Ok well I officially hate the metaphors in this book as of the end of Chapter 23. I guess it really isn't the book, but just the one metaphor at the very end where the chestnut tree got "struck by lightning and half of it split away." This leads to many possible false conclusions, the most obvious of which is that one of the two lovers is going to die, specifically Rochester as Jane is relating this as a past story (one thing I hate about books told in the first person past it leaves no room for suspense). However I want to propose that maybe that is suggesting that Blanche is going to attempt to kill Jane. I'm just trying to come up with a metaphor foreshadowing that isn't as obvious
4 comments:
I disagree that books written in first person have no room for suspense, i'm finding this book at least slightly suspenseful with the mystery at Thornfield and the growing love of Rochester by Jane. However I am behind in the book and though struggling to catch up, could be missing out on something key.
I was more referring to the fact that you know there is no possibility for the narrator to die (not something I'm ever hoping for) but in any suspense book that has that possibility, if it is told from the first person you know that the main character survived.
Now that you've read ahead, perhaps you see the portent in the tree for what it is: a way of foreshadowing the coming "split" between Jane and Rochester (though there's still that bit of life and connection between them at the roots--so what are we to make of that?).
As for Kirk's comment regarding the inability of first person narratives to accommodate any suspense--have you read any Poe (or any of the hundreds of other writers who have managed to thrill readers through the use of first person)?
I'm not saying they aren't thrilling, it's just that it makes it much more difficult to feel any worry for the main character
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