This equality and female power is not echoed in Wide Sargasso Sea however, as Antoinette’s character is seen as being oppressed and battered by her marriage to Mr Rochester. Antoinette is an outcast in numerous ways and the continual rejection in her life confuses her sense of self and belonging. Whereas Jane seems to have a consistent idea of what she wants to be and sticks to her convictions; Antoinette is expected to be everything and nothing at the same time. She is outcast from the society in the West Indies as she is a Creole and her family were involved in the slave trade; they often refer to her as a ‘[...] white cockroach [...]’ (p.9) as though she was something disgusting to be stepped on. Antoinette’s life is full of choices that she hasn’t made; even her marriage to Rochester is made for her and is based on wealth, land and colonialism rather than love, such as Jane’s is.
In her marriage, she is still continually rejected. Rochester detests her ‘native’ side and knowledge, possibly because, as Calvin Tennakoon suggests; ‘If Rochester accepts Antoinette he would be accepting colonial attributes that he had been suppressing his entire life [...]’ This oppression finally leads to Antoinette’s destruction of self and property, in an effort to gain control over some aspect of her life and Mr Rochester.
The use of fire in the representation of the end of each novel is an interesting contrast; with Jane Eyre focusing more on the symbolism of passion and cleansing nature of the flames, and Wide Sargasso Sea depicting it as destruction and freedom. The idea of fire is incredibly important to each novel and is a leading cause behind the decisions that both heroines make.
In Jane Eyre, Bronte refers to fire and ice throughout the novel as a way of contrasting Jane’s personality with those people and situations that seek to suppress and reject her nature. Jane is frequently referred to as being a kindred spirit with fire, emphasising her character as one of warmth, brightness and passion; ‘A ridge of lighted heath, alive, glancing, devouring [...]’ (p.45) The fire at the end of the novel is an extension of this. While the idea of a house fire might normally symbolise death and destruction, in Jane Eyre it becomes a way for Rochester to become a better version of himself, cleansed and freed of his past mistakes; such as his mad wife, Bertha. In turn, the death of his wife, and his humbled character, along with Jane’s now higher social status, creates an opportunity for Jane’s decision to marry him. Thus, the representation of fire becomes irrevocably linked with Jane’s happiness, and her love and passion for Mr Rochester.
Antoinette’s dream and decision to set the house ablaze can also be linked with the symbolism of passion; however, her fervour appears to arise more out of hatred and a desire to be freed. Once again, fire is a recurrent theme in Wide Sargasso Sea, but this time it symbolises destruction and death, rather than warmth and light; starting with the fire that burnt down Coulibri estate, which is one of the main causes of her mother’s slow descent into madness. Eventually, fire, the colour red and death become linked to Antoinette’s personality and beliefs; her red dress, which represents her Creole identity and femininity, begins the plot of destruction in her mind as ‘[...] it was as if the fire had spread across the room. It was beautiful and it reminded me of something I must do.’ (p.121-22) During her third dream about the fire, the colour red is predominant , contrasted with the colour white throughout the house; ‘It was a large room with a red carpet and red curtains. Everything else was white.’ (p.122) Generally, the colour white represents purity and passivity; Antoinette links the colour to oppression and to the madness of her mother. On the other hand, red becomes the colour that revives Antoinette, and it’s reflection of the fire suggests a way of gaining freedom and wreaking revenge upon her prisoners. This idea of fire as a way to death, and thus release from her cage, is emphasised in the last line of the novel; ‘[...] it burned up again to light me along the dark passage.’ (p.174)
Another way that the two novels differ is through the use of narratives; with Bronte preferring to strictly use the first person of Jane, and Rhys employing three different first person narratives. First person narration is generally used in order for the reader to have a closer, and thus more personal, connection to the characters in front of them. This is achieved in Jane Eyre, through Jane’s constant minute detail of her emotions, situations and surroundings; the reader becomes engaged in the novel and can thoroughly understand her actions. This use of first person narration, allows Jane to reflect back over her life in absolute detail; always reminding the reader that she is retelling a story by adding more mature analysis of her actions. This singular narrative voice differs from the one in Wide Sargasso Sea, by creating one strong voice, that of Jane’s, as though she is in complete control of her own story, unlike the voice of Antoinette who is overpowered by Rochester adding his own narrative. This is reflected in the use of ‘I’ in the last chapter, revealing to the reader that Jane is her own person and is, therefore, the one to make the decisions in her story.
Rhys takes a different approach to the first person narrative by incorporating three different voices into her novel: Antoinette, Rochester (although he remains unnamed) and Grace Poole. This contrasts with Jane Eyre, in which Bronte employs a more linear approach, as though the reader were following along with Jane on her life experiences. By using three different characters, Rhys creates a story that is complex, fragmented and confusing at times; reflecting the feelings and environment surrounding the three. This is especially evident in part two of the novel, when the voice switches between Rochester and Antoinette, giving the reader a more open awareness of the social and gender divisions between the two. This means that the reader gains a better understanding of the deep rooted issues in the relationship between the two; showing a vast contrast between the innocence and child-like hope of Antoinette, and the cold, rigid and oppressive nature of Rochester.
The fragmented nature of the narrative voices reflects Antoinette’s disjointed personality as she tries to create a persona that will please Rochester, and, by interrupting her personal narrative, Rochester establishes some dominance over the story. This attempt at controlling Antoinette’s voice gradually breaks down the relationship even further, until she becomes mute; ‘She was silence itself’. (p.109) This suppression and dominance eventually lead to Antoinette’s last attempt at regaining some control, by taking the only power that she can from Rochester; he can no longer oppress her.
Genre is a major factor in the ending of both novels. While both novels employ elements from gothic fiction writing, each write also utilizes other forms of genre; Jane Eyre using Romantic and Victorian themes, and Wide Sargasso Sea providing a postmodern, postcolonial view. These genres, in turn, mean that the writer’s will represent the heroine’s decision differently to their audiences, and their endings vary drastically.
Jane Eyre is generally considered to be a bildungsroman, romantic novel; focusing on the personal development and emotions of the young Jane, from childhood to her eventual marriage. The natural progression of a bildungsroman novel, as well as her incorporation of Victorian structure, means that the ending of the novel has to be presented as the latter part of her life; after she has been married for ten years. Victorian novels tended to ‘come to frame and prize [...] the promise of traditional domesticity’. This would satisfy the audience of the time, to know that, despite her rebellion and struggles, Jane finds herself a happy ending, much like a fairy-tale. This also fits in with the idea of the novel being a Romantic tale; as it is mostly focussed around Jane finding love and equality with a man who accepts her strong personality, and that their mutual happiness comes from married bliss. Correa comments that the novel is predominantly a Romantic story as it ‘it pursues the desires and fantasies of the protagonist, and of the reader.’
Conversely, Wide Sargasso Sea is written from a postmodern/postcolonial point of view, and, as such, presents a far more disrupted ending; with Antoinette seeming to have made a decision that the reader will have to interpret for themselves. Wide Sargasso Sea embodies the fear and racism of the time established by the post-slave trade time; when the identities and ideas of different cultures began to merge and fracture. Tennakoon quotes Sheri Ann Denison as commenting that; ‘Postcolonial gothic is a literature of resistance, one questioning the boundaries of history, gender, race, and social class.’
Antoinette is a clear example of this as she is forced to play several roles in the course of the novel as she does not fit in with the society; being of mixed race and from a family of slave masters. During her marriage to Rochester, he attempts to mould her into the picture of a ‘perfect English woman’, dismissing her native background and knowledge as something unnatural which should be suppressed. Rochester states that he ‘[…] hated the mountains and the hills, the rivers and the rain. […] hated its beauty and its magic and the secret I would never know.’ (p.111) This rejection of the country around him, reflects onto his hatred for the ‘native’ side of his wife, and so he seeks to repress this part of her. This oppression plays heavily on the ending of the novel as, through the constant rejection, mockery and subjugation by her husband, Antoinette eventually appears to have gone mad. Even her red dress, a symbol of her femininity and Caribbean home, is scorned as being ‘intemperate and unchaste’ (p.121) and so, a part of her identity is oppressed in this way. This social commentary by Rhys remarks on the way that women, especially those who were not seen to fit into English society, were scorn and rejected; to the extent that they could be driven to insanity. This links with the ending of the novel, and Antoinette’s choice, as it is the oppression of the severely English patriarchy of Rochester which leads to her imprisonment and, thus, her dramatic and destructive bid for freedom.
In conclusion, Rhys and Bronte represent their heroines in very different lights. Jane would have been viewed as defiant by the Victorian audience, but her ‘happy ending’ will have satisfied their projections of domestic bliss between husband and wife. However, Rhys created the kind of woman who might have been reviled by the same audience; one who was a social outcast, celebrated her sexuality and femininity and embodied insane destruction. The endings of each novel rely on the social, moral and gender conventions of the time; each making a comment on the society in which these women lived.
Bibliography
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Rhys, Jean, Wide Sargasso Sea, Ed. Smith, Angela (London: Penguin Classics, 1997)
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Power of First Person Narrative - (accessed: 6/2/2015)
Narrative Genres in Wide Sargasso Sea – realism and gothic - (accessed: 6/2/2015)
Religion - (accessed: 6/2/2015)
Wide Sargasso Sea - (accessed: 6/2/2015)
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Rhys, Jean, Wide Sargasso Sea, Ed. Smith, Angela (London: Penguin Classics, 1997)
Bronte, Charlotte, Jane Eyre, Ed. Davies, Steve (London: Penguin Classics, 2006)
The Open University, The Nineteenth Century Novel: Realisms, Ed. Correa, Delia da Sousa (London: Routledge, 2000)
Bann, Jennifer, Victorian Studies - Ghostly Hands and Ghostly Agency: The Changing Figure of the Nineteenth-Century Specter, (51.4 (2009): 663-686.)
Tennkoon, Calvin, The Search for the True Identity Within Wide Sargasso Sea, Borders: Underground Arts Journal (2014) (accessed 16/1/2015)
Panizza, Silvia, Double Complexity in Jean Rhys’ Wide Sargasso Sea, (2009) (accessed; 8/2/2015)
Ripple, Zoe, The Endings of Victorian and Modern Works: Domesticity Preserved, the Family Resurrected, Domesticity Destroyed, the Family Denigrated, (Brown University: 2004) (accessed: 05/02/2015)
The Open University, The Nineteenth Century Novel: Realisms, Ed. Correa, Delia da Sousa (London: Routledge, 2000)
Tennkoon, Calvin, The Search for the True Identity Within Wide Sargasso Sea, Borders: Underground Arts Journal (2014) (accessed 16/1/2015)
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