Closely analyse the presentation of Rochesters character in Jane Eyre. In the course of your writing make comparisons with the way Rochester is presented in Wide Sargasso Sea.
Closely analyse the presentation of Rochester's character in Jane Eyre. In the course of your writing make comparisons with the way Rochester is presented in Wide Sargasso Sea. Edward Rochester is an upper-class British gentlemen of 19th century Britain. The character of Rochester features heavily in both Brontë's Jane Eyre and Rhys' Wide Sargasso Sea: similarly presented for the most part, but with differences which result in quite different conclusions. The culture and society that each novel is portraying can be considered to be a main contributing factor to this difference: set in two very different cultures and involving two characters (Jane and Antoinette) with very different upbringings and sets of values and beliefs, the character is similar in both but also a world apart. In Jane Eyre, Rochester's character is a dark, deceitful, brooding, selfish but romantic and passionate anti-hero: though truly loving Jane, he seeks to manipulate her for his own selfish reasons at every turn, and though he calls her his "equal", he rarely acts as though she is. He is both a symbol of hope, and a symbol of patriarchal oppression, for Jane. In the novel, he illustrates themes of deceit, inequality, class struggles, male dominance and, eventually, female empowerment. Much of the imagery associated with him in the novel is related to fire: "the light of the fire on his
Analyse the presentation of Jane in Bronte's 'Jane Eyre'
Anna-Louise Wigginton 13H August 2011 How is Jane presented in Charlotte Brontë's 'Jane Eyre'? Charlotte Brontë presents Jane in three different sections of her life that run through from childhood at her aunt's house to her adult life at Thornfield. The presentation of Jane's personality and looks is shown both through her own narration as well as the dialogue between the characters. The first section of Jane's life is at Gateshead, her aunt's house, and she is presented as a child who is 'but ten' and who is plain enough to be described as 'a little toad' by one of the house servants. After her parents' untimely death Jane was forced to live with relatives, which she did not mind until her uncle died too. After that she was treated with contempt by her aunt and cousins Eliza and Georgiana and her cousin John was a bully, he 'struck suddenly and strongly'. The unkindness Jane experiences causes her to have a burning sense of injustice from that point and it begins with her fighting back against John by calling him a 'wicked and cruel boy'. Her aunt's contempt for Jane however, may be because she refuses to ingratiate herself to her aunts wishes, which could be construed as Jane possibly being proud; Mrs Reed says that Jane should 'acquire a more sociable and childlike disposition. A more
Discuss the Role of Religion in Jane Eyre
Discuss the Role and Function of Religion in Jane Eyre Religion undeniably plays a critical role and function in the novel Jane Eyre. Religion and the characters it presents are used by Brontë throughout the piece to raise poignant questions regarding moral boundaries, the exact nature of religion as well as the guidelines we importance of such a moral code as to guide us to independence and eventual self-fulfillment. In this dissertation, I will evaluate the role and function of religion in Jane Eyre as a whole and develop some of the ideas it helps to present in the process. Before we proceed, it is important that a clear distinction be made between the "role" and "function" of religion in this novel. For purposes of this essay, the "role" of this device may refer to the effect of Religion on the novel's readership; "function" may be defined as the effect intended by Brontë in the inclusion of this critical theme. In Jane Eyre, we are presented with three different religious viewpoints through three distinct religious role models: Mr. Brocklehurst, Helen Burns and St John Rivers. The inclusion of these three characters may be viewed as Brontë's means of presenting the flaws she sees in other people's assessment of what religion is, followed by a conclusion that presents what religion means to Jane and implicitly to Brontë herself. Alternatively, the characters
People talk of natural sympathies From their first meeting, Jane and Rochester are well-matched. Discuss.
‘People talk of natural sympathies…’ From their first meeting, Jane and Rochester are well-matched. Discuss. A running theme from Charlotte Bronte throughout her novel, Jane Eyre is the idea, I have previously used that ‘conventionality is not morality’. This idea is continued throughout the novel. It would be thought, in the Victorian era far more conventional for Jane and Rochester to just be Governess and Master; however Jane, throughout the novel, rejects the norm for what she believes to be morally correct, and this is why she could ‘never unlove him;’ she believes, despite what society thinks, something that her late friend Helen Burns taught her, that they are in fact a good match. From their first meeting it would be easy to say that Jane and Rochester aren’t well matched and there are various reasons for this is. The moment that Rochester appears into Jane’s life the weather is ‘cold’ and the wind had ‘froze keenly’ highlighting the Gothic nature of Rochester and the fact that it would be seem completely unconventional for Jane to ever love this man. The atmosphere of the lane reflects Rochester. There is a mystery and suspense that Jane creates due to her love and certainty of the supernatural world, such as stating that the object that is moving towards her has no name, she says ‘it approached’. The fact that she refuses to believe
Jane in Chapters 1 - 11
How does Charlotte Bronte prepare us for character of the adult Jane in the first 11 chapters of the book? From an early age Jane is portrayed as rebellious and independent in the face of repression. This is shown when she is attacked by her cousin John and she unconsciously but brutally defends herself, and again when she is later ostracized from the rest of the family: "Here, leaning over the banister, I cried out suddenly and without at all deliberating on my words - "They are not fit to associate with me." Here Bronte singles Jane out against the Reed family and this shows the confidence Jane was beginning to develop in herself. This budding independence is later reflected in her act of sending out the advertisement for a job as a governess, "...it came quietly and naturally to my mind 'Those who want situations advertise: you must advertise in the -shire Herald.'" This independence starts of early on when Jane is often left to her own element. During the time she was excluded from family activities, she expresses in thought, "To speak truth, I had not the least wish to go into company, for in company I was very rarely noticed..." When one is left to themselves, loneliness evolves into self-sufficiency as you have no one to rely on but yourself. At another instance in the beginning of her days at Lowood school, "As yet I had spoken to no one, nor did anybody seem to take
In Jane Eyre love and marriage are important in different ways. In some relationships the two aspects are disconnected and in one they are eventually united
“It is not personal, but mental endowments they have given you: you are formed for labour, not for love...I claim you not for my pleasure, but for my Sovereign’s service.” In the light of St John’s proposal, discuss the importance in Jane Eyre of love and marriage. In Jane Eyre love and marriage are important in different ways. In some relationships the two aspects are disconnected and in one they are eventually united. St John views marriage as a practical arrangement. ‘It is not personal’ shows that St John views marriage as separate from his emotions and love. This supported when he addresses his claim on her ‘for [his] Sovereign’s service.’ He feels that marrying Jane is something he has to do, and he is marrying her for the purpose of duty. This links to Victorian morality because marriage was generally viewed as something that was done for a purpose such as marrying for status, money or duty. The society would have frowned upon wild marriages based on love without a valid reason. Apart from St John’s loveless marriage principles, there are elements in the novel where love outweighs marriage, but eventually equalises which is reflected in Rochester and Jane’s relationship. There is also a passionate at first marriage which then becomes incomplete and loveless and this is shown through Bertha and Rochester’s marriage. St John and Jane’s
Explore Brontes presentation of Mr. Rochester as a Byronic hero in Jane Eyre.
Explore Bronte's presentation of Mr. Rochester as a Byronic hero in Jane Eyre. Bronte's literary character of Rochester is often referred to as the "Byronic" Rochester: a dark, somewhat mysterious, and perhaps even criminal protagonist. To a certain extent, the character of Mr. Rochester embodies many of the characteristics of the Byronic hero; however, in many respects Bronte has made Mr. Rochester quite conventional. It is other characters in Jane Eyre who mistakenly characterize him as such, but Bronte, through Rochester's own actions and words, ultimately rejects this categorization of Rochester as a Byronic hero. In Chapter 11 of Jane Eyre, Jane asks of Mrs. Fairfax, "What, in short, is his character?" To this Mrs. Fairfax replies, "He is rather peculiar, perhaps: he has traveled a great deal, and seen a great deal of the world, I should think. I dare say he is clever". This account by Mrs. Fairfax of her master establishes Rochester as a sort of wanderer. Similarly, there is the account of Rochester's promiscuous travel throughout Europe before his marriage to Bertha, where he has an affair with Celine Varens. Several times throughout the novel Rochester mysteriously arrives at and departs from Thornfield Hall, and frequently the residents of Thornfield must wonder at his return, as does Jane at the opening of Chapter 17: "A week passed, and no news arrived of Mr.
Explore Bronte's use of symbolism in Jane Eyre
Olivia Cooper Explore Bronte’s use of symbolism Jane Eyre is a romantic novel in which gothic imagery and the genre of romanticism play significant roles that continue right through Bronte’s bildungsroman novel. Throughout the novel, Jane Eyre, Bronte embeds symbolism to assist conveying the story through giving certain aspects deeper context. This is seen when Bronte uses symbolism to aid the reader’s perception on certain aspects of the novel, for instance representing Jane and Rochester’s love through manipulating the object, the Chestnut tree, converting it to become symbolic of their adoration. The Red Room and Bertha are also other aspects where symbolism is significantly portrayed. Eyre escapes through the imaginative world of interpreting stories told in the ‘Berwick’s History of British Birds’. Bronte uses this to symbolise how Jane herself yearned to fly away. Despite Jane’s strong will, her traumatic experiences at Gateshead had left her with fear of “enslavement”. Jane is continuously referred to as a bird throughout the novel which assists the readers view on Jane’s subjugation. This is quite ironic as during the Victorian era (when Jane Eyre was published) as Parakeets were a common pet amongst the upper class. As the upper class are physically symbolic of the Reed family, while the bird is symbolic of Jane. The red room merely symbolises
How charlotte Bronte conveys the experience of childhood and school.
How charlotte Bronte conveys The experience of childhood And school In this essay I will be investigating how charlotte Bronte conveys the experience of childhood and school through the media of Jane Eyre. This novel has many varied examples of charlotte Bronte's picture of childhood and school in the early 1900's and is the perfect book to chose to display my points. I will be reviewing the first 10 chapters of Jane Eyre that cover Jane's transformation from child to young woman. I will start by looking at the first segment of the book, at the period where she is living in her aunt 's (Mrs Reed) house with her three cousins Eliza, Georgina and john. I think that the first example of childhood in this particular part of the book is the way the children are treated, the way that is shows the very Victorian way that children should be " seen but not heard". The children are allocated there own nursery room with there own nanny to look after the children which makes it seem that Mrs. reed and the children have a very isolated relationship with Mrs. reed only dealing with her children when it was at her own leisure, relying on Bessie (the nanny's) opinion of how the children behave and are instead of getting to know them personally. For example " She regretted to be under the necessity of keeping me at a distance; but that until she heard from Bessie that I was endeavouring
The opening chapters of Jane Eyre are not an account of childhood but rather the beginning of the discussion of the female identity. Discuss.
' The opening chapters of Jane Eyre are not an account of childhood but rather the beginning of the discussion of female identity' The fact that this essay is based on a very small chunk of the novel makes it hard to fully discuss the female identity of Jane. this requires me to thoroughly explore the context in which the novel is written in order to have a complete understanding of the circumstances surrounding Charlotte Brontë in the Victorian era which may have influenced her in the writing of Jane Eyre. At the time of writing 'Jane Eyre' Charlotte was living in Victorian England in the middle of the 19th century. 19th century women living in Britain had a much more submissive role in society than they do today. Women were not allowed to vote and the law completely ignored then as humans. a woman was legally bound to her nearest male relative and any property that she only became her husband as soon as she was married. They were also not allowed to attend university. We can believe this because it is alleged that Charlotte Brontë published her book under the name of Currer Bell which suggests that she had to sell it under a male identity otherwise her work would have never been published this way Brontë's work was published and not discredited for written by a irrational woman. The novel opens with Jane's narrative and we are immediately thrust into the world of a