Analysis Of Foe And Robinson Crusoe

While tutoring, Eyre begins to overhear strange, guttural peals of laughter coming from upstairs. When she inquires about it she is told that it is the servant Grace Poole. Eyre suspects the staff is hiding something but does not investigate further and soon she forgets all about it. A few months later when Eyre and Rochester about to wed a clergyman comes to inform them that he cannot marry them. A search of the marriage records reveals that Rochester has a wife that is still living. A witness confirms seeing her at Thornfield Hall. Rochester reveals that he indeed married to a Bertha Mason. He explains that he married her unaware that “she came from a mad family; idiots and maniacs through three generations.” They all ride to Thornfield Hall to show the clergyman his wife. Locked in an upstairs room, Bertha Mason resembles a “strange wild animal…[with a] bloated…purple face.” Upon seeing Rochester, she rushes at him, attempting to throttle him. But Rochester manages to restrain her and binds her to a chair.

The powerful male roles, such as Edward Rochester, seen throughout the novel represent Great Britain, while the weaker female roles, such as Bertha Mason, represent the imperialized countries. In chapter 14 of Jane Eyre, Mr. Rochester demonstrates his assertive dominance to Jane when he asks, “Do you agree with me that I have a right to be a little masterful, abrupt, perhaps exacting, sometimes, on the grounds I stated, namely, that I am old enough to be your father, and that I have battled through a varied experience with many men of many nations, and roamed over half the globe” (Brontë 152). Rochester demonstrates the power of Great Britain here by claiming that he has the given right to take control and be the ruling figure just like Great Britain did to weaker countries. Bertha Mason parallels the countries being colonized because she is depicted as weak and someone who needs to be isolated and controlled. In "'Reader, I Buried Him': Apocalypse and Empire in Jane Eyre.", Tracy agrees that “many critics rightly place Bertha at the centre of the novel’s signifying systems, since social, cultural, imperial, and religious concerns are encoded in her relationship with Rochester”. This becomes evident in chapter 26 of Jane Eyre when Rochester is explaining Bertha’s character to Jane. Rochester states that “Bertha Mason is mad; she came of a mad family; - idiots and maniacs through three

Jane Eyre is a powerful novel with many secrets in the storyline between the characters. One of the most shocking secrets was finding out that Rochester has a wife. Since his older brother would inherit his father's fortune, Rochester needed to secure his own future with a marriage for the sake of money, not love. So, he married Bertha, who was both wealthy and beautiful.

Through a close reading of the selected passage of Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre: An Autobiography, a reader can see that Jane attempts to separate herself from her decisions by personifying her emotions and giving them a specific voice, which strongly reflects the societal views of the time. At this point in the story, Jane has discovered, on her wedding day, that Mr. Rochester is still married to a woman named Bertha, and that woman still lives in his house. Distraught, Jane locks herself in her room and tries to decide what she should do. When she wakes up the next day, she is again confronted with what she needs to do in the wake of her discovery.

In the novel Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë, Bertha and Jane seem as if they are foils of one another. However, upon careful consideration, they are actually very similar. Both are scorned by society: Jane for her independence, and Bertha for her mental illness, they each have a part of them that is wild and untamed, and finally they both need Mr. Rochester in their lives: Jane for wages and his love, and Bertha simply for survival in a world that does not know how to treat mental disabilities.

The idea of lack of humanisation and identity is woven in throughout the novel as Bertha is often described in an animal like manner which under normal circumstances would not be associated with a Lady of great wealth like

These two novels are both feminist works, although each book leads to feminist problems somewhat differently. Jane has a strong foundation in what woman deserve, as well as achieve specific goals for how she portrays her spot in society being a woman; Antoinette has no knowledge where to start to change herself. In Wide Sargasso Sea, Rhys poses the likelihood that maybe; the gap between women and men can’t be penetrated. Possibly, the unbalance is so great that Antoinette cannot have a feeling of cheerfulness and pleasure that Jane discovers near the end of the novel. Wide Sargasso Sea portrays the fluctuating position of woman in the twentieth century. Wide Sargasso Sea and Jane Eyre can single handedly be looked at as signs of feminist texts, however, Wide Sargasso Sea presents itself with more description on post-modern shape of feminism.

Although Bertha’s seclusion is a result of her insanity and unacceptable behaviour, Jane’s isolation seems to be the cause of some mental illness, throwing her into a panic attack in the red room where she believes her Uncle Reed’s ghost dwells. It must be noted, though, that Jane is a child at this point in the novel, with an active imagination. Bronte may be making a point then, that children should not be shunned for their inventiveness and imagination, as was so common in her day. However, there is a fine line, and socially acceptable age, that separates a healthy imagination from madness. There is a clear lack of this knowledge in Bertha, whom does not appear to have a firm grip on reality. Madness, however, does not merely deal with concepts of reality in “Jane Eyre.” Jane has bouts of uncontrollable speech, in which she must say what comes to her mind. Jane first loses control of her tongue in chapter IV, in which she accuses Mrs. Reed of wishing her dead, and later exclaims “I am not deceitful: if I were, I should say I loved you; but I declare, I do not love you: I dislike you the worst of anybody in the world except John Reed,” and goes on to evaluate the terrible treatment Mrs. Reed has given her, and the lack of love and compassion she has been shown while at Gateshead. In this instance, madness works in Jane’s favour. This temporary bout of mania allows Jane to finally express the

Admire- “To have a high opinion of; feel great respect for.” –American Heritage Student Dictionary

Rhys weaves the themes of women's sexuality, madness and slavery throughout her story of Wide Sargasso Sea. Antoinette yields to insanity apparently inflicted by Rochester's controlling ways as he sets out to deconstruct her personality. Her madness is a symbolic death, an escape from her situation of female dependence and male dominance. Rochester changes Antoinette's name to Bertha, ("Wide Sargasso Sea," Part 2 p 87) stripping her of her identity. He later fragments this even further for her taunting her; "Marionette, Antoinette, Marionetta, Antoinetta." ("Wide Sargasso Sea," part 2, p99) inferring she is a malleable puppet, and he is the puppet master, the controller.

this is a dangerous place for them to be in, and that, like Eden, the

Jane’s approach could be considered romantic and embodies conventional feminist concepts; she remains headstrong and stubborn in the face of injustice. The representation of Jane as a strong, independent woman upholds the belief that woman can achieve their goals. Jane does precisely this; she marries Rochester, becomes a part of a family as well as gains financial independence. The way in which Bronte represents Jane is emphasized through her narrative stance. The reader is presented with a firm and rebellious character, her diction is simple and assertive. She addresses the reader directly and is able to identify and challenge the problems she faces with determination. Furthermore Jane is able to identify and comment on how she feels woman are subjugated by their society; she denounces that “woman are supposed to be very calm generally: but woman feel just as men feel […]” (Bronte

With an attempt to distinguish between the old and the new, Charlotte Bronte creates the character of Bertha Mason as the exhibition of female repression and desire frequently found in the East. Bertha Rochester is the emblem of Eastern society, one which the British see as static and barbaric, and Jane Eyre is representative of the Western Civilization. In Reaches of Empire, Suvendrini Perera argues that "if the barely human prisoner caged in the Thornfield attic is the truest expression of women's anger and aspiration . . . [it is overlooked] that she is also the racial Other incarnate - a bestial, violent creature with an inordinate sexual appetite, caught in the colonized West Indies and confined 'for her own good' by a master who has appropriated both her body and her wealth" (82). If the reader only sees Bertha as the surrogate of Jane, one neglects to take note of the enriching importance of the text's suppression of Bertha. Charlotte Bronte presents Bertha as a sexually vigorous woman. This can be seen when Rochester indirectly describes

The powerful male roles, such as Edward Rochester, seen throughout the novel represent Great Britain, while the weaker female roles, such as Bertha Mason, represent the imperialized countries. In chapter 14 of Jane Eyre, Mr. Rochester demonstrates his assertive dominance to Jane when he asks, “Do you agree with me that I have a right to be a little masterful, abrupt, perhaps exacting, sometimes, on the grounds I stated, namely, that I am old enough to be your father, and that I have battled through a varied experience with many men of many nations, and roamed over half the globe” (Brontë 152). Rochester demonstrates the power of Great Britain here by claiming that he has the given right to take control and be the ruling figure just like Great Britain did to weaker countries. Bertha Mason parallels the countries being colonized because she is depicted as weak and someone who needs to be isolated and controlled. In "'Reader, I Buried Him': Apocalypse and Empire in Jane Eyre.", Tracy agrees that “many critics rightly place Bertha at the centre of the novel’s signifying systems, since social, cultural, imperial, and religious concerns are encoded in her relationship with Rochester”. This becomes evident in chapter 26 of Jane Eyre when Rochester is explaining Bertha’s character to Jane. Rochester states that “Bertha Mason is mad; she came of a mad family; - idiots and maniacs through three

At the start of the novel the reader knows nothing about Bertha mason. She does not make an appearance till Jane becomes aware of a “strong smell of burning” coming from Rochester’s room. Although she suspects Grace to have caused it, we find that Bertha set fire to his room. Rochester simply tries to hide her existence because he wants nobody to know of her, but cannot get rid of her. But that appears at this time it seems because Jane is troubled, a sort of doubling image. Bertha is constantly seen as an obstacle standing in Jane and Rochester's way of happiness and marriage. Her instability is illustrated in an extremely animalistic manner. Bertha threatens to “drain [Mason’s] heart”, similar to an evil being or vampire (ch.20). Again, Bertha is described as the polar opposite of Jane, as someone who acts out against typical norms and does how she pleases. So