Injustices of Jane Eyre

Readers are exposed to the different reactions of Jane, Helen, and Miss Temple to injustice. In Charlotte Brontë’s novel, Jane Eyre, there is a great deal of injustice done to these three characters. Jane suffers with injustice throughout her lifetime, from Mrs. Reed’s abuse to Mr. Brocklehurst’s false accusations. She finds it hard to ignore it and always wants to take revenge. Although Helen also suffers from injustice in Lowood, she does not take action because she believes that justice will be found in G-d’s ultimate judgment. Miss Temple, a teacher at Lowood, is a great role model to the girls at Lowood. If injustice is done to her students, she will stand in their defense and only look at the good. Jane, Helen, and Miss Temple all respond to injustices in different ways at different times.

Jane, the main character in this novel, is forced to contend with oppression, inequality, and hardship throughout her youth. Mrs. Reed’s son, John, abuses Jane for no good reason and Jane gets punished for defending herself for she cannot stand the injustice being done to her. Mrs. Reed then sends her off to Lowood and before Jane leaves, she tells her aunt that she will spread her bad reputation to anyone who asks her how her aunt treated her. This defense made by Jane proves that she cannot endure the injustice without fighting back and taking revenge. At 10 years old, Jane travels to Lowood to go to school. There, she meets Helen Burns, who becomes her best friend. When Mr. Brocklehurst announces to the whole school that Jane is a deceitful person and a liar, Jane cannot stand the unfairness being done to her. Helen calms her down by giving her advice that goes like this: “Jane says to Helen, ‘And if I were in your...

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...a meed liberally. One strong proof of my wretchedly defective nature is, that even her expostulations, so mild, so rational, have not influence to cure me of my faults, and even her praise, though I value it most highly, cannot stimulate me to continued care and foresight” (Brontë 47). It is due to Miss Temple’s intervention that Jane is saved from the false accusations of Mrs. Reed and Mr. Brocklehurst.

Jane, Helen, and Miss Temple all take action to their circumstances in different ways. I believe that Helen’s way is the most correct. When Helen is being reprimanded or rebuked for her wrongdoings, she accepts it and feels that this is what she deserves. As a Christian follower, she believes in putting the love of G-d before everything else. I feel that that is very great of her.

Bibliography:

Bronte, Charlotte. Jane Eyre. New York: Penguin, 1985.