Archetypes In Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre And Oedipus Rex

In Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte uses many types of imagery to provide understanding of the characters and also to express reoccurring themes in the novel. Through bird imagery specifically, we are able to see Jane develop from a small, unhappy child into a mature and satisfied young woman. "The familiarity and transcendence of birds have given them a wider range of meaning and symbol in literature than any other animal. The resemblance of their activities to common patterns of human behavior makes them exceptionally suitable for anthropomorphic imagery that links man to the common forms of nature" (Lutwack xii). Through the use of birds such as doves and sparrows Bronte enables the audience to gain insight into the type of person that Jane

Jane is desperate for love and therefore her vibrant passion creates her vivid personality. Charlotte Bronte’s writing style is complex, and emotion filled. Her sentences are contain numerous adjectives and sensual images. Brontes unique style is powerful and strong and filled with emotion and imagery as we captures in the life of Jane eyre. Jane is a strong willed and a strong-minded individual which shines through even at her earliest years. Living a Gateshead, Jane displayed her strong nature. For example, Charlotte writes about Jane after she was hit by her cousin, “my blood was still warm; the mood of the revolted slave was still bracing me with its bitter vigor." (p. 22)

In the work of literature “The Siren Song,” we notice a variety of archetypes, despite the lack of characters. An archetype is a recurrent symbol or motif in literature, art, or mythology.

Hence, Bronte used bird imagery to imitate human behaviour and feelings, allowing a connection between emotions and nature; she also used Birds to describe Jane’s progression over time. However, in contrast the images Jane looks at are not of pretty birds, but bleak shorelines. Jane is like a bird, she longs to fly away, but she is not beautiful she is plain and bleak, and feels trapped like a caged bird.

“You came and by your coming saved our city, freed us from the tribute which we paid of old to the Sphinx, cruel singer”(39-41), This tells us Oedipus’ pasts and how his insight helped him become king of Thebes. “Not twice you shall say calumnies like this and stay unpunished”(417-418), Here Oedipus claims that Teiresias accusing him of the murder is wrong and impossible. Due to his ignorance, Oedipus believes that Creon and Teiresias are plotting to overthrow him from the throne. Even later in the play there is a point when he absentmindedly remarks, "Strange, hearing you just now . . . my mind wandered, my thoughts racing back and forth”(800-802), where he is maybe considering that he may actually be the murderer. Yet Oedipus does not blame himself for the plague of the city, instead he tries to place the burden onto others as he continues his investigation, blindly trusting his own superior ability while ignoring the obvious evidence that surrounds him. Continuing the metaphor of sight and blindness, Sophocles uses it to shows how Oedipus is unwilling to accept his true fate and is blinded, and ignorant to his past actions. This also brings about irony due to the fact that Oedipus was made famous in Thebes for his keen insight, by solving the riddle of the Sphinx, but is unable to clearly see his current

In Sophocles play Oedipus the King, Sophocles depicts the horrible fate of Oedipus, a pompous, arrogant young ruler. The story begins in the Greek town of Thebes. A plague has descended upon the Thebians causing death and famine throughout the land. Oedipus, being the heroic king, takes full responsibility to find out the cause of their aliments. While working to discover the source of the plague, Oedipus stumbles upon the tragic truth of his heritage and the horrifying implications of his appointment to the throne. Unfortunately for Oedipus, everything ends in tragedy. With the suicide of his mother/wife and the self-inflicted blindness followed by exile from Thebes, Oedipus paved the path to his own

Archetypes have been relevant throughout all of history’s collections of books, occurring in novels centuries back, and still occurring today. It is defined as a universally understood symbol, term, or statement, which others are copied, patterned, or emulated. Archetypes are often used in myths and storytelling across different cultures. The use of archetypes was advanced by Carl Jung, who suggested, “the existence of universal contentless forms that channel experiences and emotions, resulting in recognizable and typical patterns of behavior with certain probable outcomes”. While in Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, water is used to represent death and rebirth, showing that our experiences can change us, and we can be re-birthed as a totally new person, while in Homer’s Odyssey, water is used to show that life is full of vast trials and adventures to overcome. The archetype of fire is also used in both novels. In Fahrenheit 451, it is used to show that even through destruction can emerge good; while in the Odyssey it is used to represent underlying doom and that no matter the situation, we are all doomed. Same archetypes, however they hold different meanings and represent different things.

Archetypes are a recurring actions or attributes that represent definitive events in a person's life or a specific character. They are universal emblems in literature that correspond to various aspects of human, behavior, and culture. They are usually incorporated, by writers to symbolize relationships between divergent charterers, situations or symbolically natural opposites. They are a major factor in writing literature because they help shape a piece of literature. Archetypes are a major part they help illuminate the purpose of different characters and bonds between each other. The film Big is a classic film due to, the captivating idea of turning a boy into a man and the use of specific archetypes such as mentors, earth mother, star-crossed lovers and much more. It also is an excellent presentation of the archetypical cycle.

Throughout literature, an archetype is a universal symbol, and it is used to represent people, places, descriptions. Archetypes make known a character’s thoughts and feelings, because archetypes help explain the heroes and villains’ motives. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, he utilizes situational archetypes and symbolic archetypes to explore the theme that money cannot buy happiness.

In his play Oedipus the King, Sophocles uses the ancient Greek idea that the gods determine a person's destiny by giving them certain inherent characteristics. He does this by predisposing Oedipus with the tragic flaws of rage, stubbornness, and pride, which leads to his eventual downfall. By doing so, Sophocles evokes pity and fear from the audience, reminding them to avoid the tragic pitfalls of Oedipus, lest they end up in a similar doom. Sophocles gives Oedipus irrational rage, which causes him to make some questionable decisions throughout the play.

Another example is when Oedipus said to Tiresias, "You've lost your power, stone-blind, stone-deaf - senses, eyes blind as stone!”. By the end of the story, Oedipus was almost exactly that. This play also has multiple themes including fate. One can not overcome their own fate no matter what precautions they try to take because ultimately their life is dictated by events beyond anybody’s control. An example from the play is when Oedipus is told by an astrologer that he will marry his mother and kill his father. To prevent this from happening he leaves the country as a precaution, but little did he know that he did not actually know his true identity and actually returned to his home country. Oedipus does end up killing his father and marrying his mother just as the astrologer predicted, because even though he tried to run away from his own fate, destiny always has a way of working things out and placed him where he was supposed to be. Another example of theme is sight and blindness, there are references to eyesight throughout the play. Although clear-eyed Oedipus is blind to the truth about his real identity and crimes, the prophet Tiresias who is literally blind, sees the truth and relays what is revealed to him. This theme proves a point that although Tiresias is blind, he sees more than Oedipus

The purpose of Bronte's novel is to demonstrate that women could go beyond the oppressive limitations of their environment and find fulfillment.  Jane's cries for love are mistaken as evil outburst by those who wish to keep women repressed.  Oppression of women was so great that women even in the home were expected to be nonproductive.  The ideal or perfect Victorian women were ones who adopted an image of repose or idleness, basically to show the world they could.  Nervousness and fainting were expected in women, and certain disagreeable topics or bad news could cause such traits to erupt.  By trusting in her passion, by trusting in her own abilities, and by making her own decisions, Jane is able to overcome the agony all around her.  Homeless, starving, and misjudged, Jane is

In the tragic play, Oedipus Rex, the Gods and religion greatly influence the social structure which in turn has a profound effect upon how the events unfold. Oedipus is the head of the state. There is a direct parallel in the demise of his household and city state which eventually comes to a full circle to destroy him. Even though Oedipus is praised by his people for being a responsible and honest king, he possesses a major character flaw in his attitude towards the gods which causes the tragic torture he faces in the end. Over the duration of the play, there is a strong sense of contamination towards the state, because it is facing a time of plague, and towards the leader Oedipus, because he is unknowingly in a relationship with his own

The tale of Oedipus and his prophecy has intrigued not only the citizens of Greece in the ancient times, but also people all over the world for several generations. Most notable about the play was its peculiar structure, causing the audience to think analytically about the outcomes of Oedipus’ actions and how it compares with Aristotle’s beliefs. Another way that the people have examined the drama is by looking at the paradoxes (such as the confrontation of Tiresias and Oedipus), symbols (such as the Sphinx), and morals that has affected their perceptions by the end of the play. Nonetheless, the most important aspect is how relevant the story is and how it has influenced modern ideas like that of Freud and other people of today.

Archetypes are used in literature to portray a certain meaning, that helps create a better and more meaningful story. The archetypes used can be embedded in the characters, symbols, or even rituals involved in a story. These archetypes can help give deeper meaning to the story by giving a underlying reference to concepts that are used over and over again in literature throughout history. When an author uses an archetype in his or her writing, they link it to many other stories that use that same archetype. Some do this for a reason, to give an underlying meaning, to symbolized something of importance, or even just to make their story more interesting. Many readers may not notice the underlying archetype, but sometimes the author uses them because he or she knows that the reader will.