a wife!” Mr Rochester asked the man who he was.

“I
am a lawyer for Richard Mason,” he said. “Mr
Rochester is married to Richard Mason’s sister.”
“It is true,” said Mr Rochester. “But she is not the
woman I married. I want you all to see her.” He took
us back to Thornfield Hall. We went to the attic room
at the top of the house. Grace Poole opened the door
for us, and behind her was a wild woman, making
noises like an animal. When the woman saw Mr
Rochester, she jumped on him and tried to scratch
him like a cat. It took three people to get her off. So
this was why Richard Mason was scratched!
“This woman,” said Mr Rochester, “is my wife. She is completely mad. And this lovely
girl,” he said, pointing to me, “is the girl I want to marry.”

Later, Mr Rochester told me that his parents had arranged the marriage with Richard
Mason’s sister because her family were rich. He did not know she was mad then. He had to
get Grace Poole to look after her, and he had to go away to find happiness. Then he met
me and found happiness at home once more. He asked me to stay at Thornfield Hall, but I
knew I had to leave.
I got a job as a teacher at a school in a different village. I found out that I had inherited
a large sum of money from my uncle. I was then rich! The man who gave me the job, Mr
St. John Rivers, asked me to marry him. I did not love him, but thought perhaps it was
the best thing for me. But suddenly I heard a voice
calling, “Jane!” It was the voice of the man I loved,
Edward Rochester. I told Mr St. John Rivers that I had
to leave.
It was a long journey back to Thornfield Hall but I
felt very happy when I walked into its beautiful
garden. But I was shocked to see that Thornfield Hall
was a ruin, with no roof. I went to the nearest village
and asked a shopkeeper: “What has happened to
Thornfield Hall?”

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 The shopkeeper told me the sad story: “The mad woman in the attic started a fire. Mr
Rochester saved the servants, but then saw the mad woman. He ran back inside to save her
too, but when he was inside, she jumped from the
window and died. The fire was now very big and the
roof collapsed. The servants pulled Mr Rochester
from the burning house, but he was badly burned
and now he cannot see.”
The shopkeeper told me that Mr Rochester was now
living with some servants at a small house nearby,
so I borrowed a horse and rode there.
The servant, Mary, opened the door and recognised
me. She asked me in. “Let me take his food to
him,” I said. I took a tray of food and went into the living room. Mr Rochester was
standing by the fire. He looked very sad.
“Ah, give me some water, Mary,” he said. “Mary’s in
the kitchen,” I replied. “Jane!” he cried. “This is my
dream. But a woman like you will not want to be
with a blind man like me!”
I explained how I wanted to make him happy.
“One day when I was in the garden,” he said, “I
called your name. I thought I heard your voice
answer”. I told him that I had heard his voice, too.

Edward Rochester and I soon married. My

husband was completely blind for two
years, then one day he asked, “Are you
wearing a blue dress today, Jane?”
I was delighted. Edward could soon see,
and he was better when our first son was
born. We are now very happy together.

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 Literature Spot 2
TREASURE ISLAND Before you start
1 Read about Robert Louis Stevenson and answer the questions.
BY ROBERT LOUIS 1 Do you know any of his stories? What are they about?
2 If you do not know them, look at the titles. Can you guess what
they are about?
STEVENSON 2 The words below are important in the story. Complete the table.
B A C K G R O U N D Use a dictionary to help you.
Robert Louis Stevenson treasure crew attack battle rich pirate wounded sailor fire
(1850–1894) was born in guns chest coin captain
Scotland and is known for his
words to do with money people on a boat words to do with fighting
adventure stories. As well as
Treasure Island (1883), his
famous stories include Kidnapped
(1886) and The Strange Case of
Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (1886). He
suffered from bad health and
hoped better weather would Reading
make him better, so he often 3 Read the story and answer the questions.
travelled abroad. In 1888, he
moved to Samoa, where he got 1 What do you think the blind man and his friends were looking for?
better for a while before he died 2 Who was Flint and what did he hide?
suddenly at the age of 44. Many 3 What does the map show?
of his stories are now successful 4 What is Long John Silver planning to do?
films. 5 Who left Ben Gunn on Treasure Island?
6 How many people are alive at the end?

4 Read the following sentences. Write them again using the

passive. The answers are in the story.
1 I opened the captain’s chest to take the money the captain owed us.
e.g. I opened the captain’s chest to take the money we were owed.
2 The sun burnt his skin.
3 Something tore his clothes.
4 People left me on the island three years ago.
5 We found the place where people buried the treasure.

Vocabulary
5 Find words in the story that mean the same as the following.
1 a kind of hotel
2 held tightly
3 walked slowly and quietly
4 save from danger
5 an agreement
6 on land, by the sea

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 She took
My name is Jim Hawkins. some coins,
It is the eighteenth century. My and I took
mother owned the village inn, and some
one day an old sailor arrived and papers.
stayed at the inn. He had a large Suddenly
chest with him. “Call me captain,” the blind
he said. “Watch out for a sailor with man came
one leg,” he told me, “and I will give back with
you a coin every month.” He stayed seven other
every night at our inn. men. My
mother and
I hid. The
men saw that
the captain was dead. They
searched the house and found
the chest. “The papers are not
here!” said one of the men. Then
we heard guns firing. It was
Captain Dance with some law
officers. They were looking for
One day, a blind man arrived. He pirates. The men ran off. I showed
grabbed my arm and told me to take Captain Dance the papers from the
him to the captain. The blind man chest. One of them was an old map.
gave the captain a piece of paper,
then ran away. The captain looked
at the paper, fell over and died!
We called
the village
doctor, Dr
Livesey.
Then my
mother and
I opened
the
captain’s
chest to take
the money we
were owed.

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 “The
map
belonged to said Silver,
Flint, one of “we will take
the worst the treasure
pirates that and they can
ever lived,” die!” The sailors
said Captain laughed. I crept
Dance. away and told
“He was also Captain
one of the Smollett,
richest. The Trelawney and
map shows the doctor what Silver said. “We must
where he buried his treasure,” said Dr pretend we do not know their plan,”
Livesey. Squire Trelawney, a rich man said Smollett. We reached Treasure
in our village, decided to hire a ship Island. Most of the crew went on
to look for the treasure. He asked shore. I went on shore too, but
me and Dr Livesey to go with him. alone. No one saw me. I explored
He also hired Captain Smollett, and the island. Suddenly a man jumped
a crew, including a sailor with one out in front of me. His skin was burnt
leg, called Long John Silver. Our by the sun and his clothes were
boat, The Hispaniola, left for torn. I pointed my gun at him.
Treasure Island to look for Flint’s “Who are you?” I asked.
treasure. One night, I heard Long John “My name’s Ben Gunn,” he said.
Silver talking to two sailors. They did “I was left on the island three years
not see me. ago. Can you rescue me? Whose boat is
it?”

“When the doctor

and the squire have
the treasure on I told him about the crew and about
board,” Long John Silver’s plan. He looked
shocked. “I know Silver,” he said.
“He is one of Flint’s men. I came to
the island to look for Flint’s treasure.
When we did not find it, Silver left me
here. But I can help you.

95
 Then
” Meanwhile, Dr Livesey and we heard
Trelawney also went on shore with guns firing.
some men. Suddenly, the ship’s gun Two pirates
began to fire at them. They ran to a died and the
small wooden fort on a hilltop and other turned
hid there. I saw them and joined and ran. Dr
them. The next day, the pirates Livesey, Ben
attacked us. Many people died and Gunn and
were wounded, but we won the another man
battle. The pirates who were not came out
killed ran away. Ben Gunn told me from behind
where a small boat was hidden in the trees.
some bushes. That night I rowed it I was safe!
to the Hispaniola. There was just Dr Livesey explained what had
one pirate, Hands, on the boat now. happened. “Ben Gunn found the
We fought and I pushed him into treasure when he was alone on the
the sea at the far end of the island. He took it into a cave, so
island and walked back to the fort. the map was useless. That’s why
But inside the fort I found Long I gave the map to Silver.”
John Silver and the pirates. The next morning we took the
“Where are my friends?” I treasure to the Hispaniola and
asked. “Well, the Hispaniola has left the three remaining pirates
gone, so we have made a bargain. on the island. There were only five
We will leave them alone if they of us left. We shared the treasure
give us the map,” said Silver. He held among us, and now I am happy and
up the treasure map in front of me. rich!
“Come, boy, you
can help us find
the treasure.”
We followed
the map into
some trees
and found the
place where the
treasure was
buried. But we
found only a
hole. It was
empty!

96