Literary heroine was not a villain

I WAS most shocked to read that Lynda La Plante had referred to Charlotte Brontë as “an evil, twisted little woman” and “a compulsive liar” (Yorkshire Post, June 16).

I shall be very interested to know on what grounds Ms La Plante makes such statements about a genius who was, to my mind, one of the best authors that ever lived.

I know that a lot of myth has worked its way into the story of her life and the lives of her sisters, and we mustn’t confuse her life story with those of the heroines of her novels, although her fiction was undoubtedly greatly influenced by her experiences at Cowan Bridge School and in Brussels.

Brontë may not have been a saint, but I don’t believe she was a wicked person.

Any study of English literature is incomplete without doing justice to her work.

Stay vigilant

From: Kate Rowland, chief executive, Meningitis UK.

I WAS touched to read your article concerning the warning over dangers of fake digital thermometers, which give inaccurate readings and could pose a threat to youngsters with meningitis.

Everyone at Meningitis UK would like parents to stay vigilant if they suspect meningitis and keep an eye out for the possible symptoms including fever, a headache, stiffness, dislike of bright lights, drowsiness, inability to carry your own weight and a rash.

Griff’s gaffe

From: Stephen Nichols, Leyburn Avenue, Lightcliffe, Halifax.

THE actor and broadcaster Griff Rhys Jones’s Words of the Week quote (Yorkshire Post, June 16) that “I am so old that the Second World War was light entertainment when I was little” seems quite odd when he was born in 1954.

Given the war ended in 1945, I think all that mucking about in boats has dulled his brain somewhat.