Once Jane has grown up, her next setting is Thornfield Hall, where
she goes to be a governess. Bronte creates a very vivid image of Thornfield Hall, emphasising the Gothic elements to create mystery and terror. The mansion is very large, dark and mystifying. “narrow, low and dim.” Bronte describes the mansion “like a corridor in some Bluebeard’s castle.” Her use of language and description creates an atmosphere filled with the prevalence of mysteries, suspense and ghostly surroundings, “old fashioned” and “dark and low.” The house is an imposing structure, which looks even more ominous at night. There are many references to supernatural beings, for example when Mrs Fairfax is showing Jane around, ghosts are mentioned. “If there were a ghost this would be its haunt.” This scares Jane, and the reader too. Thornfield is very spacious and there are hidden and secretive places, for example Jane finds a hidden door behind a piece of tapestry, but then Mrs Fairfax quickly stops her from going in there. Another example of mystery and secrecy is the laugh heard by Jane. “A laugh struck my ear.” The reader wonders if there is some supernatural force in the house when Jane hears the manic laughing. This laugh scares Jane and she wonders what it is. “It was a curious laugh; distinct, formal, mirthless.” She asks Mrs Fairfax and realises she has nothing to worry about. These examples show the mystery and suspense at Thornfield Hall, and that there are many aspects that are hidden and kept secretive. This foreshadows later events in the novel.
Throughout the novel, the locations where Jane is situated have a significant influence on her, but the other characters are the ones who have made her who she is, and helped her to grow up and mature. At Gateshead, the Reed family influenced Jane’s character. Jane is an orphan, and dearly needs to be loved and have some affection. In order to get this, she would have to be someone she is not. “To gain some real affection...I would willingly submit to have the bone of my arm broken.” Her aunt is very cruel to Jane, and blames Jane for a lot of things, which aren’t her fault. She does not get on with her spoilt cousins because they bully her. Her main tormentor is John Reed, who is his mother’s favourite and can do no wrong. “Mama says you have no money; your father left you none,” She felt rejected and lonely and learned to take care of herself. She becomes independent and strong on the outside. She says to her Aunt, “I do not love you: I dislike you the worst of anybody in the world except John Reed” For it takes courage and bravery to say this. This shows Jane’s strong, independent personality; the sort of character very typical in a Gothic novel.
When she goes to Lowood School, Mr Brocklehurst and Miss Temple
play an important part in her school years. Mr Brocklehurst is a strict, daunting and intimidating man. He creates an atmosphere of tension and fear towards Jane, “Naughty little girl,” and says wicked and evil things like “burn in hell.” His character is very threatening to Jane, like an evil, sinister and wicked villain, found in a traditional Gothic novel. This creates sympathy for Jane. For example, when Mr Brocklehurst introduces Jane to the other girls, “This is Jane Eyre, a new student. Her aunt tells me she is a wicked child. Therefore, no one will be allowed to talk to her or sit beside her.” His character could be considered very Gothic.
Miss Temple, is a kind teacher who Jane can confide in, and is her
role model. “To her instruction I owed the best part of my acquirements.” In a way, she is like a hero to Jane, because, for the first time in her life, she finds someone who she can relate to, and someone who truly cares about her. “She had stood me in the stead of mother, governess, and, latterly, companion.” Another important character at Lowood School is Helen Burns. She is Jane’s first real friend and Jane is really upset when she dies. Helen Burns plays a very important role in Jane’s life because she teaches her many lessons and helps her when she is being picked on. “love your enemies; bless them that curse you; do good to them that hate you” Valuable lessons like this have a lasting effect on Jane, as later on in the novel she offers Mrs. Reed, her aunt, forgiveness. When Helen dies, this not only reiterates the fact that Jane is now miserable because she has lost her best friend, but also shows the bad conditions due to illnesses and disease at the school. “The typhus fever had fulfilled its mission of devastation at Lowood.” This is another Gothic feature as it shows how bad the conditions were where Jane Lived. This creates sympathy for Jane, and we see her as quite vulnerable. In many Gothic novels, the heroines do not live simple lives, and often things like diseases or illnesses occur to reiterate the heroines poor living conditions.
There are many features in ‘Jane Eyre’ that are not considered to be
Gothic, and one of them is Jane’s personality. In a traditional Gothic novel, the heroine is vulnerable and beautiful, meek and trusting, but Jane is mentally strong, and opinionated. The way that Jane was excluded and victimised is very Gothic, but Bronte turns the Gothic tradition upside down in the way that Jane is not like a normal heroine because Jane is not very pretty or innocent. Normal heroines would be very beautiful, but Jane describes herself as “poor disconnected and plain.” As a reader, she reminds us of her plainness and small size.
Jane was glad to get away from Mr. Brocklehurst and the dreary
Lowood Institution. Little did she know that moving to Thornfield would change the rest of her life. Mr Rochester is the main feature of Thornfield because he owns the mansion, although he is rarely home. It is nearly a year before Jane and Mr Rochester meet. This creates mystery to both Jane and the reader, because Jane is eager to meet him, after everything she has heard about him. This anticipation keeps the reader interested and wondering what will what happen when they meet, making it very effective for the reader.
The meeting of Jane and Mr Rochester goes against the traditional
Gothic novel because normally the hero would save the “heroine”, but in this case it is the other way round. The situation Jane is in is very Gothic because it is the middle of the night and it is dark and frightening. At first Jane is very scared. She imagines that the horse is a mystical creature. “a lion-like creature with long hair and a huge head: it passed me” Bronte has described the Gothic and supernatural atmosphere through Jane’s imagination, and uses very effective techniques to portray this chilling atmosphere. This shows that Jane has a strong and vivid imagination as she remembers the tales that Bessie used to read to her. Jane makes references to goblins, beasts and the “spirit called Gytrash”
When the horse falls, Mr Rochester breaks his ankle and Jane helps him and gets his horse back. Jane draws her first impressions of him. He is described as having “a dark face, with stern features and a heavy brow.” She does not find him attractive as she says “had he been handsome.” It is ironic that Mr Rochester asks Jane about himself, “Do you know Mr Rochester?” This could be because he wants to know what image Jane has created of him. The meeting on the whole, is romantic and passionate, which is very Gothic, although as Jane walks back to the mansion she convinces herself that it was not romantic and meant nothing, “it was an incident of no moment, no romance” The meeting foreshadows their later relationship in the novel.
Another significant moment between Jane and Mr Rochester is when there is a fire. “Tongues of fire darted round the bed” Once again, Jane plays the hero, and Mr Rochester the “heroine”. This proves that Jane is a very brave and a mentally strong person, unlike a normal Gothic heroine. “Wake! Wake, I cried. I shook him” She is sworn to secrecy, and this has a very romantic element in it because it is something that just the pair of them know. The romance is very Gothic “I saw it in your eyes when I first beheld you” said Mr Rochester. Also Jane notices “strange energy was in his voice, strange fire in his look.”
Throughout ‘Jane Eyre’, there are many mysteries as is common in traditional Gothic novels. One of these is Mr Rochester’s lunatic wife, Bertha. Later on in the novel, we learn about his secretive and regretful life. Jane finds out that Mr Rochester has an immoral life, filled with lies, mistresses and affairs and that his wife, Bertha, is locked in the attic of the mansion. Unlike most women, Bertha retaliates, trying to kill Rochester and ruining his home and name. The section on Lowood shows how medical and social conditions are tightly linked. It also shows the poor conditions that everybody, including Jane, lived in, and the things they had to go through. This creates quite a Gothic feeling because it is mysterious and emphasises their pitiable living conditions.
Another mysterious incident is when Mr Mason is injured. There are
many references to blood, “he sponged away blood, trickling fast down”, and it is very gory “she sucked the blood: she said she’d drain my heart.” Jane, and the reader, do not know who did it so it creates mystery. “what mystery, that broke out now in fire and now in blood” Bronte creates a supernatural atmosphere using imagery and alliteration, “a savage, a shrilly sound” to make it more effective. She builds up the suspense at the beginning, “my heart stood still” This event is very Gothic as it is full of secrecy and mystery, as no one knows who committed this crime, and it is filled with blood and gore.
Another key feature of a Gothic novel is the weather and the atmosphere that it creates. The weather seems to reflect on the characters emotions, whether it is fear and grief, or love and happiness. Throughout ‘Jane Eyre’, Bronte uses the pathetic fallacy to emphasise the way that Jane is feeling. For example, at Gateshead and Lowood, the weather is dreary and dull, with bleak, cold winters to fit with her harsh childhood. Before Jane leaves Gateshead, Bronte uses symbolism to describe her emotions. “I looked into an empty field where no sheep were feeding…It was a very grey day.” The fact that there were no sheep in the field symbolises that Jane is empty, not loved, and lonely. The sky is grey, showing that her life is tedious and she cannot see into the future. Jane is scared and anxious about moving to her new school. The pathetic fallacy emphasises this. “Rain, wind and darkness filled the air.”
The seasons are also a very important part of the pathetic fallacy. As Jane meets Miss Temple and Helen, spring begins. “It began to be pleasant and genial” reflecting that her life was improving and she had reasons to be optimistic. The seasons show the change in her life as well as her feelings and emotions. The “splendid midsummer” starts as Jane and Mr Rochester’s love grows. Everything around Jane is sweet and content. “Jasmine, pink and rose”. The pathetic fallacy shows her happiness and the romance between them. Another example of the pathetic fallacy, is when Jane goes for a “pleasant winter afternoon walk.” This is just before she meets Mr Rochester, so this is obviously a happy occasion. The gentleness of the weather emphasises Jane’s mood. “The air was still”, and “I heard only the faintest waft of wind.”
Bronte uses metaphors and similes to describe her emotions. Water is a significant one, for example, when she realises her love for Rochester, Bronte describes that Jane is “tossed on a buoyant but unquiet sea.” Also water is symbolised after the wedding disaster, when Jane is really upset, “I laid down in the dried up bed of a great river.” This could symbolise her grief and tears. Again, the seasons enhance her feelings, “a white December storm has swirled over June,” and “drifts crushed the blowing roses” .
Other important symbols are when the chestnut tree is struck by lightning immediately after Jane and Mr Rochester agree to marry each other. Since Rochester is already married, the splitting of the chestnut tree is foreshadowing how they will be separated later at their wedding. However, the “cloves halves were not broken...the base firm and strong roots kept them unsundered below.” This symbolises their eventual union because the tree is not actually broken into two. The symbols and metaphors used by Bronte, help emphasise the mysterious and dark Gothic features in the novel.
Jane’s dreams are also very significant in the novel because they foreshadow what happens later on. This mystery and anxiety is another feature in ‘Jane Eyre’, which could be considered to be Gothic. In chapter 21, Jane has constant dreams of when she was a little child, foreshadowing in her mind some kind of trouble. The dreams refer to the death of both Bessie's newborn and John Reed, and also to Mrs Reed's strokes. Jane also has a revelation, which makes her return to Thornfield. “I heard a voice somewhere cry, Jane, Jane, Jane…it was the voice of Edward Fairfax Rochester.” This supernatural calling to Jane could be considered to be very Gothic.
Taken as a whole, there are many Gothic features in the novel, as Jane, the heroine begins being poor and lonely and ends up being rich and loved. Jane, the orphan, finds a good family to replace the unkind Reed family, and falls in love. These are all the basic ingredients for a traditional Gothic novel. However there are many other factors that a Gothic novel must have.
It is not just the plot that contains many Gothic features but also the characters in ‘Jane Eyre.’ The majority of the characters in the novel resemble a certain feature found in a Gothic Novel, for e.g. Mr Brocklehurst, and how he resembles a ‘villain’ type of character.
All of the locations that Jane stays at, e.g. Lowood and Gateshead are all very dark and mysterious, like the stereotypical Gothic castle. There are lots of alarming, supernatural noises and ghostly figures. This all adds to the tension and atmosphere that Charlotte Bronte creates, using similes, metaphors and symbolism.
However, there are parts where Bronte has changed the typical ‘Gothic novel’ around. For example, at the meeting of Jane and Mr Rochester. Here it seems that Jane is the hero, and Mr Rochester is the heroine. This adds contrast and makes it seem more interesting for the reader, as they would it expect Jane to be the heroine, and Mr Rochester the hero.
The ending is not to be considered Gothic either, because, although they fall in love at the end, Mr Rochester’s mansion is burnt down and he is blind. This would normally contradict a normal Gothic novel, where everything would end happily.
Charlotte Bronte has not completely written a Gothic novel, however ‘Jane Eyre’ does have many features which could be considered Gothic.