简·爱｜Jane Eyre

原著作者｜夏洛蒂·勃朗特

• Jane Eyre was an orphan.
• Her parents died when she was very young.
• When she was still a baby, she was sent to her uncle's house, Gateshead Hall.
• Her uncle asked Mrs. Reed, her aunt, to promise to take good care of her.
• But Mrs. Reed hated her.
• John, her cousin, was cruel and often beat her for no reason.
• One day, he threw a book at her head.
• Blood ran down her forehead.
• Jane hid in an empty room.
• But Mrs. Reed made her come out and called her a liar in front of everyone.
• You know what? A ten year old girl stood before a room of adults, and no one spoke for her.
• Jane lifted her head and looked straight into Mrs. Reed's eyes.
• "You're wrong. I'm not a liar."
• She was locked in the red room, the room where her uncle's body had once lain.
• In the dark night, cold wind blew through the cracks of the door.
• No one came to see her.
• Later, a pharmacist named Mr. Lloyd came.
• He asked Jane why she always stayed alone.
• Jane told him everything in her heart, little by little.
• Mr. Lloyd listened quietly. Then he said to Mrs. Reed, "This child shouldn't stay here. Send her to school."
• Mrs. Reed was glad to get rid of her and agreed right away.
• Lowood School was a poor charity school.
• The beds were hard as rocks. The food was often burnt porridge.
• The children wore the same gray dresses and huddled together from the cold.
• But Jane met Helen here.
• Helen was a few years older than Jane.
• Her personality was gentle like water.
• She never complained and never defended herself.
• When the teacher made her kneel on the stone floor, she knelt quietly.
• Jane said angrily, "Why don't you fight back?"
• Helen just smiled and said, "If you think about beautiful things, the pain doesn't feel so bad."
• But Helen got sick.
• Lung disease spread through that school. She coughed blood for a long time.
• Jane sat by her bed and held her hand.
• Helen's hand grew colder and colder.
• Finally she said softly, "Goodbye," and closed her eyes forever.
• That night was very cold.
• Jane held Helen's things and cried for a long time.
• From then on, Jane changed.
• She turned her anger into strength and studied day and night.
• Eight years passed. She grew from a thin little orphan into the top student of the whole school.
• At eighteen, she graduated.
• She didn't want to stay at Lowood anymore. She wanted to see the world.
• Jane came to Thornfield Hall and became a governess.
• She taught a little girl to read. Life was peaceful like a still lake.
• The master of the manor was Mr. Rochester.
• He didn't come home often. But every time he returned, Jane could feel his gaze, a searching, testing gaze with quiet expectation.
• One day, Mr. Rochester asked Jane, "What do you think of me?"
• Jane said, "I don't like judging people by their looks."
• Mr. Rochester laughed. It was a laugh he hadn't made in a very long time.
• Two lonely souls slowly drew closer.
• They talked under the moonlight, shared hearts in the study, and read each other's scars in silence.
• Mr. Rochester proposed to Jane. She said yes.
• She thought she had finally found a home.
• On the wedding day, a strange woman appeared in the church. She screamed with disheveled hair.
• Mr. Rochester's face turned pale as paper.
• Who was she? She was Mr. Rochester's wife.
• A family had pushed a madwoman onto him for money, then hidden the truth from everyone.
• Jane stood in the church, cold to her bones.
• Mr. Rochester said, "Come with me. I can give you everything except a proper name."
• Jane was silent for a long time.
• She thought of Helen, of Lowood, of herself standing tall in the dark.
• "No." she said. "I want all of a man, not a broken kindness."
• She turned and walked away without looking back.
• Jane walked across the wild fields. Her shoes wore through and her feet swelled.
• She collapsed by the road and woke up in a clean little room.
• The people who saved her were St. John and his siblings, a clergyman's family.
• They took her in and helped her recover slowly.
• One day, a lawyer brought a letter. Jane's uncle had passed away and left her twenty thousand pounds.
• By coincidence, St. John was actually her cousin.
• Jane divided the inheritance into four parts. One for each of her cousins, one for herself.
• Quiet days passed for a while. But Jane always felt something was missing in her heart.
• Late at night, she often heard a voice, Mr. Rochester calling her name.
• She couldn't stay still any longer.
• Jane returned to Thornfield. What she saw was ruins.
• A great fire had burned the manor to the ground.
• Mr. Rochester had tried to save his mad wife. A falling beam crushed him and blinded his eyes.
• Jane found him. Neither of them said a word.
• They just held each other's hands tightly.
• Mr. Rochester asked, "Will you still marry me? I have no money, no status, and I can't see anymore."
• Jane lowered her head and kissed his rough scarred hand.
• "I will."