Jean Brodie is one of the immortals of English literature and if you don't know her and her type then you are missing out on something significant. After the great war there were lots of woman like her who led lives of spinsters deprived of their men by grim visaged combat. Brodie is an egoist, that's true, but she is also a teacher, and a good one. She knows that safety doesn't come first. Goodness, Truth, and Beauty come first and if you have to fight the establishment for those things, as she does, more power to you. Anyway, that's the way I felt when I read this work the first time. But when I read it the second, I came away with a feeling that I had been duped. Maybe it was because I knew Brodie's dark side. Maybe it was because Brodie abused power (look what she did to poor Mary) as well she was abused by power. Maybe it was because the defects in the writing, the poor transitions, the awkward dialog called greater attention to themselves the second time around. I don't know. You read it twice and let me know what you think.