Jane Eyre Character Analysis

Throughout Charlotte Brontë’s novel, Jane Eyre, the character Mr. [Edward} Rochester changes from a cold-hearted man,  used to getting whatever he desires and values material things, to a blind, humble man that couldn't care less about material things. When Jane Eyre, the main character, first meets Mr. Rochester, his horse has slipped on the ice, and he has sprained his ankle; she stops to help, and upon arriving to Thornfield (the place where she lives and works as a governess), she discovers that he is the master and her employer. He is a cold-hearted man. He constantly refers to Adele (a girl he took in) as a brat, and when talking to the housekeeper about Jane, he says, “I have her [Jane] to thank for this sprain,” (Brontë 122) (despite Jane not

Chapters 1-4 1.) At the beginning of the novel, how old is Jane? Explain who the Reeds are and why Jane is living with them at Gateshead Hall. At the beginning of the novel, Jane is around ten years old. The Reeds are Jane's relatives, her aunt and family.

One of the most famous passages from the novel comes from Jane’s very clearly feminist inner monologue. She states that “Women are supposed to be very calm generally: but women feel just as men feel…they suffer from too rigid a restraint…” (130). Jane, as a forward-thinking and progressive protagonist, exemplifies in every sense the essence of gender equality of her time. Bronte reveals the limitations experienced by the female sex and the effects of those limitations on her protagonist. By doing this, the author uses Jane to fulfill her feminist and pro-equality agenda. Another example of Jane’s inner monologue comes from her irritation with Rochester. When Rochester showers Jane with gifts soon after their engagement, Jane’s “…cheek[s] burned with a sense of annoyance and degradation” (309). She becomes increasingly irritated with Rochester because of the complete lack of respect Rochester has for her feelings due to his joy of becoming engaged. Because Jane is already considered inferior to Rochester because of her lack of wealth and her status as an unmarried woman, being pelted with lavish tokens of affection is less than an ideal situation for her. This imbalance between the two highlights the already sexist society of the Victorian era. After Jane’s engagement to Rochester, she recounts the fact that she “…could not, in those days, see God for His creature: of whom I had made an idol” (316). She becomes blinded by the overpowering love she held for Rochester, to the extent that she put him on a pedestal, seeing him as an “idol”, and not a human being capable of fallacies. Bronte uses this dangerous mental circumstance Jane is in to illuminate the clear disparity between men and women of the time. Jane’s infatuation with Rochester serves as an important device implemented by Bronte to further her argument against sexist Victorian

Jane Eyre’s character changes throughout the book significantly. Many of her struggles are what bring her to change from a suffering young girl, to a very brave, well driven, independent woman.

Rochester and St. John Rivers display very similar characteristics throughout the novel, such as their social standings, severe dispositions, and proposals to Jane. Both men come from wealthy and respected families. Edward Rochester is born into a high-class family and owns multiple estates, such as Thornfield Hall and Ferndean Manor. Likewise, St. John comes from an esteemed and well-known family that Mr. Oliver, the wealthiest man in Morton, speaks well of when questioned about the topic by Jane. Secondly, both Mr. Rochester and St. John come off as harsh and distant until Jane gets to know them well. Mr. Rochester is brusque and asks Jane many questions about herself, but discloses very little information about his background. During her time with St. John, she attempts to make him disclose to her his feelings towards Rosamond Oliver and says, “‘With all his firmness and self-control,’ thought I, ‘he tasks himself too far: locks every feeling and pang within — expresses, confesses, imparts nothing’” (373; ch. ). Lastly, both Mr. Rochester and St. John ask Jane to marry them. Jane almost marries Mr. Rochester, but leaves him after realizing that he is already married. She refuses to marry St. John because she doesn’t love him and returns to Mr. Rochester, who she eventually does marry and spends many happy years with. Altogether, Mr. Rochester and St. John have similarities such as their respected families, their distant natures, and their proposals to

Rochester. Jane wanted equality for most of her life, because throughout Jane Eyre’s life she has only been put down. After meeting Mr. Rochester Jane felt equal to Mr. Rochester, and feel in love with him. Jane was intellectually equal to Mr. Rochester. Because Jane feels equal and feels loved Jane decided to sacrifice her dreams. Jane did not want to be anyone’s mistress rather Jane wanted to make a name for herself. Jane always dreamed of being loved by someone and build a school to educate unfortunate young girls, but Jane gave up her dreams of bringing positivity to the world. Jane was given a chance by St. John to travel to India, and educate the woman in India, but Jane happily rejects the proposal from St. John for Mr. Rochester’s love and to serve Mr. Rochester’s every need. Jane says this “Shake me off, then, sir—push me away, for I’ll not leave you of my own accord” (Brontë pg. 444) reassuringly to the jealous Mr. Rochester, and Jane saying this displays that Jane will be with Mr. Rochester through every tough time that life throws at them. From this it is shown that Jane values love and equality more than her hopes and

Answer: in Jane Eyre one character that was pulled in conflicting directions is Jane. When searching for freedom she was being persuaded by Mr. Rochester and St. John Rivers to be their mistress and she had to decide if either lifestyle was something she wanted and if she didn’t want either then shed be compromising her own freedom.

In the critical essay, “Almost my hope of heaven’: idolatry and messianic symbolism in Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre,” Joshua analyzes the theme of idolatry and messianic symbolism in Jane Eyre. Joshua believes that Jane Eyre is a novel that revolves wholly on religion. He argues that, “one of the novel's purpose...is to show that human relationships are successful only if the partners in the relationship avoid the dangers of idolizing each other” (Joshua). I strongly agree with his opinion. One main reason Jane denies Rochester’s proposal is because she does not want to be inferior to him. When Rochester and Jane argue over whether or not Jane is going to let him order her around she says “‘I like to serve you, sir, and to obey you in all that is right’” (Bronte 250). From the beginning, Jane sees Rochester as a sort of messiah. Due to this, she refuses to marry him for she believes they will never truly be equals. However, as the novel progresses, Jane goes through internal developments that enable her to realize that her and Rochester can be equals. She realizes her self-worth and finds a balance between her principles and feelings. In one of the final passages of the novel, Jane says that her and Rochester have been married for ten years and she is “[her] husband’s life as fully as he is [hers]” (Bronte PAGE NUMBER). Here, we can see the Jane and Rochester are equals. This supports Joshua’s claim, for their relationship is only successful because of their equality. Rochester is no longer Janes “master” and she still remains her own-self.

When we first meet Edward Rochester he is shown to be a cold and unfriendly man who has little respect for others and is closed up. A scene where this is shown is when Rochester and Jane are having a conversation by the fireside after Jane had found Rochester in the woods after he had fallen off his horse. A quote that shows Rochester’s cold behaviour during the conversation by the fireside is “Don’t trouble yourself to give her a character, I’ll judge for myself.” In this quote Rochester is

Charlotte Bronte’s novel, Jane Eyre is the story of an orphaned ten-year-old girl name Jane Eyre, who overcomes abuse and neglect to discover compassion and love. Jane lives with the Reed family at Gateshead Hall, who was despised Jane, and she is bullied by Mrs. Reed and her son, John. John bullied her when she was reading the book, he threw the book at her head, John tortured Jane mercilessly and cruelly. Jane totally afraid of John, but she didn’t cry and cower under him. She did try to avoid him, but when he throws her book, she retaliates and fights back. Mrs. Reed sends Jane into the red room for the punishment where her uncle died, and for Jane this room represents terror and death. Jane said everything she thought about Mrs. Reed

Rochester sees and experiences first hand the kindness, compassion, and honestly Jane shares with others. He has felt the love from Jane and strives to produce the same for her. Mr. Rochester knowns that Jane is a better individual than he will ever be him and thats what intrigues him so very much about the young girl. He knows that she will constantly challenge him and better himself every day. Although Jane’s job is to govern Adele, she seems to teach Mr. Rochester just as much.

When searching for female role models in literature across the ages, one may look towards Jane Eyre, Their Eyes Were Watching God, and The Joy Luck Club. Set in 19th century England, Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë, is the memoir of an orphan named Jane Eyre. From her first memories, Jane is different from the people around her and is treated as such. She faces prejudices for her social an economic status, as well as for being an educated woman. To see the world, Jane finds work as a governess for Adele, the charismatic ward of Mr. Rochester, at Thornfield manor. Brontë uses characters around Jane to compare the ideals for women in her society with the hope of what women could be. In the end, Jane and Mr. Rochester are married, but only after

In the novel Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontё, Brontё asserts that even a woman living in the lowest and most demeaning levels of life can rise up to become more. Jane is a girl growing up in a world where a woman cannot truly become independent, she goes through many different experiences and meets people who she will grow to cherish. Jane will prove to everyone soon enough that she is more than anyone ever thought her to be because she will persistently attempt to rise above her station in life. Jane is seen by the world as a “poor orphan who should be grateful for the table scraps she is given by her benefactress”. Jane was seen as, less than a sister, but worse than a lowly servant because she did nothing to eat the food on her plate. As Jane

A gothic novel is defined as an English genre of fiction, characterized by an atmosphere of mystery and horror and having a pseudo-medieval setting. Gothic novels have been present for many centuries and to this day, authors write about basic gothic aspects that are common throughout all gothic novels. In the novel, Jane Eyre, the author, Charlotte Brontë, writes a gothic story about the life of a plain, intelligent woman, who encounters horrors her entire life. This novel possess all the elements confirming itself as a gothic novel: supernatural events, extreme fear, a Byronic hero, and an imprisoned woman. Over the course of the novel, she must conquer her terror to possess the love of a man.

Jane’s heroic qualities matter more than appearance and serve as a model for female readers today. One of those qualities is that Jane overcame her gruesome past. Jane Eyre is tortured as a child by her relatives. For example, Jane’s cousin, John, constantly reminds her that she is an orphan, gets locked in the room her uncle died in and, is always excluded in games by the other children. Jane essentially holds this grudge until she is about to head off to boarding school, where she confronts her aunt. Jane learns a lot while in boarding school. Jane Eyre befriends a girl named Helen who said, “Life appears to me too short to be spent in nursing animosity or registering wrongs”. Jane cuts her family out of her life for good. Jane Eyre loves