Identity in jane eyre

The issue of identity is a central concern in Charlotte Bronte's, Jane Eyre and the novel by Jean Rhys, Wide Sargasso Sea. Written in different time periods, both writers accentuate the unifying matter of identity and this is enhanced as both female protagonists in some ways share certain traits of character and circumstance. Both women possess dysfunctional relatives; both lose their first friend and have isolated and lonely childhoods. For both it is the need and desire to search for one's self and purpose in life that is continuous; the inevitability of the issues of identity remains consistent through out time periods, as shown in the two novels.

In Jane Eyre and Wide Sargasso Sea, the issue of identity has played an important theme for both Antoinette-Bertha and Jane where both must endure hardships in order to find their places in life. This theme of identity present in both novels beautifully enhances the sensuality of the two contexts.

Individuals in the texts are intricately created in order to feed on the existence and redefining of other characters; thus, fashioning a spectrum of personalities in each text. Their survival is supported by establishing a relationship with each other, particularly with the heroines; however small these characters' roles are nevertheless contribute as fulcrums to the other characters' turning points in life. For instance, Helen's subsistence shapes Jane's personality to becoming a calmer and composed character.

Jane Eyre, considered a feminist in the Victorian era, is depicted as a wildly passionate woman. In the episode in the Red Room, Bessie states that Jane is "like a mad cat" (JE 6) when Jane, denying reason in favour of passion, identifies her oppressor John Reed as "a murderer" and a "slave driver" (JE 5). This "picture of passion" is seen as uncivilised especially for young girls in the 1800s where life was based on the principle of reason overcoming passion.

The "broken reflections" (JE 8) symbolise Jane's fragmented identity with the "great-looking glass" (JE 8) forming a rift between her and the Reed family. As Jane's life revolves around the basis of Christian values of justice and fairness, her existence focuses on female individuality and self-assertion of self respect. This will inadvertently give rise to Jane's search for her identity.

With Jane's reason crying "Unjust! unjust!" (JE 8) the reader is allowed to comprehend her firm belief in justice for all human beings. Bessie's stories of "great, black dog" and "fairies and half imps" (JE 9) begin to shape Jane's identity of child-like imagination and fantasies. In Wide Sargasso Sea, Jean Rhys does not adopt any of Jane's Victorian views and beliefs, which in turn create inconsistency in the way both heroines attempt to search for themselves and also between the contexts in which the novels were written. Where Jane is able to define herself, as she rejects labels that people place on her, thus enabling her to form a robust and distinguished identity, Antoinette, in contrast, is perplexed by possessing a body, life and spirit and her life in isolation arrests her development of sense of identity.

Racism is a key in Wide Sargasso Sea that establishes part of Antoinette's identity, where she is caught between worlds of division between races. This can be seen not only to expose her feelings of vulnerability and insecurity, but to confirm that Antoinette fails to survive in a universe of growing hatred and immorality. Colonization is evident in Antoinette's life in her childhood; she was born to exist amidst the slave trade and politics, until the Emancipation Act robs her of her social place. As the pride of the blacks is redeemed, the whites are then reprimanded and Antoinette thus loses her properties, following other consequences.

Here, the difference between right and wrong becomes indistinguishable, where slavery seeks to find its rights and justice. However, in Antoinette's case, her inferiority is emphasized in the West Indies as justice for those of Antoinette's race no longer exists. The issue of racial tension is frequently raised in Wide Sargasso Sea to explain why the whites and blacks are widely segregated from each other. Racial tension causes Antoinette to be called a "white cockroach" (WSS 85) by her servant, Amelie, and scratches out all hope for her to change her identity. In her world where corrupted innocence is mundane, she compares her garden to a dying Eden, with "paths..overgrown and a smell of dead flowers mixed with the fresh living smell" (WSS 17), where moral values and spiritualism are dominated by corruption, overgrown leaves that savagely hide the beauty of the garden.

As her mother's presence still exists in her life, Antoinette adds her into part of her life. Her mother, who isolates herself, represents the garden without life and with decay. Incessant persecution, and with her mother ashamed of her and her brother, Pierre, preferred over her drives Antoinette to seek refuge in other social groups.

Although Antoinette longs for acceptance by the black population, she will inexorably be no part of them no matter how hard she tries to live like them. The presence of intense desire to be among them is apparent in Antoinette, but due to racial circumstances, she is compelled to change her identity in order to adapt to her new surroundings of isolation and separation from the outside world. Not only that but she wishes to shed off the layers of identity in being a daughter of a slave owner and longs to "Be like Tia" (WSS 38)or "like Christophine" (WSS 72), who are of a different race from her. Inadvertently, Antoinette's racial identity is not a subject of choice and decision; it is rather her behaviour that is taken into account and may be accomplished through an act of will.

In comparison, in Jane Eyre, our Victorian heroine searches for spiritual and emotional satisfaction, which this in turn links to her search of identity. Deprived of love and attention, Jane is denunciated by her family, the Reeds, and is portrayed as the reject and abhorred during her younger years being "a useless thing, incapable of serving their interest, or adding to their pleasure; a noxious thing, cherishing the germs of indignation at their treatment, of contempt of their judgement." (JE p.10)

Wide Sargasso Sea also describes Antoinette as also deprived of family acceptance and love by her mother. As her brother is favored over Antoinette, Annette ceases to pay attention to her daughter in her times of need, and pushes Antoinette away when she tries to reach out to her mother. Madness eventually takes on a role that reshapes Antoinette's identity, forming a "maniac" (WSS 309) disillusioned and disorientated.

The reality of the world she lives in is set apart from the world in which she longs to live in, that has remained in her mind from her childhood days. Antoinette's fragmented mind yearns to revive her upbringing days and fails to recognize the truth that such "Eden" no longer exists. The evolvement of character within this woman painstakingly involves her life as a rejected child until the day she has been cheated by her husband. "I often wonder who I am and where is my country and where do I belong to and why was I ever born at all" (WSS 67). Antoinette faces refutation by her people and, as a Creole, has no sense of belonging at all; she is a development of forced dependency on a world where she is not included, this then stops her from discovering herself.

Both Jane Eyre and Antoinette are helpless in doing so as men and immorality rule the earth, and the rift between men and women cannot be

contravened, consequently diminishing every opportunity to explore themselves and find their place in life.

The need for security and protection also links the two protagonists and where both desire to be secured as an individual and to be independent. Antoinette's fixation on gaining both security and protection starts to shape the readers' views of the complexities of her mind. As a result, this hinders her from leading a complete and happy life. Deprivation of companionship forces Antoinette to befriend Tia, a little black girl, who in turn uses Antoinette and her degraded status in the Caribbean society to gain the upper hand in power.

Antoinette longs for acceptance and wishes to break up all blocks of hatred and resentment between the blacks and whites. Because she is not accepted by the person she seeks most acceptance from, her mother, Antoinette in desperation seeks to find other means of solace, in Tia, Christophine and Mr. Luttrel. After the blacks set fire to Coulibri, Antoinette escapes and runs to Tia for comfort and consolation and, in an attempt, recreates an identity for herself, feeling that to act a different character; she successfully wipes her demeaning Creole slate clean.

Unable to feel bitter against the blacks because her friend Tia comes from the society despite their strong reaction towards her, Antoinette forces herself to become one of them. Antoinette not only seeks to redefine her identity, but also longs for acceptance and security against harm. However, in aspiring to distance herself from her previous identity, she faces heavy guilt of abandoning herself and her past accompanied by flashbacks of the world she lived in as a child, resulting in isolation from herself and the outside world, like her mother.

Although justice and social fairness exist in both texts, these themes are very differently portrayed in two different time periods. However so, both women must come to terms with the fact that the world is not fair, and are thus required to adapt to this change.

Jane Eyre does not accept this misleading notion being a woman of strong passion and determination to gain her share of self respect. In time, she finally acknowledges the triumph of reason over passion, which can be seen when she first meets Mr. Rochester whilst helping him from his fall. "I don't think, sir, you have a right to command me, merely because you are older than I, or because you have seen more of the world than I have; your

claim to superiority depends on the use you have made of your time and experience" (JE p.138).

On the other hand, Antoinette is vulnerable and weak emotionally, spiritually and mentality and these traits hinder the possibility for her to survive in such a demoralizing world. Jane feels that "women feel just as men feel" and that "...it is thoughtless to condemn them, or laugh at them, if they seek to do more or learn more than custom has pronounced necessary for their sex" (JE p.112).

Greed is a common theme of both texts and this can easily explain Rochester's purpose for marrying Antoinette in Wide Sargasso Sea and Jane Eyre. When Rochester finds out that Antoinette is a wealthy slave trader's daughter, he takes it to his advantage to wed her and own her inheritance. With the marriage purposefully based on exploitation and not love, Rochester finds himself from independent financially from his father and brother, and intentionally aims to gain respect from them being the outcast of his own family.

On the other hand, the blame for exploitation should not solely be borne by Rochester, as Antoinette also plays the role of the exploiter. Because she is a Creole, Antoinette finds herself alienated from her culture. Seeking to delineate her identity, she marries an Englishman in order to change her name, yet she hides from him her fragmented past.

Jane Eyre seeks to find satisfaction in spiritual justice adhering to her religion and Victorian culture. Similarly, Antoinette depicts the downfall of a heroine in a dying, unjust world. Religion assumes the role of shaping the protagonists' identity.

Jane Eyre's individuality has been redefined by means of Helen Burns and St. John Rivers; as both are very strong Christians and follow Christian rules and regulations. While at Lowood, Helen openly shares her Christian views to Jane, who in return does not agree to Helen's belief in "loving your enemies; bless them that curse you" and to "do good to them that hate you and despitefully use you". When Helen is dying, her last conversation with Jane bears a great significance to the shaping of Jane's identity. Jane asks Helen, "Shall I see you again, Helen, when I die?" (JE 81) and the subject of life after death are exuded and Jane wonders "where is that region? Does it exist?" (JE 81) This portrays the skepticism Jane feels, but

eventually does contribute to the maturing and solidification of faith in her later years which can be seen when she meets Rochester.

Jane "looks to Heaven in guidance" when she is distressed with the decision to stay in England or go to India with St. John. Jane Eyre reveals aspects of her own spirituality when she reunites with Rochester in the end, and reveals a complete development of womanhood where she involves God in her relationship in order to achieve comfort and belief. Mr. Brocklehurst in Gateshead, who uses his piety to his advantage; he tells Jane that "liars will have their portion in the lake burning with fire" (JE 11), seeing that Jane as a liar will go to Hell when she dies.

Antoinette's spirituality refers to Annette's funeral where she lies to Rochester telling him, "She did die when I was a child, there are always two deaths, the real one and the one people talk about." With the world godless to her, the "real one" is insignificant to Antoinette as she does not depend on the supernatural. Like Jane, Antoinette has difficulty in finding comfort in religion when confronted with the death of a loved one. Not only that, but Antoinette appears to act two different characters varying on the time of day. "All day she'd be like any other girl, smile at herself in her looking-glass, try to teach me her songs, for they haunted me. But at night how different. Always this talk of death" (WSS 76). Antoinette's identity is altered where she talks about death seemingly as a means of escape from the harsh reality of the world.

Religion and greed are intertwined in Wide Sargasso Sea. Antoinette says "I heard a clock ticking and it was made of gold. Gold is the idol they worship" (WSS 154). Just as wealth can be idolized in terms of money, status and power, so it can be said that money has become their God. However, it is not greed that defines Antoinette's identity, but it is Rochester's. Consequently, Antoinette's life is ruined in Rochester's process of attaining all sources of wealth. This indicates that there is the realism of spirituality that is directed to worldly ownership and affluence that then again redefines Antoinette's identity of being an exploitee.

Sexuality is norm for Antoinette in Wide Sargasso Sea where her sense of restraint is not apparent and nowhere clear. As she has experimented sex with Daniel before her marriage to Rochester, she is not fearful of sex, but cannot differentiate between intense pain or pleasure. Lust and desire is Antoinette and Rochester's only form of communication without the

presence of love, but this only nurtures Antoinette's obsession of their lust to grow into love.

Rochester is reluctant to be more acquainted aside from physical terms, to love and understand Antoinette. "Sometimes he does not speak to me for hours and I cannot endure it any more, I cannot." (WSS p90). The fact the Antoinette depends on Rochester to communicate with her further amplifies the domination of men over women. Rochester also sees Antoinette as a woman; sensual and exotic. He is intoxicated by her beauty and comments that "the sight of a dress made me breathless and savage with desire" (WSS 78).

Rochester refusing to call Antoinette by her name refers to his refusal to accept his wife's name as that similar to her mad mother's. Rochester lies to her telling her that Bertha "is a name that I am particularly fond of. I think of you as Bertha" (WSS 111). Her identity slips further from her grasp and there is a parallel between Antoinette and Bertha where one is dead, and the other is alive within one body. "Names matter" (WSS 147) to Antoinette who would not accept the alterations of her identity by Rochester as "Bertha is not my name" (WSS 121), but slowly evolving into her new identity Bertha, "her hair hung uncombed and dull unto her eyes which were inflamed and staring" (WSS 120).

Antoinette now known as Bertha, loses her life in the "cold, cardboard house" when she comes to England with Rochester. Not only is there a forceful change in cultural identity against Bertha's will, but she loses her significance by merely being another addition to England's population.

The fire brought out by Bertha in Jane Eyre, represents a reflection of the time when blacks set fire to her house in Wide Sargasso Sea. Within her still lies the uncivilized nature, deeply rooted in revenge and hatred. Just like the former slaves in Coulibri in Wide Sargasso Sea, Jane Eyre's Bertha seeks to avenge her stolen rights, and acts as the repressed trying to overcome her oppressors. Security, love, satisfaction and happiness are things that Antoinette will never get, as her life progressed from living in a world of lush wealth to that of a fallen paradise.

The red room in jane eyre

Mike Zevoteck   The English Novel   Prof. Giacoppe   The Presence of The Red Room Throughout Jane Eyre       In charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre there is a specific scene that seems to project   itself onto the rest of the novel; the scene in the red room. As I read Jane   Eyre, I found it to be a bit uneventful in parts and slow-moving in others. In   general, I did not enjoy the book at first. However even before a second review   of the book, I realized that the scene of Jane in the red room was symbolic and   quite significant to the rest of the text for a myriad of reasons. I submitted   several questions about his scene, reread it several times and even did my   presentation on Madwoman in the Attic (a book that examines this scene   analytically). This `event' occurs rather early in the novel and initially   serves to set the unpleasant tone of Jane's childhood. Although it is only   briefly alluded to in later parts of the book, the scene is represented strongly   throughout the main character's life. The gothic elements of this scene also   lend itself well to the underlying tone of the novel.   

  Jane Eyre tells the story of a young girl's life in England in the 19th century.   It is a coming of age story as seen through the eyes of Jane herself. Living   with extended family Jane experiences many hardships at the hands of her kin.   She is often punished harshly and one the occasion in question she is confined   to the room of her deceased uncle for misbehaving. Jane's experiences within the   Red Room are portrayed solely from her own point of view, giving the reader an   insight into how Jane's heightened nerves provoke an unnatural depiction of her   surroundings. The room itself is described as a 'vault', the chair becomes a   'pale throne', and the bed is referred to as a 'tabernacle'. The prison like   qualities do not go unnoticed. The intimidating and restrictive tone of the   scene reflects the fact that the narrative is told from a child's perspective   and also illustrates the more passionate side of Jane.   

  One of the main aspects of the scene is when Jane looks into the mirror and sees   a distorted picture of herself. Bronte appears to use the mirror as a symbol of   Jane's inner self, as after she studies her reflection the tone of the narrative   changes and becomes a critical examination of her situation and character,   something she is forced to do throughout the novel. She views her reflection as   a 'strange little figure' or 'tiny phantom', and her

later description of Mr.   Rochester as a 'phantom' could be an echo of this portrayal of herself as a   child.   

  Halfway through the novel the perspective changes to Jane as an adult and involves her retrospect to the scene in the red room. The question that could   not be answered by Jane as a child now has some light shone on it. Jane   demonstrates that she has been able to overcome the outrages and outbursts that   filled her unhappy childhood, and replace it with more mature conduct.   Bronte utilizes a large number of linguistic techniques to highlight Jane's   emotions in this passage. The use of parallelism in the phrase 'from morning to   noon, and from noon to dusk' stresses Jane's seemingly endless struggle with   injustice at Gateshead, and the repetition of the exclamation 'unjust!'   emphasizes her bitterness towards the Reeds. A series of rhetorical questions   and exclamations concerning her discrimination within the Reed household is   followed by an extended digression in which Jane broods over the injustice of   her situation. This highly emotionally charged passage is emphasized by the   personification of her reason as it speaks out against her 'unjust' condition in   life. Her feelings are often given a voice in this way to display her innermost   emotions, and also to allow the reader to identify with her thoughts and   actions. The personification of superstition as Jane describes the impending arrival of 'her hour for complete victory' enhances the supernatural atmosphere.   Jane's punishment by imprisonment within the Red Room is the first of a   succession of metaphorical captivities, predominantly relating to Victorian   society's attitudes towards gender, social class, and religion. Jane criticizes   the prejudice and superficiality of Victorian society by stating that had she   been a 'handsome' or 'romping' child, her presence would have been endured 'more   complacently'. The events that take place within the Red Room are emblematic of   Jane's isolation from almost every community and society. As an orphan raised by   a wealthy family, she is accustomed to the education and lifestyle of those of a   higher class than herself, but she is not in possession of any money and is even   shunned by the servants who describe her as 'less than a servant'.   The low ottoman, on which Jane is commanded to sit upon, can be seen as being   representative of her standing in society. The image of being confined to a   stool and prohibited from rising is redrawn upon at Lowood School when Mr.   Brocklehurst unjustly punishes Jane in such a way. Her

imprisonment in the Red   Room, and in a similar way her punishment at school, acts as a reminder that she   is being socially excluded. The isolation Jane experiences as a child prompts   her to search her mind for drastic alternatives, such as 'starving herself' or   'running away'. Although these are rather desperate options, they demonstrate   her strong characteristics of determination and pride.   

  While within the red room, Jane considers the cruelty of John Reed, who taunts   his mother and calls her 'old girl' and yet is still, in Mrs. Reed's eyes, 'her   own darling'. Jane notices with heavy irony that John mocks his mother for her   dark skin, despite it being 'similar to his own'. Jane's fiery nature is again   displayed by her indignation of the fact that 'no one had reproved John for   wantonly striking me'. The quarrel between Jane and John Reed also establishes   the theme of gender conflict within the novel. Her status as a female leaves her   susceptible to John's violence and taunting, and as he is the only son, his   tyrannous character is indulged. By fighting back, Jane refuses to conform to   the level of obedience that would have been expected of a female in her   situation.   

  Bronte often turns to the theme of slavery as a symbol to represent the domestic   and social hardships that opposed women in the eighteenth century. The narrative   frequently returns to this metaphor in order to illustrate similarities between   slavery and gender repression. John Reed is earlier referred to as a   'slave-driver', and while locked in the Red Room, Jane asks how Mrs. Reed could   possibly 'like an interloper not of her race', thereby classifying herself as an   outcast and also raising questions of racial differences and slavery.   The theme of the red room recurs in Jane's mind on occasions when she links her   present circumstances to that first feeling of humiliation she experienced in   the Red Room. It becomes a leading theme throughout her life, and she recalls on   the scene at many later stages in the novel to give context to her most troubled   and dark experiences. Bronte also uses figurative language to recall her   experiences within the Red Room. The metaphor 'embers of my decaying ire' is   used to illustrate Jane's diminishing anger, and in the following chapter Jane   is met with the image of a blazing fire as she wakes from her unconsciousness.   These references to figurative and non-figurative fires return many times   throughout the novel.   

  The passage is heavy with color and sound imagery, accentuating Jane's   heightened senses and emotions while in the red room. The mood is intensified by   the repeated descriptions of the room's 'silent' atmosphere, 'chill' air, and   the gathering of 'quiet dust'. This somewhat ominous silence is not broken until   the end of the extract when a sound fills Jane's ears 'like the rushing of   wings'. Jane's initial impressions of the colors within the red room, such as   the 'soft fawn' and 'blush of pink', do not at first seem negative, but   gradually the colors around her become increasingly more threatening. The color   red is highly significant, being the predominant color within the room. Red is   often used in conjunction with the themes of passion and fury, and the   descriptions such as the 'curtains of deep red damask' mirror physically Jane's   excessively fervent character.   

  Charlotte Bronte was greatly influenced by the Gothic novels that were in fashion before the time of Jane Eyre. The Gothic novel was popularized in the   late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, and was defined by its use of   suspense, supernatural elements, and desolate locations to generate a gloomy or   chilling mood. The protagonist of the novel would generally be female, and often   face distressing or morbid circumstances. In this extract, Jane seems to fit   this stereotypical Gothic heroine as her situation is certainly distressing and,   although she faints, she demonstrates her resolve to resist those who persecute   her, a strength that, as we have seen, was common in Gothic women.   The use of suspense is another Gothic technique employed within this extract.   The final paragraph of the extract begins with the short, simple sentence 'A   singular notion dawned upon me', and then gradually the tension increases as   Jane's imagination becomes progressively more frantic and superstitious. The use   of long, complex sentences and lists interspersed with commas and semi-colons   give the text a fast-paced and frenzied tone. The suspense continues to increase   until finally the extract reaches its climax and Jane screams.   The scene within the red room is loaded with intricate Gothic imagery and   details. Perhaps one of the strongest Gothic elements of the room is the fact that it is the room of her deceased uncle. Also the deep red color of the room   is implicative of death and blood, and both of these aspects feature prominently   in the stereotypical Gothic novel that we have read in this

class like The   Castle of Otranto. The descriptions of the continuous rain and whipping winds   paint a vivid Gothic picture of the stormy moors that surround Gateshead that   are very similar to Otranto. The supernatural elements in the passage, such as   the 'rushing of wings' that fills Jane's ears and her vision of the 'herald of   some coming vision from another world', are the most noticeably Gothic. The   usage of such obvious Gothic elements so early in the novel forecast impending   Gothic ideas and locales later in the text. Perhaps one of the strongest Gothic   elements of the room is the fact that it is the room of her deceased uncle.   It is the application of these Gothic characteristics that seem to give the   novel its widespread appeal. However, although Charlotte Bronte incorporates   many of these Gothic influences within Jane Eyre, she has developed the   traditional techniques significantly from what would have been the typical   Gothic of the late eighteenth century, making Jane Eyre extremely unique in   style.   

  The novel clearly contains many Gothic elements, but there are also many strong   features of realism within the text. Bronte provides the reader with lengths of   highly detailed prose portraying accurately Jane's surroundings, such as the   extensive descriptions of the Red Room's interior. Careful attention is paid to   illustrate thoroughly the 'chairs...of darkly-polished old mahogany' and the   'piled-up mattresses and pillows of the bed'. This meticulously detailed imagery   adds an element of authenticity and realism to the text, enhanced further by the   references to social class and gender issues. Later in the passage, the   description of the 'herald of some coming vision from another world' is   surrounded by detailed prose, describing Jane's every emotion and movement as   she 'rushed to the door and shook the lock in desperate effort'. This extensive   use of detail renders even the most Gothic elements of the text realistic.   The red room scene has strong elements that stretch across the entire story of   Jane Eyre. Several themes, such as those of gender oppression and the Gothic,   are first used and then continue to recur throughout the novel. However the red   room's importance as a symbol also continues throughout, and every time Jane   experiences fear or humiliation her mind returns to her memory of the horror and   ridicule of that scene. Many of the Gothic images described in this passage   foreshadow future Gothic themes within the plot, and the elaborate Gothic   imagery reappears frequently throughout. Jane's life in

the novel can be seen as   a reflection of that experience from her childhood all the way up until her   relationship with Rochester.

In what way is Jane Eyre influenced by the tradition of the gothic novel?What do the gothic elements contribute to the novel?

Jane Eyre, a Victorian novel first published in 1847, is a magnificent story written by one of the greatest authors in the Victorian period, Charlotte Bronte. Said to be a portrait on Bronte's own life, Jane Eyre is a tale of the supernatural, courage, passion, religious hypocrisy and above all love. The novel represents a number of different themes such as poverty, madness and colonialism. It is also a novel with a vast amount of gothic elements. These include characterization, architecture and the pathetic fallacy displayed in different stages of the storyl.Jane Eyre is the first person narrator of the story and not forgetting the main character. The development of Jane's character is critical to the novel. From the beginning Jane poses as a role model to women in the Victorian period. She is outspoken, passionate and likeable. Throughout the story her sincerity is tested frequently and she soon learns to keep her feelings locked up inside her. This fact about her is very strange because the majority of women don't keep their feelings bolted away inside of them. Its things like this about Jane that separates her from other women. Jane is a woman who has to deal with so much heart ache and agony at such a young stage in her life and instead of letting the full character list know about her feelings, she keeps themlocked up inside of her. It's fair to say that Jane is not a typical Victorian lady. She's smart, intellectual, brave and a fashionably disobedient unconventional woman. Charlotte Bronte's readers would have been shocked about how Jane is so outspoken. How she isn't afraid to correct Aunt Reed or Mr Brocklhurst when they are disparaging her. How she is so independent and wise to peoples emotions.One of the major emotions Jane keeps locked up inside of her is her unconditional love for Mr Rochester. Edward Rochester is a man with great fortune who employs Jane as a governess to teach Adele Varens, a lively French girl who he brought to Thornfield due to her mother abandoning her. From the moment Jane and Rochester meet, the readers get the impression that Rochester wants Jane. He is prepared to set aside matters of social class so that he can unite with her. Rochester also senses from Jane that she isn't a very open person about her emotions and this is something

he isn't mad about. He must sense that Jane feels the same about him as he feels about her but she won't show it. Rochester then begins testing Jane by telling her that he is getting married to Blanche Ingram. Blanche Ingram is somewhat of a gold-digger. She despises Jane and only hopes of marrying Rochester for his money. When Rochester tells Jane that he is marrying Mrs Ingram, he tells her that he will have to reallocate her. He says that theirs a job vacant for her in Ireland. Discontented and heartbroken about what Mr Rochester has told her, Jane breaks down and plays into Rochester's trap. This is shown in chapter twenty three of the novel when Jane says that it's a long way off. "No matter â �" a girl of your sense will not object to the voyage or the distance". Is what Rochester implies falsely to Jane. Jane then goes on, "Not the voyage, but the distance: and then the sea is a barrier â �""Interrupting her before she can finish her sentence, Rochester asks her what the sea is a barrier towards. "From England and from Thornfield and from-"is what Jane screams out but suddenly stops before the full truth is blurted out. Rochester interrogates her like you'd expect a lawyer to interrogate a criminal. Jane is eventually broken and admits that she doesn't want to leave Thornfield because that would be too far away from the man she truly feels passionate about.   However what Jane doesn't know is that her true love Rochester is already married to a mad woman called Bertha Mason. Bertha has got severe mental illness and is kept in the attic at Thornfield. Bertha being in the attic explains the noises that Jane hears coming from a different floor of the house. This is somewhat of a supernatural feeling to the novel. Bertha is Jane's alto ego. She is everything that Jane isn't. Mad, deluded, full of rage and Jane has the love of Rochester. Jane first learns about Bertha on her wedding day. Just when she and Rochester are exchanging vows, Mr Briggs, an attorney, gatecrashes the couples wedding and announces that if Rochester marries Jane he would be committing bigamy due to his present marriage with his demented wife. In a sense Bertha Mason has a substantial impact on Jane's life. Bertha is the main reason why Jane and Rochester can't get married and so she delays Jane's wedding day, and if that wasn't enough she basically sends Jane on a journey where she will meet the Rivers family. Bertha Mason is a huge part of the gothic elements displayed by Charlotte Bronte in her works. Bertha's character helps to spice up the supernatural feel within the novel. Whether it's her unconditional madness throughout

her time in the story or when Jane hears noises coming from the basement of Thornfield.When Jane finds out about Bertha Mason, she runs away from Rochester and Thornfield with very little money and nowhere to go. The stagecoach which Jane gets on drops her off at a place called White cross. She is stranded at a crossroad. This crossroad metaphysically reflects to Jane's life at her present time. The crossroad connotes to Jane's life because she doesn't know which way to go. She has no money, no food or water and she doesn't have anywhere to go. She sleeps rough on Victorian streets because of what occurred with Rochester on their wedding day. She was secure and stable with Rochester and now it seems that she's terribly vulnerable. Also on the night she sleeps rough the weather is atrocious. The rain, wind, thunder and lightening imitates her anger, rage and sadness. The weather reflects her current personality as well as the crossroad did. She sleeps rough with nature. It's fair to say that she's sort of covered by nature. This reflects her state of mind because like nature she is unclear. This is an example of pathetic fallacy used by Charlotte Bronte. Pathetic Fallacy is the use of nature or characteristics of objects and nature to express human emotions. For example, the novel opens on a stormy day. The weather reflects on Jane's personality because she is melancholy and angry about being excluded from the Reed family. She then has an argument and a fight with her male cousin, John Reed. The thunder and lightening that's happening outside connotes to the outrage that Jane is feeling. Bronte uses pathetic fallacy in the novel frequently. It's used so that it is easier for us, the reader, to judge on the emotions of the characters.One other example of pathetic fallacy in the novel is in chapter four when Jane finds out that she is going to be sent to Lowood institution. She launches into a long awaited attack on her aunt. "Not you. You told Mr Brocklhurst I had a bad character, a deceitful disposition; and I'll let everybody at Lowood know what you are, and what you have done". She then goes on to say, "I am not your dear; I cannot lie down: send me to school soon, Mrs Reed, for I hate to live here". After this argument with her aunt Jane goes outside. "It was a very grey day; a most opaque sky". This is what Bronte describes the setting as. The grey sky reflects on her current anger towards her aunt. Bronte has made the weather seem like Jane's current state of mind. Unclear about what her future is going to prolong.

When Jane leaves Rochester because of him already being married, she ends up at Moore House. This is where her cousin St John Rivers lives. St John is Rochester's parallel character. Rochester is a passionate and likeable character whereas St John is ambitious and often likened by Jane to rock, ice and snow. During the course of Jane's stay at Moor House St John asks Jane to go to India with him as a missionary. He also asks her to marry him. Jane at first seems disgusted with this thought because they are cousins. After the proposal is made St John tells Jane that she can take time to think about the proposal before she makes any decisions. During this time she starts weighing up her options. Does she go back to Rochester, the man she deeply loves or does she stay with St John the man she has no feeling towards at all. Rochester is the man that loves Jane for her. He wants her for her own ambition and her own kind and gentle personality. St John just wants a model wife. He fundamentally wants Jane to be on his arm to make him look good. St John would use Jane for his self-satisfaction. How Jane makes her decision about leaving Moore House is very gothic. She hears Rochester's voice calling her from a near garden. Jane takes this a sign of Rochester being in trouble and needing her help, or him just wanting her back. By this point of the story Jane has been away from Rochester and Thornfield for a year, and has been supporting herself as a teacher and not to mention by this point she has a fortune of her own. St John leaves Jane a note urging her to resist temptation of leaving Moor House and going back to Thornfield. However she ignores her jealous cousins' advice and immediately boards a coach leading directly to Thornfield. Anxious to see Rochester, her true love, she travels back to the manor reflecting on the ways in which her life has dramatically changed since she left Rochester.Jane arrives back at Thornfield to see that the once grand manor house was now a burned ruin. Thornfield had down last fall due to a fire that Bertha Mason had started. Bertha had killed herself from jumping off one of Thornfield's towers. Rochester had been blinded and lost one of his arms due to falling timber, whilst helping servants escape the house. Apparently, so Jane heard, after she had left him, Rochester had turned to depression and isolation. After the fire he moved to Ferndean Manor where he now lived with two servants, Mary and John thirty miles away from Thornfield.That same night following the day she arrived at Thornfield, Jane travels to

Ferndean where John and Mary are absolutely astonished to see her. After reacquainting with her two old friends she makes herself known to Rochester. He is in absolute disbelief and for a moment doesn't believe that it is true. He is finally convinced and thanks the lord for Jane's return. He is completely happy and so is she, and despite him being blind and crippled she accepts his second proposal of marriage. This time around we know that Jane and Rochester will be happy together because for one their is no more skeletons hidden in Rochester's closet. By this I mean that their is nothing else that Rochester can hide from Jane that will put their relationship in jeopardy. Also by the way Jane rushed to Rochester's beckoning call; we can see that Jane loves Rochester no matter how severely blind he is or no matter how many limbs he has got.One of the major gothic elements in the novel is the supernatural. Bronte uses the supernatural to draw the reader into the plot. These spooky scenarios fitted together by Bronte fit the storyline together. Bertha mason is a huge part of the supernatural. She is mad and crazy and because of this she would have definitely been seen as abnormal by Bronte's Nineteenth Centaury readers. Supernatural elements are also found when Jane hears noises coming from the basement at Thornfield. Although the readers know that the screams are Bertha, Jane does not and this alone adds a supernatural climax to the storyline. Also when Jane's at Moore House she hears Rochester's voice calling her. It's this weird element that makes Jane go back to Thornfield in search of Rochester.One of the main supernatural settings in the novel is the Red Room, the place in which Jane is imprisoned by her aunt after having a fight with her eldest cousin John Reed. Two of Mrs Reeds servants, Miss Abbot and Bessie Lee are instructed to escort Jane to the red room. Jane resists them with all her might. Once locked in the room she catches a glance at her ghastly figure in the mirror, and shocked by her unhappy presence, she starts to reflect on events that led her into her current state. Her uncle had brought her to Gateshead because of her parents being dead. Her uncle had died and so this left her in the custody of Mrs Reed, her horrible unloving aunt. We get the impression off Jane that Mrs Reed hates Jane and all she wants to do is punish her. Even for her own children's mistakes. This is the reason why she was locked in the red room. Not for her own doing, for the teasing and evilness of her cousin. The red room is one of the most gothic settings described in the whole novel. "A bed supported on massive pillars

of mahogany, hung with curtains of deep red damask". This alone is a very gothic description of the room. It almost gives us a rich spooky feeling about the room. Bronte also tells us that Mrs Reed often visited the room herself to check the contents of a secret drawer hidden inside of the wardrobe. Perhaps one of the most gothic facts about the red room is that her uncle actually died in their. He died in the same mahogany bed that Jane had to stare in the face. After some considerable time Jane begins to scream. She begs and pleads with Bessie and Mrs Abbot to let her out. Jane claims that she has seen a ghost in the room. Although their is very little proof, any normal person would be able to understand why Jane thought this. At this time she is a ten year old girl who has been locked in a room that her uncle died in. The fact that Jane claims to have seen a ghost is quite a substantial part in the supernatural aura that surrounds the novel. The fact that Aunt Reed forces Jane into the red room suggests to me that she was being evil and warped minded. Architecture is also a very powerful gothic theme in Jane Eyre. Through the course of the novel Jane lives at five different houses starting at Gateshead Hall and ending at Ferndean Manor. All these houses of which Jane lives at would have looked gothic of course because that's what Elizabethan and Georgian manor houses are architected like. Perhaps a great example of gothic architecture would be Thornfield. It's a huge dark manor house almost built to resemble a castle. It has huge hanging towers; we know this because Bertha committed suicide by jumping off of one. Inside although we don't get every room described to us, we can guess out of our own minds on what the house would withhold. Lowood is also a good example of gothic architecture within the novel. This is the place where Jane goes to school as a child and also teaches for a while after before becoming a governess for Mr Rochester.At the time "Jane Eyre" was written women weren't allowed to publish books. So Bronte could get her book published she had to use the fake name Currer Bell. By using this name Bronte's nineteenth centaury readers would have thought that they where reading a man's book. To inspire her Bronte would have read the works of a lot of great authors from her period such as Jane Austen, William Blake and Robert Browning just to name a few.   These authors would have aspired Bronte to write to hearts content. A lot of authors from that period would have written their books with a lot of gothic elements. One example of this is "Blue Beard" written by Charles

Perrault. It's about a duke that murders his wife and Perrault added this to get the gothic theme across. All the authors that used the gothic theme would have rubbed off on Bronte and judging by "Jane Eyre" it did.Charlotte Bronte was born on April 21st 1816 at Thornton, Bradford in Yorkshire. She was the third daughter of Rev. Patrick Bronte and Maria Bronte. In 1821 Bronte's mother died leaving the children's father Patrick Bronte to cope Charlotte and her siblings. In 1824 Charlotte and her four sisters Maria, Elizabeth, Emily and Ann attended the newly opened Clergy Daughters School at Cowan Bridge.   However not for long. In 1825 a year later, they were all taken away from the school and brought home. Her eldest sisters Maria and Elizabeth later died of consumption. The schools dirty and unhygienic conditions were blamed for the death of the girls. In 1831 Charlotte attended another school named Roe Head but left the following year to return home and teach her younger sisters. In 1835 she returned to Roe Head as a governess. After publishing her many books, Jane expected a child but in 1854 caught pneumonia which was a curable illness, but seized upon it as an opportunity of ending her life and after a lengthy and painful illness she died, dehydration being the most plausible explanation.In conclusion, Jane Eyre is a significant novel of the nineteenth centaury. To sell her book Bronte adds elements that make us become more interested in the characters and the storyline of the novel. As we've seen one of the main examples of this is the gothic elements, which consist of pathetic fallacy, characterization, historical context, architecture and of course the supernatural. Also one of the other main themes if we read between the lines is religion. However Bronte doesn't portray religion in a satisfactory way. She portrays it threw characters like Mr Brocklhurst. Brocklhurst is deceitful, angry, and a liar. He uses religious hypocrisy to make him look like a good man. He uses the name of god to make people feel bad about themselves. Especially Jane. By using characters such as Brocklhurst, it's almost as though Bronte is having a go at religion. In many novels including religion as a theme, religion is portrayed as the dominant element and one that should be respected. In this story however it's unclear what we should think. Does Bronte want us to respect her religious views or does she want us to dislike them? Also it's said that "Jane Eyre" is somewhat of an autobiographical account of Charlotte Bronte's own life. With no real proof of this and no actual

explanation off Bronte, the only thing we can do is compare and contrast. To make our own judgement on whether it is or it isn't we must examine Bronte's past and compare it with the life Jane had in the novel. I'm sure anyone who analysis the two lives will come to some conclusion that Jane and other characters reflect on Charlotte Bronte's own life. I suggest that Jane does connote in some ways to Bronte. Jane follows the same, mislead and gothic life as Charlotte Bronte sometimes often did.

The incident of the madwoman in the attic

Analysis

The incident of the “madwoman in the attic” is probably the most famous in Jane Eyre, and it has given rise to innumerable interpretations and symbolic readings. For example, Bertha Mason could represent the horror of Victorian marriage. Rochester claims to have imprisoned her because she is mad, but it is easy to imagine an opposite relation of cause and effect, in which years of enforced imprisonment and isolation have made her violently insane or, at least, increased her insanity. Thus, the madwoman in the attic could represent the confining and repressive aspects of Victorian wifehood, suggesting that the lack of autonomy and freedom in marriage suffocates women, threatening their mental and emotional health. Bertha’s tearing of Jane’s wedding veil could be seen as symbolizing her revolt against the institution of marriage.

Another interpretation is that Rochester’s marriage to Bertha represents the British Empire’s cultural and economic exploitation of its colonial subjects. Briggs’s letter states that Bertha’s mother is a “Creole,” which could mean either that she is a person of European descent born in the colonies or that she is of black or mixed descent. In either case, Bertha might have evoked British anxieties about having to deal with the other cultures under Britain’s dominion, and Bertha’s imprisonment might signify Britain’s attempt to control and contain the influence of these subject cultures by metaphorically “locking them in the attic.”

Still another interpretation of Bertha is that she is a double for Jane herself, the embodiment of Jane’s repressed fear and anger, both in regard to her specific situation and in regard to oppression. For although Jane declares her love for Rochester, her dreams and apprehensions suggest that she also secretly fears being married to him, perhaps even that she secretly wants to rage against the imprisonment that marriage could become for her. Although Jane does not manifest this fear or rage, Bertha does. Thus, Bertha tears the bridal veil, and it is Bertha’s existence that stops the

wedding from going forth.Click here to find out more!

Each of these arguments provides an interesting way of thinking about the text, but it is also important to recognize that Bertha does not function merely as a symbol. Her presence is also a gripping story element and a source of external psychological distress for Jane, from which Jane develops and grows. Similarly, Thornfield could be seen as “British Society at Large,” but Thornfield is more than just an allegory. The relationships between Thornfield’s inhabitants as well as its architecture and grounds are all important to Jane’s story. Lastly, Jane herself, while possessing many proto-feminist viewpoints, is not simply a symbol for the “Victorian Woman.” Her individual psychology cannot be read as representing the mindset of all Victorian women.

Love and marriage in "Pride and Prejudice”

      The Romanticism Movement in English literature is the Era of outstanding writers and their wonderful masterpieces. Among them there is one who deserves special attention, the one who contributed to development of the Romantic novel - Jane Austen. The writer is considered to be one of the greatest novelists whose "undoubted merit is her influence on later birth of the novel of manners, as she develops the Augustan patterns of novels of sensibility equipping the genre with more contemporary concerns”[1].      The best example of novel by Jane Austen in which she explores the contrast in the large context of behavior closely associated with the social and economic framework is Pride and Prejudice. Besides many themes that are described in the book like: family and upbringing, education, snobbery of so-called nobles etc. love and marriage is especially worth mentioning.      The importance of marriage in the lives of main characters: Elizabeth Bennet and her sisters may be difficult for modern readers to understand. Young women today have a variety of options open to them regarding their future-they can marry, of course, but they can also go to college, follow any career path that may interest them, and live on their own, independent of relatives or chaperones. Young women of Austen's day did not have these advantages. In general the book perfectly portraits the struggles of finding the inevitable husband and of a society that believes in male superiority. Love and marriage in Romantic Time, when matrimony to a gentleman of wealth was the goal of most women lives, ladies' point of view changed very rapidly; it jumps from admiration to love and from love to matrimony.      Thus, in 19th century in England people had a tendency to marry because of financial benefits. A person sought a partner based on the dowry receivable and their allowance. This process functioned in both ways: beautiful lady was able to seduce enormously rich man, and the handsome, single man could charm a girl of good financial status. In these marriages, money was the only consideration .Love was rather inferior aspect; it could develop as the years went by or never appear in life of two people living just next to each other. In Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen proves that marriage in her time was a financial contract, where love is strictly a matter of chance or a pure coincidence. This idea of

business marriages is perfectly recapitulated in the very first lines of novel: "It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife"[2]      Through five marriages, Jane Austen defines good and bad reasons for marriage. Charlotte '" Collins, Lydia '" Wickham, Jane '" Bingley and Elizabeth '" Darcy are the four newly-weds. The old marriage is that of Mr. and Mrs. Bennet. Mrs. and Mr. Bennet are poles apart in their natural attitude. Mr. Bennet is sharp and witty. Mrs. Bennet is vulgar and discreet. They are clearly incompatible. Mr. Bennt had married a woman he found sexually attractive without realizing she was an unintelligent. The effect of the relationships was that Mr. Bennet isolated himself from his family. He found his asylum in library, where he spent most of the time. He also mocked his wife who found self-realization in getting her children married and gossiping.      Another couple, whose marriage turned out to be a complete disaster, is obviously, Lydia and Wickham. Their marriage was based on appearances. At the beginning their sensual and sexual fascination kept them close to each other. However, when they could no longer see these qualities, the once strong relationship will solemnly fade away. As in the novel, Lydia and Wickham's marriage gradually disintegrates. Lydia becomes a regular visitor at her two elder sisters' home and "her husband was gone to enjoy himself in London or Bath." Through their relationship Jane Austen shows that hasty marriage based on superficial qualities quickly looks and leads to unhappiness.      The example of marriage that was based on financial security is the marriage of Mr. Collins and Charlotte. It was a common practice during Austen's time for women to marry a husband to save her from spinsterhood or to gain economic benefits. "However, Jane Austen dramatizes this form of women inequality and shows that women who submit them to this type of marriage will have to suffer in tormenting silence as Charlotte does”[3].      The couple who represents seemingly fulfilled and happy marriage is Jane and Bingley. They were sincerely in love with each other. There was a great emotional compatibility between them. By nature, both are sweet and gentle, free from malice, ill will, affectation and duplicity, calm, unsuspecting, simple and willing to forgive readily.However, the marriage is weak inside."Bingley is too weak-willed that in spite of loving Jane deeply, he does not take any initiative. Their

temperamental harmony lacks the strengthening support of intellectual understanding and maturity”[4].      Among marriages of great failure, there is one that shows a kind of positive aspect of being married.. The marriage between Darcy and Elizabeth reveals the characteristics, which constitutes a successful marriage. One of these characteristics is that the feeling can not be brought on by appearances, and must gradually develop between the two people as they get to know each other. Understanding is also a fundamental part of their relationship which would lead them to a peaceful and lasting marriage. "This relationship between Elizabeth and Darcy reveals the importance of getting to know one's partner before marrying. At the end, Elizabeth feels the pure sincerity of Darcy”[5].      These five marriages contribute to the idea that a happy and strong marriage takes time to build and must be based on mutual feeling, understanding, and respect. Hasty marriages acting on impulse and based on superficial qualities, financial benefits are not likely to survive- this kind of mercenary relationship can only cause unhappiness or even hatred. Pride and Prejudice is a great novel that can be a guide for people living in today's, modern world.