The only thing more gothic than the story Jane Eyre is the life of its author, Charlotte Bronte. She and her famous sister, Emily (Wuthering Heights), grew up in circumstances that threw the two girls, three other sisters (two of whom died) and one brother on their own resources, particularly after their mother died. Against this background, Jane Eyre takes on added resonance. A gentlewoman in service to the reclusive and solitary Mr. Rochester, Jane develops a secret love for him which he senses and reciprocates. The Rochester home catches fire, burns to the ground...and reveals everything, particularly the crazed Mrs. Rochester, Hidden in the attic, where she perishes. Rochester, thought blinded, is now free.