossily under the shade of an azure plume, and within the circlet of a band of gems.
Mrs. Colonel Dent was less showy; but, I thought,
more lady-like. She had a slight figure, a pale, gentle face,
and fair hair. Her black satin dress, her scarf of rich foreign
lace, and her pearl ornaments, pleased me better than the
rainbow radiance of the titled dame.
But the three most distinguished—partly, perhaps, because the tallest figures of the band—were the Dowager Lady Ingram and her daughters, Blanche and Mary. They were all three of the loftiest stature of women. The Dowager might be between forty and fifty: her shape was still fine; her hair (by candle-light at least) still black; her teeth, too, were still apparently perfect. Most people would have termed her a splendid woman of her age: and so she was, no doubt, physically speaking; but then there was an expression of almost insupportable haughtiness in her bearing and countenance. She had Roman features and a double chin, disappearing into a throat like a pillar: these features appeared to me not only inflated and darkened, but even furrowed with pride; and the chin was sustained by the same principle, in a position of almost preternatural erectness. She had, likewise, a fierce and a hard eye: it reminded me of Mrs. Reed’s; she mouthed her words in speaking; her voice was deep, its inflections very pompous, very dogmatical,—very intolerable, in short. A crimson velvet robe, and a shawl turban of some gold-wrought Indian fabric, invested her (I suppose she thought) with a truly imperial dignity.
But the three most distinguished—partly, perhaps, because the tallest figures of the band—were the Dowager Lady Ingram and her daughters, Blanche and Mary. They were all three of the loftiest stature of women. The Dowager might be between forty and fifty: her shape was still fine; her hair (by candle-light at least) still black; her teeth, too, were still apparently perfect. Most people would have termed her a splendid woman of her age: and so she was, no doubt, physically speaking; but then there was an expression of almost insupportable haughtiness in her bearing and countenance. She had Roman features and a double chin, disappearing into a throat like a pillar: these features appeared to me not only inflated and darkened, but even furrowed with pride; and the chin was sustained by the same principle, in a position of almost preternatural erectness. She had, likewise, a fierce and a hard eye: it reminded me of Mrs. Reed’s; she mouthed her words in speaking; her voice was deep, its inflections very pompous, very dogmatical,—very intolerable, in short. A crimson velvet robe, and a shawl turban of some gold-wrought Indian fabric, invested her (I suppose she thought) with a truly imperial dignity.
Blanche and Mary were of equal stature,—straight and
tall as poplars. Mary was too slim for her height, but
Blanche was moulded like a Dian. I regarded her, of
course, with special interest. First, I wished to see whether
her appearance accorded with Mrs. Fairfax’s description;
secondly, whether it at all resembled the fancy miniature I
had painted of her; and thirdly—it will out!— whether it
were such as I should fancy likely to suit Mr. Rochester’s
taste.
Why I chose this excerpt:
Obviously the main characters in this book are fully developed and given a full background. Jane Eyre has both dynamic and static qualities that you'd expect in any real person and any fully developed character. However, I am going to take this question to review the other characters in this book.
This passage exemplifies a tendency in this book in which, Bronte continuously provides extraneous information that has very little effect on the book. This passage describes the rich guests, who stay at Mr. Rochester's home for a good portion of the book. And although they keep popping up in every scene (obviously, they're there), they don't really have much effect on the story. The fact that Mrs. Dent is "less showy" has zero effect on the plot and never comes back into play. Bronte is trying to paint a full picture so the reader can clearly see the scene as intended, but all of this excessive information weighs on the reader's ability to focus on what's really important. If these details cam back into play or even if the story was focused on these characters more, then I might not be as upset, but given the circumstances it is far too much bang for the little buck.
With that said, the amount of detail Bronte puts into her characters is very useful when discussing the main characters of the book. Jane, Mr. Rochester, Mrs. Fairfax and Mrs. Ingram are all well developed and the reader has a good sense of the tensions between each relationship. In these cases I am ok with excess amounts of details because it helps the reader understand each scene, but the details provided in the passage above do not accomplish such a task.
Why I chose this excerpt:
Obviously the main characters in this book are fully developed and given a full background. Jane Eyre has both dynamic and static qualities that you'd expect in any real person and any fully developed character. However, I am going to take this question to review the other characters in this book.
This passage exemplifies a tendency in this book in which, Bronte continuously provides extraneous information that has very little effect on the book. This passage describes the rich guests, who stay at Mr. Rochester's home for a good portion of the book. And although they keep popping up in every scene (obviously, they're there), they don't really have much effect on the story. The fact that Mrs. Dent is "less showy" has zero effect on the plot and never comes back into play. Bronte is trying to paint a full picture so the reader can clearly see the scene as intended, but all of this excessive information weighs on the reader's ability to focus on what's really important. If these details cam back into play or even if the story was focused on these characters more, then I might not be as upset, but given the circumstances it is far too much bang for the little buck.
With that said, the amount of detail Bronte puts into her characters is very useful when discussing the main characters of the book. Jane, Mr. Rochester, Mrs. Fairfax and Mrs. Ingram are all well developed and the reader has a good sense of the tensions between each relationship. In these cases I am ok with excess amounts of details because it helps the reader understand each scene, but the details provided in the passage above do not accomplish such a task.
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