The L-Shaped Room

For Those Who Haven't Read The Book:

The L-Shaped Room by Lynne Reid Banks is a novel about an unmarried woman called Jane who finds herself pregnant in 1950s Britain. This comes as a shock to both her and her father, who then forces her out of their house, and she moves into a rundown boarding house, where she meets other people who society has isolated. The book is narrated from her point of view which helps to create a bond between the reader and Jane, particularly during the times when she is treated horribly. This can be very shocking at times, especially for readers who are younger. Altogether enlightening and enjoyable to read.


For Those Who Have:
(Warning: may contain some spoilers - you have been warned)

The first time I read The L-Shaped Room I was not really expecting to be so moved by Jane's experiences. As a teenager who had not been around during the 50s, I didn't realise just how much women who were not married were ostracised if they accidentally fell pregnant. I found it interesting as a woman to read how almost all the men in the novel placed the blame solely on Jane for the pregnancy. She is referred to as a 'tart' and even Dr Graham, an educated man, tells her that she is morally obligated to have an abortion, and refuses to listen to what she wants. And then later on Dr Maxwell blames her for nearly having a miscarriage, saying that she must have deliberately caused it. The 'other' Jane (one of the prostitutes) is used to represent how the rest of society views her, however later on, as we get to know the characters, we realise just how wrong that generalisation is. Even her friend John tells her that she is no better than a prostitute. As well as this, the fact that Jane herself chooses to live in the boarding house and doesn't, at first, decorate, when she could have moved into somewhere nicer because she almost wants to punish herself, shows how deeply set these negative attitudes are, that she almost blames herself.

The boarding house in the novel is a microcosm for British society, so again there are harsh attitudes towards the other characters in the boarding house: John, a black man whose face scares Jane when she sees it for the first time; Toby, a Jewish writer who is Jane's somewhat tragic love interest; and the two prostitutes in the basement. As well as hostility towards women in Jane's position, there is racism towards John and Toby; Toby even tells Jane that she wouldn't have wanted to marry him because of his religion, and even Jane is scared by the idea of being close to John. This again was a surprise at how normal it was for her to have these feelings. Toby is also discriminated against because of his career as a writer, as at the time it is seen as an inferior job. Finally, the attitude towards the prostitutes and how they were in the basement, at the bottom of society, was very clever. They also show how women were seen as the inferior gender, but also held to a higher standard than men, as they are the ones who are outcasts, not the men who use them, who are the ones that allow them to continue what they are doing. The reader learns more about the 'other' Jane whose character defies everything that people think about prostitutes as she is kind and considerate, which is demonstrated by her concern for Jane when she is having her miscarriage.

As I have previously mentioned, Jane does have her own prejudices throughout the novel, at the start it is towards John, but she also tells the reader about an experience she had when she was a young actress. There was an actor in her theatre group who was gay and had a crush on another actor in the group, so she and this other actor decided to make sure that this man saw the two of them kissing. This plan resulted in Jane being attacked and ashamed, to the point where she left her acting career behind.

This novel is all about prejudice and isolation, and I think that Lynne Reid Banks has created a story that highlights how cruel a species humans can be, and how we need to be more accepting about people who are different and are in difficult circumstances because it can happen to everybody. I also believe that now in the 21st century the book is even more striking, as it lets us enter a world that is becoming day by day more foreign to us.