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Re: Classic Romantic Relationships

Posted: Tue Sep 09, 2008 5:58 pm
by Tamalyn
Kieuemo wrote:I thought of Twilight when I read Jane Eyre too, and according to amazon, it is one of Stephenie's favorite books (or ones she most recommends, whatever). One thing though--Mr. Rochester is said to be extremely unattractive :D .
It's not surprising to me that Steph loves the book - it too has themes of choice, female independence, and of course, supernatural romance.

Haha, I guess Mr. Rochester's unfortunate experience with the Ugly Stick is the biggest DIFFERENCE in the book from the Twilight series. :lol:

Re: Classic Romantic Relationships

Posted: Tue Sep 09, 2008 9:00 pm
by debussygirl
Just thought of another similarity between Edward/Edward.
Mr. Rochester, after being burnt, blinded, and had one of his arms sawn off, did not think he deserved to be with Jane, that he did not deserve her love because he was broken. It's sort of the same with Edward. He thought Bella ought to have someone better than he was, a "monster"(even though we all know he's not). He didn't think himself whole enough to have her. But both were wrong and ended up seeing that.

Re: Classic Romantic Relationships

Posted: Thu Sep 18, 2008 12:18 am
by Sorghey
I just finished reading Jane Eyre for the first time last week. I absolutely loved it. There were so many similarities to the Twilight Saga at times, it was uncanny.

Excellent points so far. I'd also like to add that Mr. Rochester felt unworthy of Jane all throughout the book, especially in the beginning (that didn't necessarily stop him from going for her, though). Inwardly, Mr. Rochester was utterly ashamed of who he had become. He destested his past and his mistakes. Through Jane, he felt he could possibly overcome these feelings. Also, the progression of Mr. Rochester's attitude and features range from dark and brooding, to a little lighter and even happy, and it's not until we start to see the love grow between the two that we see his features soften--and we learn why he has been so hardened.

It was the same with Edward Cullen. He was dark, mysterious, brooding and quite aloof, yet he was strangely drawn to Bella and could not help but want to be with her, even despite his hatred for who he was. As Bella and Edward grew closer, Edward softened and began to feel feelings resurface that he forgot he had.

There are countless similarities between Jane and Bella: their refusal of lavish gifts and jewelry; their refusal to ride in the "fancy, ridiculous" cars and carriages; the way neither of them are scared of their Edwards--because for some reason they don't feel they have anything to fear; their plain features and clothes; even right down to their wedding day: neither girl remembers to look in the mirror.

I loved all the tiny similarities: the frequent references to the beauty of "twilight"; the symbolism of eclipses; the talk of mysterious creatures like vampires; the thought of barking of wolves in the distance.

I think it's these three-dimensional, heoric women and these vulnerable, byronic heros that make for a great, gothic romances.

Re: Classic Romantic Relationships

Posted: Sat Sep 20, 2008 4:43 pm
by gatsbygirl
Any others? And do we have to compare them with Twilight?

Re: Classic Romantic Relationships

Posted: Mon Sep 22, 2008 3:09 am
by Tamalyn
I believe we do have to contrast/compare it to Ed and Bella in some way, but that doesn't mean we can't swoon over the other classical relationships in their own right.

A few suggestions, now that Jane Eyre has been somewhat exhausted (just some that have been mentioned in the series in some capacity) -

Cathy and Heathcliff (Wuthering Heights)

Romeo and Juliet

Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy (Pride and Prejudice)

They are all so juicy, I can't choose just one!

Re: Classic Romantic Relationships

Posted: Mon Sep 22, 2008 4:19 pm
by debussygirl
So I guess we could discuss Cathy/Heathcliff, because they have a p&p and a r&j thread. Now I'm not going to lie to anyone, I only got about halfway through Wuthering Heights. And I hated the first half I read. I watched the movie (I know, shame on me! Books are never the same as the movies and I ought to be scoffed at) and I hated that. So unless Cathy never married that other guy, and Heathcliff never married that guy's sister, I absolutely loathe it and refuse to admit that Edward is anything like Heathcliff. Bella, eh, she's a little selfish like Cathy was, but she ALWAYS knew that Edward was the one for her, and never tried to deny that to get a life that she wanted. To quote Edward, "It's not a love story, it's a hate story." So for me, I see very, very, very little similarities. But again, I did not get through the book so maybe the book has some amazingness I didn't get to.

Re: Classic Romantic Relationships

Posted: Wed Sep 24, 2008 9:05 pm
by xXBeSafeXx
I haven't been able to finish it yet. *ashamed*
I've tried, but I can't. But from what summaries I've read, I've seen plot similarities, but not too many character similarities.


(So...whenever we're done discussing Heathcliff and Cathy...can we talk about Tuck Everlasting? Pretty please?)

Re: Classic Romantic Relationships

Posted: Sat Sep 27, 2008 6:48 pm
by debussygirl
Eh, why not move onto Tuck Everlasting? There hasn't been a post since Wednesday. I apparently made the wrong selection is choosing to discuss Cathy and Heathcliff. So, what does everyone think about the Tuck Everlasting similarities?

Re: Classic Romantic Relationships

Posted: Sat Sep 27, 2008 9:55 pm
by xXBeSafeXx
Woo! I found a few similarities when re-reading it for school.
Of course, there's the obvious immortality issue, but the main difference I found was that the guy(whose name seems to have slipped my mind) wanted Winnie to choose him rather than mortality, and well, she didn't. So I think he was a bit more selfish than Edward, but in the end, he let her know it was her choice, and he wouldn't pester her.

So...to the similarities!
So there's the obvious--the Tucks are immortal, Winnie worms their secret out of them, Winnie falls in love.
I believe Winnie actually asked how old he was and how long he had been 17, but I don't remember.
Most of these are actually plot similarities rather than character similarities. I found Edward and Tuck guy to be more similar than Winnie and Bella, except for the fact that they are both kind of quiet and it really doesn't seem to bother them that their loves are different from everyone else. I had a whole list of similarities, but I seem to have misplaced it...so I'll be back soon, unless no one responds and we move on.

Re: Classic Romantic Relationships

Posted: Sat Sep 27, 2008 11:09 pm
by debussygirl
See, to me Tuck Everlasting was more about the negatives of wanting something like living forever than a love story, which Twilight is. It creeped me out that Jess (I think that was his name) wanted a 10 year old to become immortal for him. I don't think he loved her, he just wanted someone, anyone, to be with (unlike Edward, who never wanted anyone until Bella and even then wouldn't make her immortal). The proof he didn't love her was that he never tried to go back for her, yet he expected her to become immortal. So since he didn't go back he didn't love her enough, especially since there wasn't anything really dangerous about him like there was with Edward. And Winnie was only a little girl with a crush (opposed to Bella who's a mature teenager desperately in love). So I don't find it a very romantic book compared to Twilight.
But it does bring up the similar dilemma of immortality or mortality like Twilight does. And the Tucks are sort of like the Cullens, needing to move around, stay secret, never grow or change. They have a secret like the Cullens.