Question

I'm writing an essay for English on symbolism in Jane Eyre. Which of the following statements with multiple possessive nouns are written correctly?

"...Bertha Mason sets fire to Mr. Rochester's bedroom, marking a turning point in Jane and Mr. Rochester's relationship..."

OR

"...Bertha Mason sets fire to Mr. Rochester's bedroom, marking a turning point in Jane's and Mr. Rochester's relationship..."

Answer 1

The first sentence is correct.

Explanation:

When two or more people own the same item, place an apostrophe before an "s" only after the second person. The second sentence is incorrect, but while we're here, I'll tell you when to attach " 's " to both people in the sentence. When two or more people are mentioned in the same sentence, but own different things, each name should take the possessive form.

For example:
"...Bertha Mason sets fire to Mr. Rochester's bedroom, marking a turning point in Jane's marriage and Mr. Rochester's relationship..."

(I made up this sentence, this may not be what happens in Jane Eyre, this is just to illustrate a point)

BTW, good luck with your essay! :)

-Arbegla