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A Marble Column: Jane Eyre in India
A Marble Column is a sequel to one of the most famous novels in literature. / Set against a rich background in which the patterns of imperial rule in India are not yet fully hardened, this lively and far-reaching work is a further voyage of inner discovery which puts great loves to the test. / Charlotte Brontë gives the last words of Jane Eyre to the uncertain destiny of St. John Rivers, the ardent missionary Jane rejected for Mr. Rochester. So what happened to St. John in India? A Marble Column develops the characters and themes of Brontë's original novel. / An epidemic threatens to drive Jane and Rochester apart. Desperate to flee from her grief, Jane determines to uncover the fate of St John Rivers, the ardent missionary she rejected. Impatient for her recovery, Rochester reluctantly agrees to accompany his wife to India. As they make their journey, St John's story unfolds. At odds with his Church and bewildered by India, he has retreated to the southern hills and established a modest school and farm. There he might be contented, if he were not tormented by love for Jaya, one of his few converts . / Following clues in Charlotte Bronte's original novel, A Marble Column is set in the years before imperial attitudes fully hardened. Preoccupied with their own desires and benevolent intentions, the English characters are so steeped in the habits of their kind that they can no more see the consequences of their actions than the near-blind Rochester.
279 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 11, 2019
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November 2, 2020
The idea of carrying on Jane and Rochester’s story by having Mr. Rochester meet St. John Rivers was so intriguing to me. I was excited by the concept of this story. And while the novel is very well-written and richly detailed, it was very different to my expectations.
The author examines Jane and Rochester’s marriage very seriously. Unfortunately the Rochesters have lost their children to diptheria, and the effect is that Jane becomes depressed and detached from her husband. This upsets Edward but it seems his anger with Jane mostly stems from the fact that she is not willing to sleep with him. I think there was too much attention placed on Mr. Rochester wanting intimacy with his wife, and his consideration that if Jane persists in withholding, he would get it elsewhere.
Jane blames herself for the death of her children, and wonders if she made the right choice marrying Mr. Rochester, when God might have wanted her to help others in India with St. John. This leads the Rochesters (Adele included) to travel to India to see what has happened to Mr. Rivers. The story is told through different viewpoints - rotating between Jane, Rochester, and St. John. The flow of the story can feel disjointed at times with how rapidly the POV’s shift, but it was nice to “hear” each of these characters’ thoughts.
St. John’s part of the narrative was probably the most interesting. He is less ecclesiastical, cold, and single-minded. He has lost his way a bit in the story, as he falls in love with a native woman, and finds it difficult to carry on in his work in the face of so much indifference. His character arc is probably the most shocking compared to his presentation in Charlotte Brontë’s novel.
A Marble Column features wonderful, detailed descriptions of the era, and the language felt true to Brontë’s time. It is clear the author did a ton of research and I was drawn into the story, even if I did not entirely agree with the direction the characters take. There were a few times when I thought the characters did not act according to how they were developed in the original novel but this is difficult to judge since it will feel authentic to different people and it definitely has an assured viewpoint on what happens next. I recommend reading this for the fantastic writing and for an alternative look at the development of Jane and Rochester through marriage.
The author examines Jane and Rochester’s marriage very seriously. Unfortunately the Rochesters have lost their children to diptheria, and the effect is that Jane becomes depressed and detached from her husband. This upsets Edward but it seems his anger with Jane mostly stems from the fact that she is not willing to sleep with him. I think there was too much attention placed on Mr. Rochester wanting intimacy with his wife, and his consideration that if Jane persists in withholding, he would get it elsewhere.
Jane blames herself for the death of her children, and wonders if she made the right choice marrying Mr. Rochester, when God might have wanted her to help others in India with St. John. This leads the Rochesters (Adele included) to travel to India to see what has happened to Mr. Rivers. The story is told through different viewpoints - rotating between Jane, Rochester, and St. John. The flow of the story can feel disjointed at times with how rapidly the POV’s shift, but it was nice to “hear” each of these characters’ thoughts.
St. John’s part of the narrative was probably the most interesting. He is less ecclesiastical, cold, and single-minded. He has lost his way a bit in the story, as he falls in love with a native woman, and finds it difficult to carry on in his work in the face of so much indifference. His character arc is probably the most shocking compared to his presentation in Charlotte Brontë’s novel.
A Marble Column features wonderful, detailed descriptions of the era, and the language felt true to Brontë’s time. It is clear the author did a ton of research and I was drawn into the story, even if I did not entirely agree with the direction the characters take. There were a few times when I thought the characters did not act according to how they were developed in the original novel but this is difficult to judge since it will feel authentic to different people and it definitely has an assured viewpoint on what happens next. I recommend reading this for the fantastic writing and for an alternative look at the development of Jane and Rochester through marriage.
Displaying 1 of 1 review