 |
On the Shelf : Newark Writes a Better Sequel
By Caryn Shaffer
A&E Editor
Last week we talked about how writers sometimes might try to make their stories edgier to appeal to readers.
These are also some of the same writers who think they can get anything, down to three weeks worth of grocery lists, published because they’re just that established.
When Dan Simmons wrote “Drood,” it seemed as though he was just looking for a premise or motivation for a story that had absolutely nothing to do with Charles Dickens’ “The Mystery of Edwin Drood.” While it was remotely entertaining in a mediocre sort of way, ultimately it really was a waste of trees to print it.
This week, I read “Jane Eyre’s Daughter.” The title was self-explanatory: it was supposed to be a continuation of “Jane Eyre” by Charlotte Bronte, one of those literary classics that every English major is supposed to have read by the time they leave college. Its sequel, “Jane Eyre’s Daughter,” was even better than I thought it would be.
“When I read “The Mystery of Edwin Drood” a couple weeks ago, I really had no expectations for it. It wasn’t a genre I usually read, and reading some of Dickens’ other works possibly lowered my expectations for it. After I had read it, in the grander scheme of things, I found it fairly mediocre.
“Jane Eyre” is another story, no pun intended. I first read “Jane Eyre” when I was a sophomore in high school, and I loved it so much that I’ve read it seven times since then. I’ve also read “Wide Sargasso Sea” by Jean Rhys, which is a companion to “Jane Eyre,” detailing the history and thought processes of the main male character’s nutcase wife.
Everything about “Jane Eyre” intrigues me. By reading it again and again, I pick up on little things like gender and the role it plays in character interaction, religion and societal obligation.
I love the language and the description of the different locations from the rickety campus of Lowood School to the dark, shadowy grandeur of Thornfield Hall.
I love how the hero and heroine are completely ordinary-looking. Neither the hero, Mr. Rochester, nor the heroine, Jane Eyre, are described as very attractive people. Yet, they both stamp out an existence for themselves, defying societal conventions and getting what they want in the end with little consequence. (O.K., so Mr. Rochester loses an eye and a hand, but he also loses his biting sarcasm and gains a spouse at the same time.)
You can only guess that my expectations for any sort of sequel would be astronomical. How could they be anything else? I expected that the author would be as familiar with “Jane Eyre” as I was. Fortunately the author, Elizabeth Newark, exceeded my expectations.
“Jane Eyre’s Daughter” explores the Rochester’s lives after Jane and Edward Rochester get married. They have two children: Oliver and Janet. Janet’s parents and brother decide to go on a trip to the West Indies. Janet is sent to finishing school and then left under the care of Colonel Dent, a minor character from the original story.
Throughout her story, the reader learns the whereabouts of characters from “Jane Eyre,” like what happened to Adele Varens, Mr. Rochester’s ward, and Blanche Ingram, Mr. Rochester’s temporary love interest.
Newark even has a place for Miss Temple, a teacher at Lowood from Jane’s childhood.
Newark’s apparent knowledge of all the major and minor characters impressed me, as well as her willingness to weave them into a new story with original characters of her own.
Janet Rochester is a spunky, outspoken, rich young woman who has taken on all of her father’s abrasive personality. Colonel Dent is a sad old man after his wife and son both die, leaving him with his son’s child.
I don’t want to give away too much of the story because it turns out to be quite a mystery. Janet and her friend Laura try to figure out why the East wing of Colonel Dent’s mansion is closed to them, and they try to unravel the mystery of Colonel Dent himself.
Janet also toggles between two love interests, Hugo Calendar and Roderick Landless. Both have their own skeletons in the closet, and both want to marry her, but one only wants her for her wealth.
Newark uses dialogue from the original “Jane Eyre,” giving true fans a hint of exclusive foreshadowing. She also includes quotes from Bronte’s other works at the beginning of each chapter. I’ve never read “Shirley” or “Villette,” but now I want to.
Maybe Simmons should take a few hints from Newark’s writing.
Mainly, if you’re going to write a piece of literature that has to do with literature written long ago, make sure your characters and plot actually have to do with the literature you’re trying to imitate.
There’s no point adding your voice to a literary discussion if you don’t really know that much about it.
If you’re a fan of a book that was written hundreds of years ago, check to see if there isn’t anything written as a sequel, prequel, or companion. Some of it can be interesting, and some of it can be ridiculous, but it’s still to read.
Next week, I’ll be exploring adolescent literature, and whether or not teens really have the options in literature that they think they do.
It seems as though teens only have a couple topics to choose from when it comes to great books.
Maybe an author needs to come along and write something new.
The Slate