Book 2: Little Women

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

If you are planning to read this book, please skip the following summary. (Contains spoilers). 

Jo, Meg, Beth and Amy March are four sisters living with their mother in New England. Their father is away serving as a chaplain on the Civil War, and the sisters struggle to support themselves and keep their house hold running despite the fact that the family recently lost its fortune. In the process, they become close friends with their wealthy neighbour, Theodore Laurence, known as 'Laurie'.

As the girls grow older, each faces her own personal demos and moral challenges. Jo, our protagonist, must tame her tomboyish ways and learn to be more ladylike while pursing her ambition to be a great writer. Meg, the oldest, must put aside her love of wealth and finery in order to follow her heart. Beth, the shy one, must conquer her bashfulness, while Amy, the youngest, has to sacrifice her aristocratic pride. The girls are guided in their personal growth by their mother, "Marmee", and by their religious faith.

The family's tight bonds are forever changed when Meg falls in love with John Brooke, Laurie's tutor. Meg and John marry and begin a home of their own, quickly populated by twins Daisy and Demi. Another marriage seems imminent when Laurie reveals to Jo that he has fallen in love with her,  but she declares that she cannot care for him in the same way. Jo goes to New York as the governess for a family friend, Mrs. Kirke, experiencing the big city and trying her hand as a professional writer. Meanwhile, Amy travels through Europe with her wealthy Aunt Carroll and cousin Flo, nurturing her artistic talen. Separately, Laurie goes to Europe accompanied by his grandfather. He pursues his passion for music and tries to forget Jo.

While in New York, Jo meets German expatriate Professor Bhaer, whose intellect and strong moral nature spark her interest. Across the Atlantic, Laurie and Amy discover that they lack the genius of being great artists, but that they make an excellent romantic pairing. When Beth, who has never been strong, dies young, the sorrow of their loss solidifies Amy's bond to Laurie. Back in the States, Jo returns home to care for her bereaved parens and learns to embrace her domestic side.

All the loose ends are tied up as Jo and Professor Bhaer marry and start a boarding school for boys, while Amy and Laurie marry and use the Laurence family wealth to support struggling young artists. The Brooke, Bhaer, and Laurence households flourish, and the novel ends with a birthday party for Marmee, celebrating the extended March family connections and the progress of Jo's boarding school, Plumfield.

Louisa May Alcott

Thoughts about the book:

Little Women is a truly inspiring novel, as it teaches us that we all have flaws and we have to get through them by giving our best. Furthermore, it shows the power, potential and determination women have and had in that time when no one heard them or even looked at them directly. I highly recommend this book as one of your must-reads (If you enjoy romance combined with a lot of drama, of course), because it is beautifully filled with emotions that will make you want for more every time you finish a chapter. 

This has been made a motion picture three times:

• In 1933
  
  
  
  
  
• In 1949
  
  

The trailer:                         

• In 1994
  

The trailer:
                                          

Thanks to: http://www.enotes.com/topics/little-women

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Book 1: Jane Eyre

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

If you are planning to read this book, please skip the following summary. (Contains spoilers). 

Jane Eyre, an orphan, lives with her abusive aunt, Sarah Reed, and her mean-soirited cousins, John, Eliza, and Georgiana, at Gateshead Hall.

She is sent away to the Lowood School where the conditions are very harsh. Jane befriends an fellow student, Helen Burns, and Miss Temple, a teacher. When Helen Burns dies, and Miss Temple marries, Jane decides to leave Lowood, and secures a job as a governess at Thornfield.

At Thornfiels, Jane's duties are to teach the master's foster child Adele Varens. Although he has a brusque manner, Jane finds the master, Edward Fairfax Rochester, attractive and fascinating.

One night, Jane is awakened by strange noises. Seeing smoke coming from Mr. Rochester's room, she runs in and throws water on the fire, awakening him. He leads Jane to believe that it is Grace Poole, a servant who caused the damage.

Meanwhile, Mr. Rochester apparently pursues Blanche Ingram, a local beauty, while Jane's love for him continues to grow.

Jane leaves Thornfield to visit the dying Mrs. Reed, who tells her that JohnEyre, her father's brother, is trying to contact her.

Original book written by Charlotte Brontë

When Jane returns to Thornfield, Mr. Rochester switches his affections from Blanche to Jane,and proposes marriage. The wedding ceremony is interrupted by Mr. Briggs, who claims that Mr. Rochester is already married. The mad Berthe Rochester, who is locked away on the third floor of Thorn fiel, is exposed to Jane. Jane flees, and receives an inheritance from her uncle, John Eyre. St. John Rivers proposes marriage to Jane, but she declines since she still has Mr. Rochester on her mind.

Jane returns to Thornfield and discovers it has burned to the ground. It seems that Bertha Rochester set the fire and died in it, while Mr. Rochester suffered a mangled hand that has to be amputated and has been left blind. Jane reunites with Mr. Rochester at Ferndean, his current home, and they marry. Ten years pass, and Jane tells us how contented she is with married life, Mr. Rochester has regained partial vision in one eye, and they have a newborn son.

Charlotte Brontë

Thoughts about the book:

This novel is one of my all-time favourites, as it has romance combined with drama and a bit of tragedy, which makes it interesting to read and makes us want more of it chapter after chapter. I also think that it tries to show the cruelty and pain someone can have in their lives, all caused by society and almost always overcome by the person's effort and spirit of going ahead no matter what. Definitely, Jane Eyre is a book that you should all read.

This book had been made a motion picture in 2011 starring Mia Wasikowska as Jane Eyre and Michael Fassbender as Edward Rochester.

Watch the trailer: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8PLpXvhtlc

Thanks to: http://www.enotes.com/topics/jane-eyre

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The Basics

Before starting with the real purpose if this blog we need to define and explain the following:

What is Literature?

Literature is a term used to describe written or spoken material. Literature is used to describe anything from creative writing to more technical or scientific works, but the term is most commonly used to refer to works of the creative imagination, including works of poetry, drama, fiction, and non-fiction.

Why do we read literature?

Literature represents a language, people, culture or tradition. But literature is more important than just a historical or cultural artefact. Literature introduces us to new worlds experience. We learn about books and literature; we enjoy the comedies and the tragedies of poems, stories, and plays; and we even may grow and evolve through our literary journey with books.

In this blog, i'll be talking about some classics; what they are about, a brief comment about the book, and maybe some extras. I hope all of you will like it. (:

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