Jane Eyre Gender

253). The opening of chapter 26, Brontë (p. 253) introduces the morning of the matrimony between Jane and Mr Rochester, to concluding the chapter in a tone of solitary helplessness, disillusionment and a loss of purpose, as Jane professed, “the whole consciousness of my life lorn, my love lost, my hope quenched, my faith death-struck, swayed full and mighty above me in one sullen mass” (p. 262). Mr Rochester exercises the Victorian female dichotomy through his use of angelic imagery in his representation of Jane. Mr Rochester associates Jane’s innocence and inexperience to her youth by continually addressing her youth, being a “young girl”, with untainted “clear eyes”, whereas Bertha is described in such a manner as to take the form of a red eyed “demon” (p. 259). Bertha’s physical representations, by Mr Rochester, is synonymous with her mental

On page 125 of Jane Eyre, Bronte discusses women, “Women are supposed to be very calm generally: but women feel just as men feel; they need exercise for their faculties, and a field for their efforts as much as their brothers do; they suffer from too rigid a restraint, to absolute a stagnation...” Bronte feels that women are treated very poorly, and her strong word choice allows the reader to visualize the inequality regarding women. To show women never get the rights they deserve Bronte used the words restraint, and stagnation to provoke negative thoughts in the readers head like women are still, held back, and controlled. These words appeal to the senses, and create memories which provoke strong messages. This makes the reader feel compassionate towards women and see the struggles that go on in their lives just to be equal with men. On the same page, 125 Bronte states,“Millions are condemned to a stiller doom than mine, and millions are in silent revolt against their lot.” Charlotte Bronte also uses words like “condemned and stiller doom” which are negative, and provoke how women are controlled with their role in society. An eerie mood is expressed with Bronte’s choice of words, that being a woman is like being chained back, and in the reader's mind like a puppet, needing the assistance from a man to live life. This communicates how Bronte dislikes the injustice of women’s roles and guides the reader into her thoughts with her

Bronte’s narrator, Jane Eyre, narrates the passage from a position of hindsight, making her the typical, rational, Gothic narrator, leading the reader to trust Jane and the actions being described. The gothic tropes utilised lend to a Marxist reading of the novel; the terrified Jane is the symbol of the oppressed proletariat victimised by the bourgeoisie. Through the use of fear, incarceration and uncertainty, created by the gothic devices, the reader is encouraged to feel empathetic towards Jane, as she is unlawfully victimised for her cousin’s “violent actions”. A Marxist reading can be applied to the entirety of the novel, as Bronte explores the strange trapped position Jane occupies within a hierarchical class system, oppressed by the upper classes (John Reed, Mr Brocklehurst) yet, not quite a member of the servant classes either. Bronte is exploring the changing class system in 19th century England and questioning the corruption and bullying behaviour of the upper classes, hence Jane’s narrative is a critique of the upper classes and their dubious moral values.

Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre entails a social criticism of the oppressive social ideas and practices of nineteenth-century Victorian society. The presentation of male and female relationships emphases men’s domination and perceived superiority over women. Jane Eyre is a reflection of Brontë’s own observation on gender roles of the Victorian era, from the vantage point of her position as governess much like Jane’s. Margaret Atwood’s novel was written during a period of conservative revival in the West partly fueled by a strong, well-organized movement of religious conservatives who criticized ‘the excesses of the sexual revolution.’ Where Brontë’s Jane Eyre is a clear depiction of the subjugation of women by men in nineteenth-century

85), in other words, a novel that had blindly failed to emancipate female characters situated within an alternative social class, than Jane herself, or rather Charlotte Brontë’s fellow comrades. Even though Jane momentarily sympathises for Bertha, when she exclaims to Mr Rochester that his depictions are “cruel – she cannot help being mad” (p. 265), Brontë’s exclusion of certain social classes and women of colour, from her female empowerment movement, undoubtedly places a question mark next to the feminist movement presented within the text in terms of its emancipatory

This “stagnation” was dreary and difficult for many women, however, few were able to push through these restraints and find their voice. The “customs” given by society should not trap and stifle women’s ideas and opinions. Bronte, through Jane’s words is telling those women who are afraid to speak up that their thoughts and opinions are just as valid and important as those of their male counterparts. Jane’s view on women, and the fact that they should be equal to men, is evident in the way she treats the men she interacts with. She is not afraid of them and will not hesitate to voice her opinions. This is even

Charlotte Brontë's female bildungsroman, Jane Eyre, attempts to spotlight many of the issues of the "woman question" facing this period and to draw a balance between a woman's social role and her need for personal

“I am no bird; and no net ensnares me: I am a free human being with an independent will.” (P. 319) Jane boldly confesses. Jane is a ten-year-old underprivileged orphan who is growing up in the Victorian era, while having to go through a challenging series of constant disrespect, neglect, and drudgery. Charlotte Brontë’s, most well know book, Jane Eyre deserves to continue being published, since it shows relevancy to today’s readers, by demonstrating how Jane is a female protagonist, while being a female heroine, who believes in self-respect and equality. While she challenges authority, at Gateshead, Lowood, and Thronfield.

Why is that? Well, Bertha is a pretty big plot twist to the novel; she is the secrets and deception Edward Rochester hid from Jane throughout their relationship, and insanity is always fun to explore in characters. She is also the only character of color in the story, who is portrayed as a Gothic monster (which has enough racist implications from the time period as is). However, in some ways, she can compare to Jane Eyre, as someone who also lacked freedom from who should’ve been who most loved her (for Bertha, it’s Mr. Rochester, for Jane, her family of The Reeds). Both also have experienced what it’s like to be literally and emotionally locked up, though while Jane was locked up to the point of gaining boldness, Bertha was locked up to the point of losing her sanity. They’ve also felt lots of hatred from the abuse they’ve experienced, towards their abusers. They fight for their freedom, but Jane has the limits a sane person should, while Bertha’s madness drives her to cause fires and disasters to gain her freedom. Bertha could be seen as a ‘what if’ to Jane if she had lost her goodness and her mind also went against her, from the circumstances of abuse she had to

Within Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë utilizes contemporary vernacular through a parallel of herself, Jane Eyre, to illuminate the atrocities of the patriarchal society of the 1840’s. “Modern literary criticism has long recognized Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre (1847) as a pivotal text for feminists” (Griesinger 1). Largely due to the verbosity in which Jane asserts herself, along with underlying messages protesting the horrid conditions women of the time period endured. Although Brontë seeks progression through her linguistics, Jane also proves compliant in many regards and does not seem to mind doing so. Furthermore, due to the prominence of underlying themes revolving around religion, Jane’s beliefs, and the plight of women within the time period the novel was written, I utilized the writings of Emily Griesinger, a professor at Asuza Pacific University who teaches courses in British literature, religion, and autobiographies and/or memoirs to assist me in my comprehension of the work. In Griesinger’s work, “Charlotte Brontë’s Religion: Faith, Feminism, and Jane Eyre”, a focus is placed upon Brontë’s usage of radical terminologies and their evanescent properties, typically lacking complete manifestation, yet resolute nevertheless in their attempts at progression. Overall, the interpretation of Jane Eyre and its schematics by Emily Griesinger assisted me in my endeavors, wonderfully translating Brontë’s archaic scripture and highlighting fundamental principles of the text and

Women have never been considered equal to men. They have not been since the beginning and although we say they are now, many would probably disagree. Charlotte Brontë was no exception to this rule- she knew that society expected women to fit into a specific category rather than be their own individuals and she expressed her frustration towards this in Jane Eyre. Within this brief passage, Charlotte Brontë elegantly employs symbolism, allusions, and diction in order to assert Jane’s determination to stay true to herself, despite the pressures exerted on her by society.

A life consisting of domestic toil and servitude, the ideal course expected of the Victorian housewife, daughter, and women any other stature imposing upon them a conquest and subordination of the lesser. Within this complex, Charlotte Brontë published Jane Eyre, a novel concerning a woman’s metamorphosis into an “other,” resulting from her nonconformity and disenfranchisement, and her advancement into a state of independence. This narrative provides the predominant focus of contemporary feminist literary criticism: analysists hail Jane as the epitome of female empowerment, as she overcomes prejudice and forges an egalitarian position amongst the draconian gender caste of Victorian England. However, in “’Not Fit to Associate with Me:’ Contradictions of Race, Class, and Gender in Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre,” Sangeeta Parashar claims that “otherness” derives not from the alienated housewives of the English mother country, but rather from the subjects of her daughter colonies; this “otherness” further imposes racial and imperialistic undertones upon female characters within the novel. Jane Eyre herself is a metaphor for the preconceived black woman and rather than being a defiant source of rebellion, she submits to the colonist dogma of the Victorian Era and forsakes her fellow exploited, thereby becoming white.

Bildungsroman is a novel genre that follows the path to maturity of a character, focusing on the changes and experiences that shape this character as they move from youth to adolescence. The plot of Jane Eyre, written by Charlotte Brontë, is one such example of a Bildungsroman. The growth of the main character, Jane Eyre, begins from her tragic childhood and leads up to her becoming the mistress of Mr. Rochester. Along this journey, Jane faces various difficulties and confronts many challenges that shape her personality and lead to the construction of the person we see at the end of the novel. Gender is a topic regularly highlighted as a key component of the novel, in particular gender roles and who does or does not want to be defined by their

Charlotte Bronte wrote Jane Eyre before first-wave feminism, as a response to the socio-economic reality of 1840’s England. It is important to define feminism, because it means different things to different people, in different times and circumstances. In this paper it means the vital role of both genders working together, as well as the socio-economic imperatives (survival) involved, in empowering all women, including Jane, to make the choices that will make them happy. It will explore how and why Jane Eyre helped define what became feminism, thus becoming ‘canon.’

Bronte's Jane Eyre effectively transcends the genres of literature to depict the emotional and character development of its protagonist. Whilst no overall genre dominates the novel exclusively, the blending contributes towards the portrayal of Bronte’s bildungsroman (Realisms, 92) as Jane Eyre grapples with her inner-self, and the social expectations of her gender. The novel incorporates Jane’s frequent conflicts, oppression, isolation and self-examination as she defends her identity and independence. Set amongst five separate locations, Bronte’s skilful use of literal and metaphorical landscapes, nature, and imagery, skilfully intertwines with the plot and denotes each phrase of her maturity. To deliberate these points further, chapters 1 and 23, will be analysed in detail. In addition it will argue how Bronte used the setting of Jane Eyre, to demonstrate that women can go beyond the oppressive limitations of their gender, economic and social class and environment and find fulfilment. It will also consider how the setting