As before, he always fell silent, letting her talk about it without interruption, especially because she had allowed him the same courtesy. He really listened when she spoke, genuinely interested in her thoughts. He nodded with what she was saying, biting thoughtfully at his lower lip for a second. It was definitely something he hadn't thought of before, but he knew she was onto something. He smiled, and waggled his eyebrows as if she'd just said something really filthy. "Mmm, you bet I am," he teased. And he did find literary analysis kind of a turn on sometimes, when it was with the right person. He felt like you could really get to know a person this way.
And then she had some interesting points to make about Bronte as well, and he shifted slightly, leaning towards her as she spoke, taking in everything she was saying. "Yeah, you know, she was a total bitch- not the most intellectual way of putting it, but she really is. She's very self-obsessed, and- does she really care? You could go through it and read her both ways, as a victim herself, or- I guess that's what I liked about it, that's it's not... here's your good character, here's your evil character, they're layered, they have reasons and motivations and none of them are innocent, and as much as they're horrid, I don't think... they're evil, so to speak."
He nodded, and then smiled as she touched his arm. "Yes, but that's exactly why it was thought of as... vulgar, immoral even," he told her. "The society at the time she wrote it... they wanted people to conform, they wanted books that were the absolute opposite. Rebel and you will be bitter and angry, conform and you'll feel much, much better," he told her, with a bit of a smirk. "Bronte was warning the reader against the expectations of her society. And that never sits well with the old Victorians."