NOVELS: Jane Eyre

Jane Eyre is a coming of age story about an orphaned girl named, you guessed it, Jane Eyre. When the book begins, Jane is living with her aunt in England. The aunt treats Jane very unfairly and neither likes the other. Jane is sent away to Lowood, a school where she stayed for eight years. There she obtained a good education, became a student teacher, and advertised in a paper for a position as a governess. She got the position for a girl in a different area of England at an estate called Thornfield. There Jane fell in love with the master of the estate, Mr. Rochester. Mr. Rochester eventually proposed to Jane, but she discovered he was already married, and so she left him. Jane ended up staying in a house with her cousins and teaching school in the town. There her cousin, St. John, asked Jane to marry him to aid him in becoming a missionary, but she refused to marry for reasons other than love. Then she discovered she had inherited a good deal of money, and decided to travel to Thornfield to see Mr. Rochester once again. When Jane arrived she found that the house was a burned out shell, and Mr. Rochester had been injured in the fire. Because his wife had died in the fire, Jane decided to marry Mr. Rochester, and they lived together in his small home enjoying a happy life together.

In this story, Jane Eyre struggles to break free from the bonds that were imposed on women during that time in history, and to find a person that loves her for who she is. As Jane moves from place to place, she learns more and more about the world. Everywhere she goes Jane faces restraints of some sort, mental or physical. When she finally is able to marry and settle down with Mr. Rochester, she feels free from all of the restraints and has found her true love.

Charlotte Bronte wrote Jane Eyre in 1847, during the Victorian Era. The book shows us many of the constraints on women during that time. It was originally subtitled as An Autobiography, and does have some similarities to Bronte’s life. Because of this, the book gives the impression of reality, a story that is true. As a fiction novel, the book puts a whole new spin on the writing styles of the time, as it is unlike any of the rest.

The theme in Jane Eyre is inner beauty overcoming appearances in a person’s quest for love. Throughout the book, Jane is maturing and becoming more educated about the world. It is not until she has fully matured that she gains the love she has been searching for. When she marries Mr. Rochester, she has accomplished her goals, and finally found a person to love her for who she really is. The burned down house stands as a symbol for their love, appearances are no longer there, but their love is.

In Jane Eyre, Bronte makes use of imagery. Jane’s aunt referred to her as an animal. This use of animal imagery was used by Bronte to portray the uncivilized. Imagery is also used to symbolize Jane’s plight, as when Mr. Rochester compares Jane to a bird trying to break free from its cage.