Humor As A Tension Reliever
Posted by Rachel on October 04, 1997 at 09:51:23:
In response to "comic relief" in jane eyre, written by greg on October 04, 1997 at 00:29:10
] recently someone on one of the jane austen boards opined that jane eyre desperately needed some lightening up in spots(ala jane austen). i can't remember any funny parts, but i can't remember wanting any, either. anyone else think of a funny bit, or think it needed some?
]there was one part in the '96 zefirelli version that struck me as a ROTFLOL, though(and don't even know if it was supposed to be funny): the morning after rochester's dramatic proposal to jane, she's talking with mrs. f, and mrs. f says, "i thought i must be dreaming! i thought i heard mr. rochester come in and say, that in a month's time you were to be his wife!". to which jane replies, with a priceless mystified innocence, "he said the same to me!", as if to say, "you think it could be a case of sympathetic hallucination?". i howled at that one!
Agreed. I can't really think of any funny parts in the story, or wanting any. If there were any funny parts in that story, it was definitely unintentional. The Bronte sisters were not known for their humor. Maybe, though, some parts appeared funny to reader, as a tension breaker. Some people laugh at things to break the tension. Sometimes I laugh at non-funny points in the book out of that degree of uncomfortability, too much tension in the air.
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