Using Classics in My Novels
Author Julia Bryan Thomas shares three classic novels discussed in her novel, The Radcliffe Ladies’ Reading Club.
I’ve always been drawn to books about bookshops. After all, when reading is one’s favorite pastime, what could be better than immersing oneself in a story about books?
The concept for my novel The Radcliffe Ladies’ Reading Club came to me in pieces. First, a bookshop would be central to the storyline, and second, after attending the Yale Writers’ Workshop the summer before the pandemic, I knew I wanted to write an Ivy League story about the experiences of young women embarking on their college career.
The final element came in the form of a book club where the owner, Alice Campbell, shares classic literature with these students in the hope that it will spark interest in redefining a woman’s place in the world.
I have always loved classic literature, so I sorted through some of my favorites and made a tentative list of books that have made an impact on my life. Several resonated with me anew, and I would like to share why three in particular were interesting to write about in The Radcliffe Ladies’ Reading Club.
Check out Julia Bryan Thomas' The Radcliffe Ladies' Reading Club here:
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The first novel the book club discusses is Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë, which is, in my opinion, one of the greatest novels ever written. It transcends class and societal expectations as the two main characters, Jane Eyre and Edward Fairfax Rochester, discover that despite their different stations in life, they are perfectly suited to one another in temperament, intelligence, and education. Through their story, the impressionable young college students in my book are being given a glimpse of what a balanced relationship looks like.
The wealth, privilege, and stubborn irascibility of Mr. Rochester is tempered by the sensible, unruffled demeanor of Jane Eyre. A relationship develops between them as if they were equals, rather than the wealthy landowner and penniless governess they were. The strength of Jane’s character and convictions impresses Edward as no one else ever has, and she sees him not as a steppingstone to a wealthier life, but as the person he is, a tragic human being whom no one has ever understood.
In 1955, the students in my book are 18 years old, looking forward to the day they might marry a man for whom they would cook dinners and raise beautiful children. Alice Campbell shares Jane Eyre with these starry-eyed dreamers, allowing the power of literature to help them consider a different idea of marriage, one based on mutual love and respect.
Check out Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre here:
Not all the books that I discussed in Radcliffe were novels. One of my favorites, Virginia Woolf’s 1929 book of essays A Room of One’s Own. is chosen as one of Alice’s book club selections. In 1928, Ms. Woolf had delivered lectures to two women’s colleges at the University of Cambridge, which were expanded and published the following year. In them, she explored the themes of women’s education, freedom, and autonomy.
Her central argument begins with the idea that men are free to write and become great thinkers because they are not dependent on anyone for financial support and are allowed to live and create as they wish. Throughout history, women have often been limited to complete dependency and therefore, had to serve others to secure not only their status in life but also their very existence. Even in the 1950s, women often went from their father’s house to their husband’s, with no option of supporting themselves or pursuing a career.
Of course, in subsequent years, women began flocking to colleges for an education, and their rights were earned little by little through the following decades. During the writing of my book, however, we have seen some chipping away of women’s rights once again, making it a timely point of discussion for today’s readers.
Check out Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own here:
Do women have the right to an education? Do they have the right to make money and make their own choices, as men do? Do they have the right to freedom of expression and to write the books they wish to write? We live in an age where books are banned every day, a reminder that there are current efforts underway seeking to curtail free speech.
Just one month ago, I was invited to speak to a group of Middle Eastern immigrant women, who expressed their appreciation for the ability to read and discuss books here in the United States that deal with subjects such as freedom and rights, something Americans often take for granted. Yet, as we have seen over the past year, books have not only been targeted in schools but in public libraries in some cases, making Virginia Woolf’s case for encouraging an educated reading and writing public as critical today as it was in 1929.
Another novel I used in Radcliffe was Anna Karenina. While there are too many elements in Tolstoy’s story to discuss it in detail, I chose to focus on a close look at marriage in 1875 and contrast it with the concept of marriage in the 1950s. In both of these eras, convention was very much a part of a relationship between a man and his wife. I was struck upon rereading it that Anna Karenina was only 26 years old when the story takes place, making it more accessible to the younger reader.
Check out Leo Tolstoy's Anna Karenina here:
The themes of innocence versus experience, as well as love versus duty were decidedly interesting topics for a book club discussion. When Anna has an extramarital affair with a young cavalry officer, Count Vronsky, her husband uses control of their son as a means to stop it. Alexei Karenin considered his wife and son his property. This idea becomes a heated topic among my young book club members, as they wrestle with the notion of rights in the comfortable confines of a bookshop where ideas are free for the taking.
Relationships, freedoms, and basic human rights: These are all important things to consider when it comes to understanding the world around us. Using the backdrop of a bookshop in The Radcliffe Ladies’ Reading Club, I’ve tried to show that classic literature is as relevant to our lives today as when it was first written and can still be a guide to young people just beginning to chart their course in life.
Julia Bryan Thomas is a graduate of Northeastern State University and the Yale Writers' Workshop and the author of For Those Who Are Lost. She is married to mystery novelist Will Thomas.
