"Roused by the Change of Scene": Analyzing a Film Adaptation of Jane Eyre

Explain to students that as they read Jane Eyre, they will focus on certain scenes of the novel to study more closely and to compare with the Masterpiece film adaptation.

Ask students to discuss in pairs or small groups recent book-to-film adaptations they have seen and to try to consider why filmmakers might have chosen to make the changes they did.

Explain that even relatively faithful adaptations of literature have to make changes because of the of meaning-making resources/possibilities of film as compared to print text (for example. film combines images and spoken word simultaneously in a way that text, more linear and uni-modal cannot; however, film has difficulty sustaining a first person point of view that written text can do easily). For this particular lesson, students will look for ways in which the film makes changes in

• time, with some elements condensed or deleted to expedite storytelling and with some elements drawn out to focus attention on key images or moments.

• character and point of view, with characters exhibiting different traits or revealed in different ways and with the narrative point of view altered or emphasized differently.

• theme, with key ideas or concepts from the book developed at different times or in different ways.

Ask students to think about the changes they discussed earlier in the lesson and to consider how those fit into any of these categories. What other categories of change did they notice?

Distribute copies of the Jane Eyre Scene Adaptation Analysis & Planning Sheet and point out how it provides structure for an analysis around time, character/point of view, and theme, with space for students to consider facets of adaptation beyond those categories as well.

After reading Chapter 4 of the novel, have students return to the text, re-reading it and answering the relevant questions from the Jane Eyre Film Scene Close Reading Guide.

Have students review their responses to the questions and in small groups predict how this scene might be portrayed in film.  Have them use their Jane Eyre Scene Adaptation Analysis & Planning Sheet to consider ways the film might make alterations in time, character/point of view, and/or theme.

Distribute copies of the Film Terminology and Cinematic Effects Handout and go over the terms, explaining to students that they will have the chance to watch the scene multiple times, looking for what is maintained, emphasized, and changed.  Encourage them to use language from the Film Terminology and Cinematic Effects Handout to describe what they are seeing.

Play the scene First Impressions and ask students to turn and talk about what they noticed, Remind students that they will get to watch the scene again, so they do not need to try to address everything  they notice on the first viewing.

After students have had time to talk, play the scene again, explaining that they will jot notes on the Jane Eyre Scene Adaptation Analysis & Planning Sheet as they view this time.

Facilitate a discussion of what they notice, encouraging them again to use language from the Film Terminology and Cinematic Effects Handout to explain their examples.

On a projected screen, board, or chart paper, make a T-Chart that separates “Elements Altered” and “Elements Kept/Emphasized,” and record student responses to help them see how different the film, scene was from the novel passage.

Ask students to discuss or write about how they think the scenes are improved or diminished in the adaptation.

For homework, ask students to re-read the passage and reflect on what details and language they notice or see differently after viewing the adapted scene.

Repeat the close reading and viewing process from Session Two with other selected scenes, Meeting Mr. Rochester and The Governess.

As the class works through the different scenes, support their developing understanding of how different scenes contain significant changes in different aspects of the text.  Meeting Mr. Rochester, for example, makes alterations around character traits while The Governess addresses theme more explicitly. All of the scenes alter point of view, however, since the film is not shot from exclusively from the perspective of Jane. Discuss how the different scenes adjust to that different point of view throughout the film.

After finishing the novel, brainstorm with students a list of scenes from Jane Eyre that would be interesting to adapt into film version of approximately 2-3 minutes.  Encourage students to think of scenes that would allow for a similar emphasis in adaptation as they have been studying in this lesson: either a key plot moment that they could extend or contract, a key moment for characterization or shifts in point of view, or a key moment when theme is built or developed.

Form groups and invite students to select a scene, asking them to use the Jane Eyre Scene Adaptation Analysis & Planning Sheet to facilitate conversations around what would need to be adapted or changed and what would be kept and/or emphasized.

Share with students students Web resources such as The Writers Store “How to Write a Screenplay” to explore the conventions for page set up and communication of intentions in a screenplay.  Students may also be interested in reviewing Moira Buffini’s Screenplay for Jane Eyre to see how another screenwriter imagined an adaptation, as well as for more practice with formatting and conventions.