More handpicked essays just for you.
Jane eyre struggle for identity and independence in jane eyre
Themes in jane eyre essay
The setting in Jane Eyre, essay
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Shortly after birth, Jane Eyre Becomes an exile. She physically lives in her aunt’s manor, but she is effectively exiled from the feeling of belonging that can only be found in meaningful familial connections. Her aunt treats her poorly and her cousins, when not ignoring her, openly bully her. She is isolated and, although technically within the boundaries of a stately house, homeless. Jane’s exile from a family and her search for deep human connection drive the plot of the book and is integral to her finally finding a home in her marriage to Mr. Rochester. The first place that Jane’s quest takes her is to the Lowood school. She likes most of the girls there as one does with most sets of acquaintances: some are pleasantly tolerable while others …show more content…
The exception to this rule comes in the form of one Helen Burns. Jane comes to see Helen as a sister. Helen provides an intellectual viewpoint for jane to aspire to, and a reserved sisterly love. Jane uses Helen as a confidante and mentor, although Helen is not a beacon of unbridled optimism; she has a very fatalistic view on life, simultaneously zen and depressing. After one conversation, Jane says, “I was silent: Helen had calmed me; but in the tranquility she imparted there was an alloy of inexpressible sadness.”(59). The unfortunate reality of Jane’s and Helen’s lives is that they are living in trying conditions. The girl’s bond over the hardships they experience, as well as the fact that they both exhibit an intellectual curiosity in an atmosphere that emphasizes conformity and procedural piety over discovery. Unfortunately Helen becomes ill and eventually dies. However Miss Temple, who has become a sort of mother to Jane, …show more content…
Rochester is is where she finds the deep connection that changes the course of her life. They have a quick, witty rapport and are very alike though seemingly different. When they first meet, Mr. Rochester implies that Jane is a leprechaun as a joke. Jane responds with a straight face, “the men in green all forsook England a hundred years ago.”(104). They have a very similar sense of humor and are able to sustain interesting conversations. This leads to an attraction, even though outwardly they are much different. Mr. Rochester is a middle-aged, broken gentleman with a string of meaningless mistresses and a dark marriage in his past, while Jane is a very young woman, right out of a catholic school. They are both ultimately searching for the same human love. At this point in the story, however, they are not similar enough that they can be together. Mr. Rochester loves Jane, but he is still very possessive and values her as a sort of object over her own autonomy. “I will myself put the diamond chain round your neck, and the circlet on your forehead... and I will clasp the bracelets on these fine wrists,” (220). Because of this, their values differ in regards to Jane’s autonomy and her decisions. When Bertha’s marriage to Rochester is exposed, Jane decides she must leave, but Mr. Rochester doesn’t understand how important that is to her. “Jane, do you mean to go one way in the world, and to let me go another?” (269). Jane is very close to ending her period
Eventually, she returns to her former employer, discovering Thornfield in ashes, Mrs. Rochester dead, and Mr. Rochester blind and free from wedlock. Flooded with motifs, Jane’s continual struggles between her passions and responsibility prevail as the main theme of Bronte’s entrancing narrative. From the introduction of Jane’s orphan life, she battles between her ire at cousin John’s antics and obedience to Aunt Reed’s reluctant guardianship.
Jane spends her first 10 years of her life at Gateshead Hall, a lavish mansion. She lived with her Aunt, Mrs Reed, and three cousins, Eliza, Georgina and John. During her time in the mansion she wouldn't dare argue with the mistress, and fulfilled every duty. Jane is deprived of love, joy and acceptance. She is very much unwanted and isolated.
At Lowood, she is thought of by many as a well behaved child, but she still occasionally resistances authority. This is the case when the nurse tells Jane that she may not visit Helen, even though Helen is very ill. Jane, believing that she needs to see Helen regardless of if she is allowed to or not sneaks off: “I dreaded being discovered and sent back; for I must see Helen- I must embrace her before she died- I must give her one last kiss, exchange with her one last word” (82). Jane’s behavior demonstrates her growth in independence. When she lived at Gateshead, she yielded to authority even when she believed it cruel; at Lowood, she defies the nurse’s authority because she knows her desire to see Helen again is greater than her fear of
Bertha and Mr. Rochester were set up and pressured into marrying each other. Mr. Rochester claims that isolating Bertha in a secret room is a justifiable act because of her mental instability. However, The Bertha that the reader gets to see exhibits an accumulated maniacal rage as a result of her imprisonment. Jane describes her as a savage woman. The very sight of her when she attacked her brother or when she ripped the wedding veil traumatized Jane. However, Bertha impacted more than her safety. When Bertha is revealed to be Mr. Rochester’s wife, Jane finds out that despite the love she and Mr. Rochester have for each other; Jane can be nothing more than a mistress because it is illegal to divorce an insane women who is not in control of her actions.
Jane is not as oppressed at Lowood school, but she still is not allowed to do as she pleases, especially not at first. The teachers treat her well, especially Miss Temple, one of her closest friends there. However, after she has been there a few weeks, Mr. Brocklehurst puts her in front of the class and denounces her as a liar. Helen Burns entreats Jane not to let it get her down because Brocklehurst "is not a god" and is disliked by everyone (71).
The novel, Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte, has a plot that is filled with an extraordinary amount of problems. Or so it seems as you are reading it. However, it comes to your attention after you have finished it, that there is a common thread running throughout the book. There are many little difficulties that the main character, the indomitable Jane Eyre, must deal with, but once you reach the end of the book you begin to realize that all of Jane's problems are based around one thing. Jane searches throughout the book for love and acceptance, and is forced to endure many hardships before finding them. First, she must cope with the betrayal of the people who are supposed to be her family - her aunt, Mrs. Reed, and her children, Eliza, Georgiana, and John. Then there is the issue of Jane's time at Lowood School, and how Jane goes out on her own after her best friend leaves. She takes a position at Thornfield Hall as a tutor, and makes some new friendships and even a romance. Yet her newfound happiness is taken away from her and she once again must start over. Then finally, after enduring so much, during the course of the book, Jane finally finds a true family and love, in rather unexpected places.
The story begins with a young Jane Eyre who is essentially neither loved by anyone nor independent in nature. At this point in the story, the reader discovers that Jane is an orphan and is being supported by the Reed family. This discovery is made through the portrayal of John Reed when he is taunting Jane about her social status. John claims that since it is his family who supports Jane, it is their choice to dictate the circumstances under which she lives. In this case, Jane is not allowed to play with the younger Reed children or read a book that belongs to the Reeds. The fact that6 Jane is an orphan living under someone else's roof displays that she has not yet gained her independence.
Jane had a testing childhood at the hands of her aunt Mrs Reed and her cousins. She lived with the Reed family until ten years of age and during these ten years she was bullied and unloved. Jane was then sent away to Lowood School she appeared excited to leave Gateshead, yet once at Lowood she experienced more ridicule and a hard school life. Nevertheless she did find friendship in Helen Burns, although this friendship was short lived as Helen died during a breakout of typhus, through their short friendship Helen had shown Jane that life at Lowood could be bearable; she was also the first friend Jane ever really had.
In the novel Jane Eyre, written by Charlotte Bronte, one reoccurring motif is the idea of Jane, the protagonist, needing a motherly figure to guide her. From the very beginning it is obvious that Jane is an orphan without any real motherly figure, so she finds a few people to fill this void in every environment she is placed in. The major substitute mother is a woman named Miss Temple in which Jane meets at the Lowood Institution. Miss Temple dramatically helps Jane along her journey and comforts her in a way that only a mother could.
At the beginning of the novel, Bronte presents Jane as a lonely, yet independent and intelligent child who faces difficult hardships at a very young age. At Gateshead, Jane is greatly mistreated by her family members which result in her attending a school for orphaned children called Lowood. Although Jane's life at Lowood is an improvement compared to life at Gateshead, she still feels as though she belongs elsewhere. Jane sends out an advertisement for a wanted governess after six years of living at Lowood and soon begins working at Thornfield Hall where she begins teaching a young French girl Adele Varens. Upon arriving, Jane is informed by the housekeeper Mrs. Fairfax that the owner of Thornfield Mr. Rochester travels often and has lived through a troubled life. After many months have passed at Thornfield Jane finally meets Mr. Rochester and he takes a great secretive interest in her. The relationship between Jane and Mr. Rochester is the first non-abusive relationship Jane has with another man in the no...
Due to her rough childhood, Jane's passion is uncontrollable. Rather than being passionate about love, she is passionate about justice. While at Lowood, she eventually learned the meaning of forgiveness and strength. Her good friend, Helen Burns, teaches her to accept others opinions of her, to be humble and recognize one's own faults. Helen counsels Jane, saying "Life appears to me too short to be spent in nursing animosity, or registering wrongs" (58).
While at Lowood, a state - run orphanage and educational facility, Jane’s first friend, Helen Burns, teaches her the importance of friendship along with other skills that will help Jane grow and emotionally mature in the future. She serves as a role model for Jane. Helen’s intelligence, commitment to her studies, and social graces all lead Jane to discover desirable attributes in Helen. Helen is treated quite poorly, however, “her ability to remain graceful and calm even in the face of (what Jane believes to be) unwarranted punishment makes the greatest impression on the younger girl” (Dunnington). Brontë uses this character as a way to exemplify the type of love that Jane deserves. This relationship allows Jane to understand the importance of having a true friend. Given Jane’s history at Gateshead, finding someone like Helen is monumental in her development as a person. Helen gives through honest friendship, a love that is
When in Rome, do as the Romans do. In other words; conform to the people around you or face standing out. Despite the excessive number of motivational posters in modern classrooms, repeating the unending importance of going against the flow and staying true to one 's own beliefs, there is something to be said for fitting in. Lawyers wear suits, yodeling is inappropriate in a theater, and one certainly never starts a food fight in the cafeteria. Society has its expectations for how people should behave and to act outside those parameters is grounds for ridicule; the England of the 1800 's was no different. Jane Eyre was an outcast from the start; born to a estranged couple, housed by an Aunt who despised her, and raised in a world where she lacks
He misleads her by supposedly courting a beautiful woman and then proposes to her even though they are in different classes and she is amazed but accepts. On the day of their marriage it is discovered that Mr. Rochester already has a crazy wife, Bertha Mason locked upstairs, which explains some strange goings on at Thornfield. Jane leaves Thornfield knowing she can't be with Mr. Rochester. She wanders about with nowhere to go and no money until she meets three relatives of hers whom she wasn't aware of and they take her in.
Soon after Jane is settled at Lowood Institution she finds the enjoyment of expanding her own mind and talents. She forgets the hardships of living at the school and focuses on the work of her own hands. She is not willing to give this up when she is engaged to Rochester. She resists becoming dependent on him and his money. She does not want to be like his mistresses, with their fancy gowns and jewels, but even after she and Rochester are married, she wants to remain as Adele's governess. She is not willing to give up her independence to Rochester, and tries to seek her own fortune by writing to her uncle. In the end, when she does have her own money, she states, "I am my own mistress" (Chapter 37).