Mental Disorders In Jane Eyre By Charlotte Bronte

Mental illness was highly disregarded and an under-researched element in the Elizabethan Era. In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Hamlet, the main character, is commonly analyzed and discussed regarding his mental state. However, another important character with a questionable mental state is Ophelia. Shakespeare utilizes the indirect characterization of Ophelia and the theme of patriarchal conflicts in order to comment on Elizabethans’ views on madness in women. He emphasizes the suppression of women and the detrimental effects associated with said suppression.

Mrs. Reed likewise separates Jane from the Reeds’ social circle by confining her to the nursery while her cousins spend their days in the drawing room (22) and calling Mr. Lloyd, the apothecary for “ailing servants,” instead of the family physician for Jane’s illness (15), thus placing her among the servants. However, the servants too reject Jane from their group—Miss Abbot told Jane that she is “less than a servant” because she does “nothing for [her] keep” (9). Jane thus

Although Jane displays qualities which lead us to believing that she is becoming more independent, her hysteria causes us to see a lack of agency within her character. Ultimately, her hysteria causes her to return to the domestic sphere, which can be critiqued by analyst Carmel L. Morse. Towards the end of the story, Jane makes the decision to call her father and ask for his help: " But, which is to the point, she got to the telephone and called up her father in the city" (57). By relying on the male figure for help, this is an act of agency.

Instead of spending time with his family and old friends, like Jane, he makes up excuses and spends time with people that do not know him well, people that will make him feel like he is getting a fresh start. Running away from his problems and having old ones come to the surface and not dealing with any of them will ultimately lead to him having a breakdown and needing professional help.

The narrator's spiral into madness can be seen as a clear consequence of oppression caused by marital and patriarchal roles. While both narrators depict the importance of women's mental health and the importance of women's autonomy in a patriarchal society, there is a clear difference in how these themes are depicted. While the “yellow wallpaper” ends with the narrator who has been driven to madness, ripping off the yellow wallpaper because she believes there is a woman trapped behind it, “Jane Eyre” ends in a happy ending with Jane married to Rochester who she had a child with. The ways in which marriage is depicted when in relation to women's mental health and patriarchal oppression are completely different, with “The yellow wallpaper” depicting marriage as a clear catalyst for womens madness and “Jane Eyre” showing that patriarchal oppression or madness doesn't necessarily have to occur within a marriage. Though there are no elements of womens madness in “A room of one's own” we can

Bryanna E. McCool Mrs. Dean British Literature 25 January 2018 Mental Illness in Shakespeare’s Macbeth The Tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare, a play wrought with prophecies, deception, guilt, and death, brings light to the symptoms of mental illnesses and their effects on the human brain’s ability to reason, trust, and act in times of pressure. Both Macbeth and his lady are plagued by mental illness, and the effects of their illness only grow as the play evolves. Macbeth’s symptoms of schizophrenia and anxiety, as well as Lady Macbeth’s anxiety as well as hallucinations that eventually push her to suicide prove that not only can mental illness alter the way a person sees a situation, but it can also drive them to harm others and themselves.

He later says, “I now hate the recollection of time I passed with Celine, Giacinta, and Clara” (Brontë 314). {Rochester admits that he regrets wasting time on women who didn’t mean anything to him. Brontë characterizes Rochester as a womanizer with a lack of sense to show that he is not completely a Byronic Hero because he is not smart about his choices and he cannot be isolated which is why he is so desperate to make Jane, who is not like the other woman he has been involved with, his

Bronte 's Jane Eyre transcends the genres of literature to depict the emotional and character development of its protagonist. Although no overall genre dominates the novel exclusively, the vivid use of setting contributes towards the portrayal of Bronte’s bildungsroman (Realisms, 92) and defines the protagonist’s struggles as she grapples with her inner-self, and the social expectations of her gender. The novel incorporates Jane’s frequent conflicts, oppression, isolation and self-examination as she defends her identity and independence. Set amongst five separate locations, Bronte’s skilful use of literal and metaphorical landscapes, nature, and imagery, skilfully intertwines with the plot and denotes each phrase of her maturity.

In Charlotte Bronte’s novel “Jane Eyre” Edward Fairfax Rochester plays a contributing role in Janes development and growth as a character and human being in the Victorian time period. Not only does he play a large role in her independency, but in her emotional and spiritual growth as well. She grows around him whether she likes it or not. Due to Edwards manipulative and seductive nature, jane has to grow and develop in a way that has her frequently questioning her own ideals, whether that be spiritually or morally, and strengthening her independence by constantly refusing her feelings for him and adapting to punishing situations. Edward also opens Janes eyes to a world that is bigger than she realized due to his company at the house, wealth, and opportunities at the favorable Thornfeild manor at which she was employed by him.

While mankind has made substantial progress in ridding the world of diseases, mental illnesses are still prominent, and often overlooked. In the novel Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë highlights illnesses caused by tensions in order to construct a world where mental health problems and internal struggles take on a life of their own. In the case of Catherine Earnshaw Linton and Heathcliff Earnshaw, the body follows the mind 's descent into distress, with mental illness inflating strenuous circumstances. On the surface, the fevers and hallucinations are nothing more than a plot point orchestrated to spawn grief.

Mental illness has a strange history. In the past, people have regarded mental illness as “the work of demons, external spirit forces, and poisons,”(Evelyn), and to this day the cause of mental illnesses is still unknown as they all manifest differently, though some can be described as involving “present distress or impairment in important areas of functioning. Such deviations in thought, feelings, and behavior have been recognized throughout history in all cultures”(Mental Disorders). Even Shakespeare toys around with the concept of mental illness as seen in his play Macbeth; especially when it comes to the character Lady Macbeth. When the audience reads closely between the lines, they will find three mental illnesses that Lady Macbeth has, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and Psychotic depression, and they can all be traced back to one thing: the night of Duncan’s murder.

Jane Eyre: A Quest for True Happiness Charlotte Bronte’s classic heartfelt novel entitled “Jane Eyre” depicts how an unloved orphan constantly wishes for affection and acceptance throughout her life. Even at an early age in life, she never truly understood what it meant to be “loved” and what it means to “love” others. With this, maturing into a young lady definitely opened her eyes to the realities of life. Moreover, the novel also depicts a patriarchal society where women aren’t respected with dignity and equality. In this coming of age novel, discover how a young woman courageously faced her fears and triumphed with love in the end.

Charlotte Brontë´s novel Jane Eyre is considered one of Britain´s most classical literary work. The story consists of a hybrid of three genres, the Gothic novel, the Romance novel and the Bildungsroman and many critics have praised the novel. Though, the novel got a great deal of good criticism in contemporary time, its immediate reception was controversial. The story plays out during the Victorian period in Britain where the social norms were strict and there was a big gap of equality between the genders. This essay will analyse how the gender roles are portrayed and if they are modern or traditional.

Jane Eyre, published in 1847, by focusing on its protagonist’s, Jane’s personality, dependency and self governance. The aim of this study is to look into Jane’s development and analyze her identity with the help of a theoretical framework drawn from psychoanalysis and developmental psychology, and within the context of the Victorian era. The novel focuses on Jane’s experiences and psychological growth from youth to adulthood. Psychoanalytic criticism adopts the methods of "reading" employed by Freud and later theorists to interpret texts or writings.

Charlotte Bronte takes us on a journey from the point which Jane Eyre, the protagonist lives with her aunt and cousins whom very much dislikes her in Gateshead to her going to a boarding school in Lowood, after which she becomes a governess in Thornfield where she falls in love with Mr. Rochester her employer whom she later finds out is married to a mad woman by the name of Bertha Mason, upon her discovery of this she picks up and leaves Thornfield, she then ends up at Marsh End where he meets her relatives. The novel carries us through ever important event in her life, which introduces us to new aspects of her personality, up until her eventual marriage to Mr. Rochester. The novel fits this theme as its protagonist chooses individualism as she refuses to take the role subservience as that of a traditional female of the Victorian era society, she stands up for her rights and want she believes in, she ventures in her own unique thoughts, and stands by her views even if it means disagreeing with those superior to her. Jane comments on the role of women in society and the greater constraint imposed on them. V.S Naipaul’s