23 February 2005

See Jane wince

Jessa at Bookslut alerts us to the UK's new Jane Eyre stamps, in commemoration of the 150th anniversary of Charlotte's death.

I was thrilled at first, but...uh...erm...well... I'm not quite sure they "lay bare the passion and repression of the book." See for yourself.

The six Jane Eyre stamps went in front of the council of the Brontë Society yesterday and have been welcomed by at least one of their number. 'It is wonderful', said Bob Barnard, chair of the society. 'The paintings are slightly strange, but are unsettling in a way that will promote a lot of new interest in Charlotte's writing.'

At least one of their number or only one of their number?

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Wow! Those are alarming and weird. The artist really took her plainness seriously. She looks constipated in the second one, but that may be the best of the lot. Maybe it's good to get out of Merchant Ivory prettification, but, seeing this, I'm not so sure...

amcorrea said...

Agreed. I find it hard to believe that they were actually endorsed by the Brontë Society--unless they didn't care what was out there as long as it had Charlotte's name on it.

I had a hardback edition of Jane Eyre when I was younger, but the jacket was *hideous.* (It should've been the cover of The Hunchback of Notre Dame!) I mean, it's bad enough that pretty people like Joan Fontaine and Zelah Clarke tried to play her in film, but this was the opposite extreme. My sisters and I ceremoniously ripped it to shreds and let the confetti flutter out our second-story window... (I love that olive green hardback even more now.)