‘British literature through the first half of the nineteenth century was written in the shadow of the French Revolution, with its promise of liberation and its “Reign of Terror.” The Romantic poets championed the rebel - even if it happened to be Satan - in several their works’ (topics). Charlotte Brontë was a writer her entire life and published her first novel, Jane Eyre, in 1847. Even though there was controversial criticism of society's treatment of impoverished women, the book was a success and she continued to follow it with Shirley in 1848. Jane Eyre is an emotional, angry and rebellious child and is surrounded by demanding obedient women. She loves to rebel against Mrs. Reed, St. John Rivers, and even Mr. Rochester, who she ends up marring in the end. Her rebel streak she has is targeted at "inequalities of society” and reacts strongly when she is disgraced due to her class and/or gender. In the novel, Charlotte Bronte wanted her audience to be on the side of her rebellious and defiant child as she stands up to the adult tyranny in her life. Bronte was one of the first who set out to write about what it feels like to be a child as it is recounted by the heroine herself. In the beginning of the book we learn that Jane is set apart from her cousins by her aunt, who is …show more content…
Jane did everything for herself when she was growing up and wasn’t dependent on anyone. When she left the care of Mrs. Reed and started to oversee herself she became very independent, and once she is comfortable with herself and her status that she worked hard for, she settles down. Mr. Rochester does not lavish Jane with expensive clothes and jewelry, per her request because she has no taste for those things because she didn’t grow up with it. She is smart and very opinionated, and she refuses to be silenced by men who feel they have more power over her simply because they are
Jane refuses to accept that her sole purpose is to conform society, be inferior to everyone and ignore her principles and beliefs. However, Jane is not attempting to escape society, she’s attempting to bend its rules. Instead of running away from it, Jane is trying to fit into the society, without having to change who she is. Throughout the years, from being an ungrateful, rebellious orphan, she developed into a strong-minded, independent heiress. In the final chapters of the novel, Jane acquires everything she ever wished for - a social class, a family and the ability to be equal to Mr. Rochester.
Rochester. Mr. Rochester asserts his dominance upon Jane, “‘Miss Eyre, I beg your pardon. The fact is, once for all, I don't wish to treat you like an inferior: that is' (correcting himself), ‘I claim only such superiority as must result from twenty years' difference in age and a century's advance in experience’” (Bronte 332). Namely, Jane has once again become the inferior.
Rochester's first interaction was when Mr. Rochester fell off his horse and Jane helped him in the woods. This might foretell that Jane is going to help Mr. Rochester again when he has troubles and need help getting through them. Then we they meet at the house, he kind of ignored Jane and he was “left alone” and “did not take his eyes off from the group of the dog and child (Bronte 175), however after he asked Jane to sit down, he immediately started acting rude and impolite. Jane felt that this was completely normal, and if he did otherwise, she would be shocked. Then Mr. Rochester deems interested in Jane because of the way she answers all his questions.
Finally, the details about society show that Jane recognizes the standards of her victorian society and needs to abide by them. After Jane had thought awhile, she no longer “felt justified in judging” Mr. Rochester and Blanche for “acting in conformity to ideas and principles instilled into them.” Though Jane wishes to be loved by Mr. Rochester, she comes to the realization that rich men do not marry lower-class women in her
Both characters, venturing out of their gender roles, find ways to compliment and figure out who the other person really is, and, in the end, a burgeoning love fully blooms. When examining the gender roles of Mr. Rochester and Jane, both are a blend of each and life seems better when conventional gender roles are forgotten. In Rochester and Jane’s first meeting, the two begin to show their blended gender roles immediately. Rochester is first described as having a “dark face” with “stern features”, with a complexion that seems, “ireful and thwarted” (146).
If everyone was considered to be a “heroine,” the term would no longer have true meaning. In order to be classified as a true “heroine,” she needs to possess noble qualities such as courage, bravery or determination. A person who is indeed a heroine needs to be their own hero. Throughout the novel, Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, we discover that Jane has many positive qualities. Jane is a heroine, as a result of her most significant trait, courage.
Examine how either text represents either class or gender. Are these representations problematic or contradictory? How do they relate to the plot and structure of the novel? Jane Eyre is a female Bildungsroman written by Charlotte Brontë in 1848.
One of the biggest character foils in Jane Eyre is between Mr. Edward Rochester and St. John Rivers. From the first time we meet these characters, it is easy to tell the two apart. While one is ruled by a religious forces the other is controlled by emotions. Jane has to make a choice, and decide how she is going to live the rest of her life. At the end of the novel, she makes a choice between what is expected of her, and what she wants.
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.
Before Rochester, and his influence, Jane had been accustomed to men in power such as John Reed and Mr. Brocklehurst. Their influences on Jane were more negative as they tore Jane down instead of putting her up. These figures allowed the arrival of a seemingly encouraging, kind, and adoring man such as Rochester to be a shock to Jane when she was first employed at Thornfeild. This stems Janes biggest growth from Rochester, the bettering of her self-esteem. Due to Rochester’s exaggerative language he constantly teaches her the value of her self-worth and her beauty.
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.
With Charlotte Brontë’s father being a clergyman and member of the Church, Charlotte Brontë, as well as her sisters have been in constant contact with religion throughout their whole lives. Even though her father gave Charlotte relative freedom in developing her own ideas and beliefs, religion was an important factor in Charlotte Brontë’s life nevertheless. Through Jane Eyre Charlotte Brontë expresses several issues of Victorian Britain, such as gender equality or the class system but religion is a reoccurring and omnipresent subject in Jane Eyre. Throughout the whole novel Jane is confronted with religious characters such as Mr Brocklehurst, Helen Burns and St. John Rivers. Those characters all represent three vastly different variations of Christian faith in the Victorian Era.
As an adult, Jane asserts her independence by rejecting unequal marriage. When Jane finds out that the man she was to marry, Mr. Rochester, was already wed, she ran away. Mr. Rochester pleaded passionately for her to stay, revealing his unfortunate history and even threatening to use physical force to restrain Jane. Both tactics failed since, as Jane puts it, her conscience personified strangles her passion for Rochester. Being a mistress to Rochester in addition to being financially and socially inferior to him prompts her to leave him.
Charlotte Bronte knew as one of the most talented women authors of the Victorian era. She and her sisters, Emily and Anne grow up in Victorian England, they were inspired by the Romantic authors, and all of them write masterpieces in English literature. Charlotte Bronte faced a lot of difficulties, and obstacles in her life even though she manages to write important works in English Literature. For example, Jane Eyre, The Professor, Shirley, and Villette. At first, she writes Jane Eyre under pseudonym Currer Bell.
Topic: Marriage in “Jane Eyre” In “Jane Eyre” Charlotte Brontë rejects the traditional role of women subdued by social conceptions and masculine authority by generating an identity to her female character. Thesis: Jane´s personality will bring into being a new kind of marriage based on equality, meanwhile her choice for romantic fulfilment will depend solely on her autonomy and self-government. Introduction Charlotte Brontë´s “Jane Eyre” stands as a model of genuine literature due to the fact that it breaks all conventions and stereotypes and goes beyond the boundaries of common romance in order to obtain love, identity and equality. 1.