Comparing Jane Eyre And The Tenant Of Wildfell Hall

The circumstances forced upon the protagonists, in both 'Jane Eyre’ and 'The Tenant of Wildfell Hall', mirrored the reality of 19th century Britain’s “period of seismic political and social turbulence” (Rigby, 1848), a time which radically reduced the female protagonists’ possibility of broader horizons, by enforcing them to a life of domesticity. Charlotte Bronte's nineteenth-century fiction ‘Jane Eyre’, published in 1847 the novel "dazzled and shocked readers with its passionate depiction of a woman's search for equality and freedom" (STEVIE DAVIES 1996). Composed of three volumes, the first-person narrative provides a retrospective of the tempestuous pilgrimage of an eponymous heroine into adulthood. Residing primarily in the bildungsroman

genre, the protagonist is faced with individuals who have the ability to jeopardise her independence, such as her unconventional relationship with her sardonic employer. In order to stabilize her independence and broaden her horizons, Jane must adapt both her circumstances and environment. A year after the publication of 'Jane Eyre’, Anne Bronte published 'The Tenant of Wildfell Hall' in 1848. Frequently lablled as a feminist testament, the novel comments on "the domestic ideology that subordinated women". (Diedrerich, 2003) The epistolary novel begins with the omniscient narrator of Gilbert Markham, who becomes increasing captivated with the manifestation of Helen Graham, who moved to derelict Hall with her young son. As the plot progresses, the reader gains Helen's viewpoint, through her diary, which consists a detailed account of both martial and artistic oppression. In both novels, the Brontë sister’s explore themes of classism, proto-feminism, Victorian gender roles, and patriarchal domination. Both protagonists must partake in psychological and moral pilgrimage in order to gain a true sense of self-worth and autonomy. In order to evaluate whether the novels explore the possibility of broaden horizons for women; it is necessary to explore variables that reduce them. In this essay, I will firstly look at external factors, such as social attitudes and ideals, which contributed to the protagonists’ subordinated position in society, which led to their oppression within the domestic sphere. In addition, I will examine the use of oppressive dialect, which reinforced social attitudes, whilst using the extreme case of Bertha Mason to represent complete physical and mental oppression. Thirdly, I will examine the heroines’ defiance to conform to these gender roles, and their varied success to escape them. To conclude, I will evaluate to what extent the novels create the possibility of broader horizons for women.

It could be argued that both The Tenant of WildFell Hall and Jane Eyre explore the restricted horizons for women, due to the presence of oppressive nineteenth-century social attitudes, which enforced unrealistic gender roles upon the protagonists. In her illuminating exploration of 19th-century gender roles, Kathryn Hughes notes, that due to the Victorian sociolect “women were considered physically weaker yet morally superior to men, which meant that they were best suited to the domestic sphere” (Hughes, 2014). The Victorian ideology of separate spheres contributed to oppressive ideals, which emphasized men’s suitability to physically demanding careers, and women to the domestic household. (Hughes, 2014) Either marital commitments or a career path consolidated a women’s seclusion to the domesticity: such as Helen’s marriage to Mr Huntingdon, and Jane Eyre’s role as a governess at Thornfield Hall. In their pertinent feminist reading of Jane Eye, Gilbert and Gubar note that in male-authored books, women are either characterized as an ‘angel’ or a ‘monster’ (Sandra Gilbert & Susan Gubar, 1979). Their argument relates to the unrealistic ideal of The Angel in the House, which originated from Coventry Patmore’s 1854 poem. The poem manifested "a model of the domestic goddess, who apparently retained her chastity even as wife and mother.” (Furneaux, 2014). The virginal idea that a wife must remain pure in marriage, even after baring children, created an unattainable sexual standard for women in the nineteenth century. The symbolic imagery of an angel creates a godly depiction of a woman, which arguably reaches a hubristic degree. In her judicious reading of Victorian Sexuality, Dr Holly Ferneaux notes “gendered ideals of the sexual purity of the respectable woman, though never unchallenged, helped to enshrine a sexual double-standard.’ (Furneaux, 2014). This is best exemplified in Mr Huntingdon’s treatment and sociolect of his wife, which reinforced her place within the domestic sphere. The protagonist commented that her husband’s “idea of a wife is a thing to love one devotedly and to stay at home – to wait upon her husband and amuse him, and minister to his comfort in every possible way.” (Bronte, 1848) In the novel, Arthur Huntingdon’s directly references the domestic ideal, referring to Helen as an “Angel monitress” (Bronte, 1848), or ‘my patron saint” (Bronte, 1848). The inclusion of the personal pronoun ‘my’, asserts Huntingdon’s ownership over his wife, whilst the hubristic noun ‘saint’ alludes to her angelic status. In addition, the noun ‘angel’ refers to a massager of god, or a “person of exemplary conduct of virtue.” (Dictionaries, 2017). Similarly, the word choice ‘monitress’ also references the ideal. Originating from the 18th century, the noun ‘monitress’ describes a “female school pupil assigned disciplinary or other special responsibilities,” (Dictionaries, 2017). A monitress’ ‘special responsibilities’ could be directly referencing the domestic sphere, which both protagonist and women were ‘assigned’ by society, to adhere to. Bronte’s choice of diction and Huntingdon’s idea of the perfect wife, could be interpreted as her attempt to address the impact of oppressive social attitudes, which directly affected the minds of Victorian society, and in turn contributed to reduce the horizons for women.

Similarly, In Jane Eyre the social prejudices of the Victorian era, also reduced the horizons of its female protagonist.

Jane’s role as a governess in Victorian society, exposed her to enforcement of classism, which led to the oppression of her sexuality. In her judicious reading of Jane Eyre, Esther Godfrey noted that ‘the role of a governess created a hole in the invisible wall between working-class and middle-class gender identities.” Invalid source specified. Unable to associate herself with the residence of the house, due to her station, and ostracized from the servants due to her intellectual ability: a governess was often viewed as contempt by all levels of the social hierarchy. It could be argued that Brontë characterizes Mrs. Fairfax as the social voice of Thornfield House, vocalizing the Victorian attitudes surrounding classism. For instance, at first sighting of Jane’s relationship with her employer, Mrs Fairfax notes “Gentlemen in his station are not accustomed to marry their governess"(9p306 JE). By characterizing her protagonist as a governess, Brontë highlights this social limbo, which created oppressive social attitude and ideals. Whilst in marriage, wives had to maintain an angelic image of sexual purity, due their limited ability to find acceptable suiters within the domestic sphere, governesses were forced to suppress their own sexual desires. Although Jane appears to reject the idea of the Angel of the House, stating “I am not an angel, and I will not be one till I die: I will be myself.”(JE), her relationship with her employer creates the danger of her becoming a ‘Fallen woman’. The equally oppressive ideal of a Fallen women, describes a woman who “has “lost her innocence”, and fallen from the grace of God. In 19th-century Britain especially, the meaning came to be closely associated with the loss or surrender of a woman's chastity.” (Dictionary, 2017). The fallen women creates vivid imagery of a female’s descent from an angelic status upheld

by the Angel of the House. Like the tragic hero in Paradise Lost, a women’s fall becomes her sexually promiscuity, and sex outside of marriage thus becomes a women’s peripeteia, a point of no return. Despite Rochester’s marriage proposition, despite his attempt to hide his wife, Bertha Mason’s presence, by law, results in Jane’s potential marriage to Rochester becoming void. In addition to Rochester’s legal unavailability as a suiter, forces Jane to unknowingly assume the position of a mistress. In Victorian Britain, the figure of a mistress was a woman who embodied sexual promiscuity, and in turn became the fallen women. Rochester expresses Victorian society’s opinions, stating the presence of a “mistress is the next worst thing to buying a slave: both are often by nature, and always by position, inferior; and to live familiarly with inferiors is degrading'" (328-329). In its archaic dialect, a mistress can be defined as “a woman (other than the man's wife) having a sexual relationship with a married man.” (Dictionary, 2017) In the light of this, Rochester’s statement becomes deeply ironic as Jane, in the eyes of Victorian society, assumes the position of a mistress. Jane has furthered her subordinated position as a governess, in her unknowing role as a mistress. Thus emphasizing Jane’s complete inferiority, her social position renders her relationship ‘degrading’ and severely socially unacceptable. In the light of this, it could be argued that Charlotte Brontë uses her protagonist’s career as a governess, to actively critique oppressive social hierarchy, and Brontë therefore uses Jane’s relationship to comment on the fragility of gender roles and classism, which helped to enshrine a sexual double standard, and in turn restricted the horizons of women.