Today was the last day of my Bronte seminar and we spent the time looking at Rare Bronte books. I was surprised to find that my library actually has a copy of the very first edition of the "Poems by Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell" which only sold 2 copies in when it was first published! There was also the original of "Cottage Poems" by Patrick Bronte.

I was disconcerted in class today, however. Refering to her letters to M.Heger, a classmate remarked about how "disgustingly pathetic" Charlotte was. She thought Charlotte had no shame or morality. She asked "How retarded must she have been to go after a married man, when she knew it was fruitless?"

I retaliated. I could not bear to have Charlotte spoken in such vile language. I think it is just preposterously mean to say such things about someone, even if they are dead. Just because the dead can't speak back doesn't mean that others have the right to disrespect them in such terms.

Whatever Charlotte's motives might have been, only she knows what they were. We can speculate but that is all. There are two sides to every story. Though what Charlotte did must have been imprudent, there is more to sympathize as well. For one, she longed for intellectual stimuation. Loneliness is a frightful thing. It can drive people to lose their sanity, and thus, their sense of perspective. We do know that Charlotte was very depressed after she came back from Brussels. Her letters to M. Heger could have been her attempt to distract herself from her emotional troubles, rather than having another agenda altogether. In her biography of Charlotte called "Charlotte Bronte: A Passionate Life", Lyndall Gordon suggests that Charlotte's letters to M.Heger grew out of a need to excercise her intelligence and skills as a writer, rather than a romantic entanglement with him. Whatever the case maybe, her spirits had sunk after she came back from Brussels. I wonder why this particular classmate was bent on berating Charlotte than pitying her. Furthermore, M.Heger ceased to respond to her letters even as a friend or mentor and actually tore her letters to pieces. Shouldn't that only increase sympathy for Charlotte?

Perhaps it is because I am Charlotte Bronte fan that I do sympathize with some of her actions. Of course no one is perfect. The same applies to Charlotte. I do see she had faults, but so do all of us. She might have done something foolish in a momeont of weakness, but that weakness also demands attention and study. Merely blaming the act itself will not do.

The other issue that came up as I spoke on Charlotte's behalf, was a question about why Charlotte behaved in such a way instead of staying calm like Anne. I responded by saying that Anne turned to her religion for comfort, whereas Charlotte did not consider religion as solace in the same light as Anne did. Then the girl who questioned me asked, "Then why is she so supportive of "her faith" and so hateful towards the Catholics in Villette? Surely she is lying one way or another".

This comment bothered me. Villette is a work of art. Charlotte Bronte is the artist, she is an individual. Although Villette might be a "semi-autobiographical" novel, it is not meant to portray everything that happened in Charlotte's own life, including her beliefs. One can talk about something but may not follow it too well. They may not wish to. It migth be a weakness, but it might not. But this is what makes us human. For some people, religion is found wanting. For others, it suffices well. Some burn with creative energies, for others the fire is easily vanquished. But my paint was, perhaps Charlotte could not express herself in any way, even by turning to Scripture in the manner Anne did, other than by sinking into gloom and writing those letters. Perhaps she was wrong to do so. But this is what I find real in Charlotte. She is weak, like all of us, and she knows it. But the fact that she rose from that weakness and did such great works proves that everyone has the potential to rise from thier misfortunes.