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Examples Of Childhood In Jane Eyre

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The Grim Life at Gateshead
Childhood is a pivotal stage in people’s lives because they are subjected to a significant amount of new knowledge and their experiences can determine behaviors they will have for the rest of their lives. For Charlotte Bronte’s character, Jane, childhood is full of hardships and loss, which brings about a constant theme of independence as Jane is forced to learn on her own in Bronte’s novel Jane Eyre.
Jane’s experiences with the Reeds while growing up caused her substantial distress. One of her most distressful moments was spent in the red-room where her uncle had passed away. Jane’s encounter with what she perceived as her uncle’s ghost took a toll on her as she imagined that it had “glided up to the ceiling and quivered over [her] head” (Bronte 14). This paves the way for countless other supernatural occurrences throughout her life. Jane’s constant state of independence forces her to process these occurrences internally, such …show more content…

Jane would have divulged more of her feelings with Rochester if she could have trusted him. Jane also chooses not to marry St John because she distrusts his intentions towards her. Jane’s lack of confidence in people is affiliated with being bullied by John Reed and cast off by Mrs. Reed, which gave her no one to confide in during her youth. This contributes to her independence as she forces herself to process her emotions internally. Bronte instills this distrust of others in Jane from the beginning because it shows the effect of the Reeds on her social skills and how she forms relationships.
Jane Eyre is critically shaped by the circumstances of her childhood. Her traumatic life with the Reeds contributes to numerous actions and aspects of her adult life. These events cause Jane to believe in the supernatural, confront loss at a young age, and close herself off from others. Jane’s childhood was miserable- miserable in a way that no child deserves to

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