Victorian Melodrama in the Twenty-First Century Jane Eyre, Twilight,
This book examines melodramatic impulses in Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre and Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight Saga, as well as the series’ film adaptations and fan-authored texts. Attention to conventions such as crying, victimization,
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KATIE KAPURCH
Victorian Melodrama in the Twenty-First Century
Katie Kapurch
Victorian Melodrama in the Twenty-First Century Jane Eyre, Twilight, and the Mode of Excess in Popular Girl Culture
Katie Kapurch Department of English Texas State University San Marcos, Texas, USA
ISBN 978-1-137-59060-2 ISBN 978-1-137-58169-3 DOI 10.1057/978-1-137-58169-3
(eBook)
Library of Congress Control Number: 2016943537 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2016 The author(s) has/have asserted their right(s) to be identified as the author(s) of this workin accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. Cover illustration: Cover image © itanistock / Alamy Stock Photo Printed on acid-free paper This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by Springer Nature The registered company is Nature America Inc. New York.
To Jon Marc Smith
PREFACE
The heroine looks in a mirror and judges her reflection plain and unimpressive, lacking the qualities her society would consider beautiful. Meanwhile, the moody, brooding object of her affection languishes under the weight of a secret. The heroine confesses contradictory feelings— shared intimately with the reader— of low self-esteem and mounting desire for this captivating, dangerous man. Eventually he confesses his dark secret, along with his reciprocated passion, to the heroine. Just as their bliss is in sight, catastrophe strikes; the couple is fated to suffer in each other’s absence, seemingly doomed by evil forces outside their control. By the final curtain, however, the heroine, aided by supernatural forces, is reunited with her tortured man. Hope for their future is restored. Does the story above sound familiar? Ideally, dear reader, that summary would be accompanied by music, a soundtrack with a sweeping, circular score to cue the emotional ups and downs of anxiety, bliss, despair, and hope. Music completes the melodramatic picture; after all,
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