Q & A #1
- Throughout The Autobiography of Jane Eyre, there are episodes labeled as Q&A episodes. Jane uses these to not only make viewers aware that she is interacting with them, but also to create a space to provide information that may not fit perfectly into the episodes. For example, in the first Q&A, Jane gives ample info about Adèle, as well as spotlighting her intelligence. She discusses what she'll be doing with Adèle and elucidates their teacher-student relationship. In fact, this episode seems based around introducing Adèle in a way that seems natural to the web series. Adèle accepts being filmed because Jane is already filming herself and answering questions. Through the Q&A, viewers also begin to get weird snippets of information, such as if she believes in ghosts, her ideal man, and what happened to her phone. Without the Q&A segments, it would be hard to organically get these random facts that build a trust between Jane and viewers, just as Q&A’s of other youtubers do with their viewers (Q&A #1).
Tumblr describes their ask feature, which Jane turns into a Q & A: “Asks are more of a one-off Q&A, not a two-way conversation like messaging. And unlike messages, asks can be published to a blog and reblogged by other users. As the asker (the sender) you can choose to submit a question as yourself or as an anonymous phantom. As the askee (the receiver) you can choose to respond publicly (by publishing to your blog) or privately. One quirk: You can only respond to anonymous asks publicly, since we don’t know who sent it” (“Ask”).
By combining both Tumblr and YouTube, this adaptation of Jane Eyre solidifies itself as a transmedia adaptation. The choice to use a Q & A also echoes the ways in which Jane Eyre address the reader directly, giving the adaptation an additional modern element.
Bibliography: “Ask.” Tumblr, https://tumblr.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/231857168-Ask. Accessed 9 Nov. 2019.
“Q&A #1.” YouTube, uploaded by Jane Eyre, 22 May 2013,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZybrKFxZOdQ&list=PL3NxAiyc- 89HP3wHV2y5mbwi2TidvocKZ&index=9.