Messages to the Reader in Jane Eyre, a Novel by Charlotte Brontë

In its simplest form, Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre tells the story of a young woman, Jane Eyre, who grows up poor, makes the decision to be independent, does so, and, eventually, marries rich. The novel follows her from her childhood to her reunion with the love of her life and she, throughout it, deals with classism and sexism and exhibits her own form of feminism. By the end, it becomes clear that, with this semi-autobiographical novel, Charlotte Bronte was providing a criticism on society’s discrimination toward those of a lower class, a subtle argument against the male-dominated society’s treatment of women, and an even subtler call to action for women to find their own agency outside of the men in their lives. On another end, however,

Jane Eyre is a young orphan being raised by Mrs. Reed, her cruel, wealthy aunt. A servant named Bessie provides Jane with some of the few kindnesses she receives, telling her stories and singing songs to her. One day, as punishment for fighting with her bullying cousin John Reed, Jane’s aunt imprisons Jane in the red-room, the room in which Jane’s Uncle Reed died. While locked in, Jane, believing that she sees her uncle’s ghost, screams and faints. She wakes to find herself in the care of Bessie and the kindly apothecary Mr. Lloyd, who suggests to Mrs. Reed that Jane be sent away to school. To Jane’s delight, Mrs. Reed concurs.

Jane Eyre is a novel that features a rollercoaster of traumatic events that shows the growth of a young girl. In the graphic novel version of Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë, Jane learns how to fend for herself whenever no one else had her back. The overall mood of the graphic novel is mysterious. This is due to the fact that Jane experiences random encounters of the supernatural, creepy places, spiritual events, and horrible strokes of luck.

While reading Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, one thing to notice is that there are many different kinds of literary motifs, symbols, and themes used throughout the book. These can include Love versus Autonomy, Religion, Social Class, Gender Relations, and more. Overall, throughout the book, Charlotte Bronte made an impact on the world through feminism. As being one of the first feminist writers of her time, Charlotte made an impact of this though out her book, to show women and men that they are equal to each

of Currer Bell in 1847. It is a semi autobiography and is a mixture of

Conforming to society’s rules is not an option for everyone. This holds true for the orphan Jane Eyre. Jane lived during the Victorian Era in England. During this time period women did not have the same freedoms as men, so as of result women lived under constant oppression. Women had to suffer loveless marriages and the inability to survive without men. Not only, were women oppressed emotionally they were not able to be independent from men. Jane Eyre objects the rules of society and attempts to find passion and independence in her life. Within Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre’s passionate belief for freedom becomes a symbol of empowerment among women.

My dear reader, and gentile reader are just two examples of how Charlotte Bronte used the narrator to address the reader. In the novel Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte has the narrator address the reader as a friend to show compassion for her situation, to be understanding, and to make an argument. Charlotte Bronte refers to the reader threw out the novel in order to show the progression of the book. While this story is about someones life there is an essence of Jane telling us this story of her life in her old age. Jane throughout the novel is proving why she made these decisions, which is why she is making an argument to the reader throughout the novel. While making this continuous argument she is also referring to the reader with compassion and hoping they will understand her situation, which is why the relationship between the reader and narrator is a friendly one. As the novel progresses, you can see that there are times where the relationship is being questioned, however, the friendly relationship is prevalent throughout the novel.

The novel Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte tells the story of an abused orphan, Jane, who later matures into a confident, self-reliant governess. Bronte uses conflict, irony, and symbols to display how Jane matures. The most dominant themes of Jane Eyre are social position, feminism, and overcoming difficult situations. Jane is an unwavering force, symbolizing in many ways the life of Charlotte Bronte. Jane struggles to find a balance between independence, friendship, and love throughout the novel.

Jane Eyre is a gothic novel written by Charlotte Brontё. The novel focuses on the life of girl named Jane Eyre who was raised by her Aunt due to her parents’ passing. Growing up with her aunt Jane was continually mistreated by her relatives and as she matures she learns to forgive. One of the main themes in Jane Eyre is the mark of maturity is the ability to forgive others for the wrong they have done to you. This is true because as Jane spends time away from Gateshead, tragedy falls there and she later learns to forgive.

    The role of a woman in Victorian England was an unenviable one. Social demands and personal desires were often at cross-purposes. This predicament was nothing new in the 19th century, yet it was this period that would see the waters begin to stir in anticipation of the cascading changes about to shake the very foundation of an empire on the brink of global colonization and industrialization. The question of what role women would play in this transformation came to the forefront.

Subtitled as “An Autobiography”, Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre depicts the development of its main character and narrator through what are perhaps the most important years in her life. Along those years, Jane Eyre is subjected to multiple unlucky events, all of which have an important role in her character growth, as each of them shapes and alters her personality.

“I from that hour set to work a fresh, resolved to pioneer my way through every difficulty. I toiled hard, and my success was proportionate to my efforts.” (Bronte,81) demonstrates the strict resolution Jane Eyre lives her life by. In Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte Jane becomes an orphan at a very young age and passes from place to place until she arrives at Thornfield and meets Mr. Rochester. She can not love him because of his social standing but comes back to him after hearing of his injuries and death of his wife Bertha. In this literary work Bronte uses themes such as religion, love versus autonomy, social class in Jane Eyre.

In the book Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte, we can see in the beginning how Jane Eyre is left with her sour family and how she does not fit in at all. As a result, she gets bullied physical and emotionally by her cousins and aunt, making her feel she is less than everyone, even the servants, and being pushed and shoved around. Jane then has this want of wanting freedom and escape. Bronte show us how Jane wants freedom from her ruthless family because she feels like a stranger in her childhood.

Jane Eyre is often recalled as one of the very first feminist novels. As Martin, Robert B. states, “The novel is […] the earliest major feminist novel, although there is not a […] desire for political, legal, educational, or even intellectual equality between the sexes. Miss Bronte asks only for the simple — or is it the most complex? — recognition that the same heart and the same spirit animate both men and women[…]” . Jane Eyre is yet to be one of the most intricate feminist books to be written as the feminism in itself isn’t directly addressed in the story. It is indicated that equality within sexes is something Jane thrives for, though Jane never addressed it to the reader. Charlotte Brontë wrote this novel in an intricate way, elaborately making the feminist ideas come through without directly mentioning them to avoid further questioning on her identity as a writer, as she wrote under the pseudonym of Currer Bell due to the sexism women experienced during this era.

   Charlotte Bronte's novel, Jane Eyre, skillfully reveals that Jane, the protagonist, has the qualities of endurance, valor, and vitality, yet she is refused self-contentment by the confined society in which she lives. Not only is this work a love story, but it is the tale of a young orphaned girl and her struggle for love and independence. Through the various environments Bronte provides, Jane oscillates between education and containment and also between freedom and servitude.