Top Ten Tuesday: Classic Romances

This week's TTT topic from That Artsy Reader Girl is a "romantic freebie," so I'm doing my list of Top Ten Favorite Romantic Pairings from Classic Literature.  Naturally, I could have filled this whole thing with romances from Jane Austen's novels alone, but I made myself only include three of hers so as to make my list a bit broader.  Titles are linked to my reviews if I've reviewed that particular title.  Also, there might be some SPOILERS lurking here, so um... proceed with caution?  

1.  Jane Eyre and Edward Rochester from Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte.  Both of them have endured so much unhappiness in the past, and they actually cause each other some unhappiness throughout the book too, but by the end, they have both grown into mature people who have learned to love, trust, and cherish each other.

2.  Anne Elliot and Captain Frederick Wentworth from Persuasion by Jane Austen.  They're the king and queen of second chances, aren't they?  Both must learn to be whole and healthy on their own, and then they are ready to give each other a lifetime of happiness.

3.  Anne Shirley and Gilbert Blythe from the Anne of Green Gables books by L. M. Montgomery.  I love that we get to see their love story beyond the meet-cute and the early stages of romance.  We follow them into marriage and parenthood, and they remain just delightful.  I wish so much that the last few books of the series had more Anne and Gilbert in them.

4.  Eowyn and Faramir from The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien.  Two more damaged people who help each other heal and become ready for the future.  One has spent her life yearning for activities and accolades she's not allowed to pursue, and the other has spent his life yearning for the love and acceptance his father won't give him.  Once they both accept that who they are is who they are meant to be and stop chasing after things and people they can't have, they are ready to begin their new lives together.

5.  Catherine Morland and Henry Tilney from Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen.  They might win the prize for Most Adorable Couple.  Or come in second after Anne and Gilbert?  Catherine learns to understand people and herself, and she learns so much of that from Mr. Tilney, who also has to learn to be serious and sensible now and then.  But not too often.

6.  Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy from Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.  Opposites attract!  They really do!  Especially when two opposite people are willing to accept and learn from each others' differences.

7.  Beatrice and Benedick from Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare.  These two.  Oh, these two.  They both have to learn to just shut up once in a while, to not say things they'll regret just because they're funny or clever.  

8.  Margaret Hale and John Thornton from North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell.  Two judgemental people who discover that first impressions are a really bad thing to base your opinions of people on. 

9.  Esther and Judah Ben-Hur from Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ by Gen. Lew Wallace.  Mostly I love these two for their stubbornness.  My goodness, both of them refuse to let go of things, be it love or revenge.  Happily, Esther teaches Judah how to turn his stubbornness to good uses by the end.

10.  Dorothea Casaubon and Will Ladislaw from Middlemarch by George Eliot.  I love that although these two developed feelings for each other while Dorothea was married to someone else, they never acted on those feelings, but instead acknowledged that feelings are not the most important things in the world.  And that fits them for being happy together by the end, because they know that understanding and appreciating a person is more important than just gooshy, smooshy feelings for them.  

So... I think we see a pretty clear pattern here, don't we?  I love couples who learn from each other and help each other become better, happier people.

Have you read any of these?  Do you have any patterns in the romances you like best?  Did you do TTT this week?

Although I didn't formally sign up to participate in this yet, I'm linking this post up with Cordy's Lovely Blog Party hosted on her blog, Any Merry Little Thought.  It's a month-long party focusing on fictional love stories, which is exactly what this post is about!

Don't forget that today is the last day you can enter my book giveaway!  Go here to enter if you haven't already.  I'll be drawing the winners tomorrow.