Jane Eyre was a modern woman for her time

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Jane Eyre was a modern woman for her time

 The novel Jane Eyre introduces a woman with a troubled childhood that could be considered modern because she is described as having the mind and thoughts of a woman from modern times. She performs a series of heroic deeds, which also leads us to consider her a heroine, with a series of leadership skills, and a belief for equality between men and women. This is found appealing by Mr. Rochester, Jane's patron, and later lover.

Firstly, Jane could be considered a heroine, as she performs heroic deeds, saving Mr. Rochester from a fire in that destroys Thornfield Hall. The latter is the most highlighting of her heroic deeds throughout the novel. She can also be seen as a heroine from the feminist point of view because of her resistance to male authority and the independence she gains, as she becomes a strong and well educated individual at a time when women were under the strict authority of men, being considered inferior, and practically only servants to men.

She succeeds as a leader by demonstrating her psychological strength at various times even during her childhood, resisting the oppression of her stepmother, obtaining a victory against her when she threatens her with telling others about the vile punishments she suffered at Gateshead hall. She also is a source of encouragement for other women her age, especially at Lowood, where she leads by resisting the public humiliation inflicted on her by Mr. Brocklehurst.

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Moreover, Jane demonstrates her similarities with the modern woman because of her way of thinking. Just like the aforementioned, she does not see herself as any different from men, "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" (page 96). This is a clear example of feminism, which also occurs in the modern society, because of the pursue for equality between women and men.

Jane starts to prove this equality as well as her independence from a very early age, when receiving ...

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