Jane's too Tough for KISS' Students?

KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons recently spoke to WizardUniverse.com about all things comic, the status of KISS today and whether he's ever turned down sex to read a comic. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow:

And here is the relevant exchange:

Wizard: Was it just Spider-Man, or were there other titles?

Simmons: No, just Spider-Man. [My students] didn't want to read Jane Eyre. Their mom was on crack, their dad was out pimping or whatever and there was drugs and violence, and so they couldn't relate to anything. So I was trying to just get them to be literate. Here was a guy who was hunted by the cops, but he was really a good guy and that's what they felt like, you know?

He speaks as through there is no drugs and violence in Jane Eyre! Perhaps they would have enjoyed Villette a bit more (although it is light on violence... but the drugs are there!). Actually I had a similar problem when I read Wuthering Heights. My family were a very angry lot. When I finished the book, I vividly remember putting it down slowly, and wondering why anyone would write such a book 'full of angry people.' Thankfully I read it again in university.