Jane Eyre

### Setting/Time Period

Gateshead Hall, Lowood School, Thornfield Hall, Moor House, Ferndean Manor, Northern England, mid 19th-century

### Themes

Social class, love and family, gender inequality, Gothic elements, religion

### Symbols

The Red Room, Bertha Mason, fire and ice

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**Jane Eyre** is an 1847 novel by Charlotte Brontë, often known to be her most famous work. It was successful upon being published and is considered one of the first Victorian novels to feature a strong-willed, independent heroine.

The novel focuses on the titular character as she comes of age, finds her way into the social class, and finds love and happiness with her brooding master. The novel also features social class criticism, Gothic elements, feminism and religion. *Jane Eyre* has since become a classic among the Brontë sisters.

## Plot Summary

Jane Eyre is a ten-year-old orphan raised by her wealthy aunt, Mrs. Reed, at Gateshead Hall in Northern England. Her aunt and cousins mistreated her since she was poor, dependent, and an outsider. One day, after Jane fights with her cousin, Mrs. Reed punishes her by having her locked up in the red room, where her uncle, Mr. Reed, had died years earlier. Jane becomes terrified, believing she can see his ghost, and panics until she faints.

Once she recovers, Jane is sent off to the Lowood Institution by Mrs. Reed, run by the greedy, hypocritical Mr. Brocklehurst. The school had terrible living conditions and harsh discipline, and Brocklehurst used the school's funds to improve his family's rich lifestyle than for the students and the building. While at Lowood, Jane befriends a girl named Helen Burns, who teaches her about personal prejudice and Christian beliefs. After a consumption outbreak occurs at the school, Helen dies, and arrangements are made at Lowood to improve the building and its conditions.

Jane stays at the school for eight more years. Now an adult, she accepts a job application as a governess at Thornfield Hall, where her student is a young French-speaking girl named Adèle Varens. While at Thornfield, Jane is constantly bothered when she hears strange laughter and soon meets her employer: a sardonic, brooding man named Mr. Rochester, who owns Thornfield. She falls in love with him after she saves him from a fire in his room one night.

When Rochester begins to have affection for a richer woman, Jane is despondent, but he turns her away and proposes marriage to Jane instead, which she accepts. But on the wedding day, a lawyer interrupted the ceremony by declaring that Rochester was already married. They go upstairs to the attic of Thornfield and find Rochester's insane, unstable wife, Bertha Mason, who had been responsible for the laughter and setting Rochester's room on fire. Jane becomes distraught and flees Thornfield.

She wanders alone until she is taken in by two sisters, Mary and Diana Rivers and their brother, St. John. She befriends the Rivers, and St. John offers her a job as a teacher. Sometime later, Jane discovers that the Rivers are her cousins, and an uncle of theirs has just died and left her a large inheritance. St. John plans to travel to India and convinces Jane to accompany him as his wife. She refused his proposal and was close to reconsidering when she heard Rochester's voice calling out to her. She immediately returns to Thornfield.

When she arrives there, she finds Thornfield destroyed in a fire and learns that Bertha Mason had set the building up in flames before killing herself. Mr. Rochester tried to save her, but he became blind, lost his hand, and now resides at nearby Ferndean Manor. Jane goes there and finds Rochester, and after being reunited, they are married. Jane and Rochester had a son and have been married for ten years, while St. John goes on his missionary trip alone with failing health.

## Characters

Jane Eyre- The main protagonist. Orphaned, poor and plain as a child, Jane manages to cope with her early struggles with independence and bravery. She becomes a governess at Thornfield Hall, where she falls in love with her sardonic employer, Mr. Rochester. Her strong-willed traits and actions challenge Victorian England's stereotypes of women and the poor.

Mr. Rochester- The owner of Thornfield Hall and Jane's love interest. He is a gruff, brooding man but is also sympathetic and passionate, mainly about his troubled past and a secret he had been keeping for years. He also falls in love with Jane, despite him being 20 years her senior, and manages to propose marriage to her, even though he was already married to an insane wife kept in the attic.

St. John Rivers- A minister and Jane's cousin. He takes her into his home and even offers her a teaching position nearby. He is a profoundly religious man who wants to be a missionary rather than live an everyday life in Northern England. He plans to marry Jane, but he doesn't want her for love but as a travelling companion. He is seen as the opposite of Rochester, being cold and reserved.

Helen Burns- A student at Lowood School who Jane befriends. She is a kind and religious girl who often teaches Jane the morals of Christianity and passion. She, too, is an orphan, and she and Jane become close. She calmly accepts all of the school punishments given to her by the staff and endures the impoverished life at Lowood. She dies of consumption in Jane's arms.

Mrs. Reed- Jane's aunt. She is a cruel and abusive woman who expresses her hatred for her niece by treating her as an outcast in her household, even though her dying husband made her promise to raise Jane alongside her children. In death, Mrs. Reed resents reconciling with Jane and being unloved by her children.

Mrs. Fairfax- The housekeeper at Thornfield Hall. She is welcoming and kind to Jane as she arrives at Thornfield and is like a mother figure since she is sympathetic to the governess' tragic past. She also was the first to tell Jane about the mysterious and strange laughter heard across the house.

Bessie Lee- A nursemaid who looked after Jane as a child at Gateshead. She is caring and helpful to Jane, though she would sometimes scold her for some of Jane's naughty actions. She visited her while leaving Lowood and eventually married the Gateshead coachman.

Mr. Lloyd- A kind apothecary who treats Jane follows her traumatic experience in the Red Room. He is the one who suggests Jane should go to school and writes a letter to Miss Temple to clear Jane from Mrs. Reed's charge of her being a liar.

John Reed- Mrs. Reed's son and one of Jane's cousins. He is cruel and abusive to Jane while she lives at Gateshead and often bullies her. Later in adulthood, he falls into drinking and gambling and eventually commits suicide after his mother stops paying his debts.

Eliza Reed- One of Mrs. Reed's daughters and another of Jane's cousins. She torments Jane during her childhood at Gateshead but begins to warm up with her later in life. She devotes herself to Christianity and becomes a nun at a convent in France.

Georgiana Reed- One of Mrs. Reed's daughters and another of Jane's cousins. She torments Jane during her childhood at Gateshead but warms up with her later. She later marries a wealthy man and becomes a socialite.

Mary Rivers- One of Jane’s cousins and St. John’s sister. She and her siblings take Jane into their home at Morton and offer her kind hospitality. Due to the family’s financial issues, Mary leaves home to work as a governess.

Diana Rivers- One of Jane’s cousins and St. John’s other sister. Like her brother and sister, Diana welcomes Jane into their home with open arms and kindness. Along with her sister, Mary, Diana also leaves home to work as a governess.

Mr. Brocklehust- The greedy and hypocritical clergyman who runs Lowood School, which Jane attended as a student. He preaches Christian morals in his sermons and steals the school's funds to create a lavish lifestyle for his family. Brocklehurst was dismissed from his duties at Lowood after the typhus outbreak, and his cruel deeds came to light.

Maria Temple- The headmistress and teacher at Lowood School. She is a kind, generous woman who is a mother figure, mentor and female role model to Jane. She also shows compassion and respect to her and Helen, and both girls have a close connection to her.

Miss Scatcherd- One of the teachers at Lowood School. She is usually unkind to her students and is primarily abusive and harsh towards Helen Burns.

Bertha Mason- Mr. Rochester's insane, demented wife. She was a pretty young Creole woman Rochester had married to provide wealth to their families. Her madness soon spirals out of control, and she is confined in the attic on the third floor of Thornfield Hall, where her presence is kept a secret, especially from Jane. She causes mischief around the house before burning it and jumping to death.

Grace Poole- A Thornfield servant responsible for being Bertha Mason's keeper. Her constant carelessness and passing out from drinking allow Bertha to escape from the attic and wreak havoc, such as setting fires and ripping Jane's wedding veil.

Adèle Varens- Mr. Rochester's young ward and Jane's student. She is a lively, French-speaking girl from France, the illegitimate daughter of a French singer. After her mother abandoned her, Rochester took her in as his ward, though he is likely not her father. Her presence is part of a key moment in Rochester's past and allows him to change the morals of his original lifestyle.

Celine Varens- A French opera singer and mother of Adèle Varens. Despite not appearing in the novel, she was once a mistress to Mr. Rochester but was only interested in his money and claimed that Rochester was Adèle's father. After she abandoned her daughter, Rochester took the girl in.

Sophie- Adèle's French nursemaid who looks after her at Thornfield.

## Writing History/Reception

In the mid-1840s, Brontë and her sisters attempted to open their school and publish a poem collection, but after both failed, they decided to pursue a writing career. Critics often overlooked mid-19th-century novels written by women as unimportant other than simply providing entertainment since most female novels were generally romance novels (popularized mainly by Jane Austen). It was also usually difficult for women to be novelists and have their books published, except that publishers would likely take them seriously if they wrote under a male pen name. The three Brontë sisters used male pseudonyms when they became authors, mainly when Charlotte Brontë stated later in life that they used the pen names since they felt that their works wouldn't be seen as feminine and would be looked down prejudiced.

Brontë first wrote *Jane Eyre* in mid-1847 while in London and Manchester. Publishers rejected her first novel, The Professor, and in August 1847, she sent the second manuscript to Smith, Elder and Co., Cornhill, where her sisters' other novels were published. A few weeks later, *Jane Eyre* was published on October 16th under the pseudonym "Currer Bell." The novel was a success, became a bestseller, and received positive reviews for its assumptions of social class and gender in the Victorian era. It would become a classic among the Brontë sisters' novels. Until Charlotte revealed her identity in 1849, many readers and critics were curious about the mysterious "Bell" names and if more works were published by "Currer."

Most of the events in *Jane Eyre* were loosely based on Brontë's life. As a child, she had a creative, vivid imagination and made up stories in her fictional world called "Angria." She attended school with strict discipline and was infested with disease. After losing her two oldest sisters to tuberculosis, Brontë used the novel's school, Lowood Institution, to criticize the harsh reality of her school life. An example is when Jane endured the brutal regime of Lowood, and her beloved friend Helen Burns succumbs to the building's consumption outbreak. Like her main character, Brontë found success as a governess, and she wrote her novel as a novelist to express her imagination as a plain, independent heroine. Following Jane Eyre's success, Brontë received more money and soon became a respected celebrity in the literary world. Her fame lasted until she died in 1855, just a few years after her famous novel's publication.

## Themes

### Social Class

Brontë used this theme to define the different lifestyles of an individual's class, based on how they lived and what they could or could not do, as it was common during the Victorian era. A woman with wealth or a dowry makes them depending on who would be a suitable match, and the man who marries her would receive the dowry money. Jane and Mr. Rochester were born in separate classes from the beginning. Rochester was born into wealth but tricked into an unhappy marriage since his family believed his wife would be worthy of him and their money. Jane grew up impoverished and was tormented by the Reeds because she was of lower social status, and the Reeds themselves were at the upper level of the British class system. As an adult, she finds work by accepting a job application as a governess at Thornfield Hall. Initially, she thinks she wouldn't fit into the higher class after discovering Rochester is already married and looked down upon by the socialite guests Rochester invites. After receiving her inheritance, she realizes she is no longer part of the lower status and is finally an equal to Rochester. Social class is a critique in *Jane Eyre,* for it explores the boundaries and stereotypes of the British social class system during her time period and how her main character earned her respect and virtue by making her way from being an outcast to an equal.

### Love and Family

Jane's main quest is to find her loving family and seek independence, for she is willing to find not just romantic love but love that would make her more valued. She starts life as an unloved orphan mistreated by Mrs. Reed, and without her parents, she finds herself in solitude and isolation. But when she attends Lowood, she experiences first-hand love when she is treated with affection and respect by Miss Temple and Helen Burns. Jane saw Helen as a sister who taught her about spiritualism and morality, and Miss Temple is seen as a maternal figure who brightens the girls with her compassion and task to help Jane grow into a more valued woman. As such, she had her friend and teacher as her temporary family, but after Helen's death and Miss Temple leaving Lowood, she knew she must find someone new to love and be more related to. After arriving at Thornfield, she sees Mrs. Fairfax as another mother figure to her and even treats her student Adèle Varens as her child rather than a pupil. In addition, Mr. Rochester acts as a surrogate parent to Adéle despite denying that she is his biological daughter. The Rivers family Jane meets after she flees from Thornfield are kinder towards her, and later finds out they are her cousins. A relative, John Eyre, always had intentions of wanting to raise his niece Jane as his own, and although he never got to meet her in person, he ended up offering a large fortune to her after his death. At other times, Jane realizes that some people in her life act like family but may not be suited for a romantic relationship. When her cousin St. John Rivers proposed marriage to her, she knew that if she accepted, their union would be anything but loving and that it would be doomed to fail. When she reunites with her true love, Mr. Rochester, and becomes his wife, she successfully finds her real family and the person who will forever love her with value and respect.

### Gender Inequality

*Jane Eyre* was published during a time period when gender roles were defined differently from one another, mainly to women who were mostly described as being less dependent and commanded by men as they were more solid and confident than their female counterparts. Throughout her journey, Jane strives to be more independent and mature after she was neglected in her childhood. Mr. Brocklehurst and Mrs. Reed see her as wicked when she explains how the Psalms aren't interesting. She also expresses her opinion on the different positions between men and women. She claims that women should be calmer and can show off their inner feelings and situations that they find themselves being put into by men.

Meanwhile, Mr. Rochester, until he had his power changed by Jane, usually had more command over different women he had met over the years. Céline Varens and Blanche Ingram are examples in which Rochester first had an interest. They either didn't return their affections or were already part of a higher social status, which meant they weren't worthy of being with Rochester. By the novel's ending, most sympathetic characters have married as equals, while the minor caring couldn't fit in. This includes Bertha Mason; while she is already mentally unstable, she can't let Rochester have complete control over her, and she ends up succumbing to her shallowness of being unequal.

### Gothic Elements

*Jane Eyre* is sometimes seen as a Gothic novel because the narrative elements expose the reader to fear and mystery. Lowood Institution, Thornfield Hall and Moor House are buildings isolated from the outside world and sometimes pose a supernatural and threatening atmosphere to Jane, such as Lowood being dehumanized and miserable, Thornfield filled with mysteries, and St. John at Moor House being obsessed over her. At Gateshead Hall, Jane believed she was being haunted by the ghost of her deceased uncle, Mr. Reed, when she saw a gleaming light and noises that left her shaken. Bertha Mason is also an example of a Gothic element when she is a dark secret revealed in the climax, and before that, Jane can hear her laughter and the fires burning, suggesting that perhaps she thinks that Thornfield is haunted as well. Both Jane and Mr. Rochester also have something in common, for they both had troubled pasts that had secrets that had been hidden until they were both discovered. In addition, another supernatural event happened when Jane heard Mr. Rochester's voice calling for her on the moors, and his cries for help urged her to return to him. As such, Brontë had written Gothic elements to evaluate the novel's analysis of the Gothic genre.

### Religion

From her youth and independence, Jane made her journey with the morals of Christianity and spiritualism. As a child, she is shunned by the Reeds since she is seen as immoral and can't control her attitude, and one servant even warns her of God's punishments the more she misbehaves. She even thought religion wasn't vital, especially when she stated that the Psalms aren't exciting and Mr. Brocklehurst and Mrs. Reed think she is a wicked girl due to their hypocrisy in Christian belief. It isn't until Jane meets Helen Burns that she finally realizes how important religion is for growing up and being more moral in society. Helen often advised Jane to let God teach her to stay true to her spiritualism, such as learning to love her enemies. This is explained when Jane visits Mrs. Reed on her deathbed; she doesn't confront her but instead forgives her for her actions, and while her aunt never reconciled with her, Jane believes she still at least did the right thing. Helen is also devoted to her religion; even in death, she hopes to find peace in Heaven. After her friend's help, Jane can also use her religious values with passion, such as seeing St. John as someone she can share her commitment with, but not through marriage. In addition, Jane's teacher and cousins, Miss Temple and Mary Rivers, married clergymen, respectively, since they both agreed with the morals of Christianity.

## Symbols

### The Red Room

A room at Gateshead Hall where Jane is forced to stay in by Mrs. Reed. This symbolizes her early years of fearing injustice and imprisonment from society due to her low social status. She would have to control herself later to be a more confident noblewoman. The red room memory resurfaces whenever Jane finds herself in difficult situations. It is a traumatic moment that would haunt her for the rest of her life; despite that, she eventually overcame her fears towards the end of the novel.

### Bertha Mason

Mr. Rochester's insane first wife was confined in the Thornfield Hall attic. She symbolizes Jane's consciousness as she represents her fears and anger more extremely. Bertha often depicts her fits of raging insanity when she rips Jane's wedding veil and burns her husband's room and the whole house, mainly to express her anger at how Mr. Rochester treated her.

### Fire and Ice

Fire and ice are major symbols that usually represent one's personality traits. Fire symbolizes rebellion but passion, as Mr. Rochester had a fiery temper but was also kind, while Jane had angry outbursts during her early years at Gateshead. Still, to her, fire can also be seen as a metaphor, as when she is told what Hell is, she explains it is a pit full of fire. As time passes, the "fire" in her emotions develops her into someone more passionate like Mr. Rochester.

Ice symbolizes isolation and loneliness. During Jane's years at Lowood, the school was very cold during the winter, placing her in a cruel, exiled world. Her cousin, St. John Rivers, is a cold man with no compassion for Jane; marrying him would leave her more isolated in ice that could kill her. After she marries Mr. Rochester, the couple's fiery passions for one another have melted the cold, ominous ice.

## Foreshadowing

* Jane is locked up in the red room that leaves her heavily scarred. Foreshadows the Gothic influences she experiences as an adult, such as Thornfield Hall's mystery and hearing Rochester's voice calling to her.
* Jane grows up poor, unaware of wealth, and several characters mention her uncle John Eyre and his wanting to adopt her. Foreshadows his death and offers a large inheritance to her.
* Jane dreams of seeing a strange woman wearing her wedding veil. Foreshadows the fact that the woman, Bertha Mason, is still Rochester's bride, and her existence is kept hidden.
* A chestnut tree splits apart in the middle during a storm after Jane accepts Rochester's proposal. Foreshadows the couple's unexpected ruin during their attempted wedding.
* Bertha Mason sets fire to Rochester's room. Foreshadows her burning down Thornfield Hall before killing herself. Jane had also dreamt of Thornfield being in ruins, foreshadowing the building's eventual destruction.

## Adaptations

A film adaptation was released in 1934. Directed by Christy Cabanne, it features Virginia Bruce as Jane Eyre, Colin Clive as Mr. Rochester, Beryl Mercer as Mrs. Fairfax, Edith Fellows as Adèle Varens, and Jean Darling as Young Jane. The film was criticized and unpopular with critics and viewers, as it was considered to be unfaithful to the source material, including Virginia Bruce's titular role portrayed as beautiful instead of plain.

A film adaptation was released in 1943. Directed by Robert Stevenson, it features Joan Fontaine as Jane Eyre, Orson Welles as Mr. Rochester, Peggy Ann Carter as Young Jane, Agnes Moorehead as Mrs. Reed, Margaret O'Brien as Adèle Varens, Edith Barrett as Mrs. Fairfax, and Elizabeth Taylor as Helen Burns. The film was critically acclaimed and is widely considered to be one of the best adaptations of *Jane Eyre*.

A TV film adaptation was released in 1970. Directed by Delbert Mann, it features Susannah York as Jane Eyre, George C. Scott as Mr. Rochester, Ian Bannen as St. John Rivers, and Rachel Kempson as Mrs. Fairfax. This adaptation rushes Jane's childhood and education at Lowood, and mainly focuses on her romance with Mr. Rochester. However, some critics think that York and Scott are miscast in their leading roles.

A TV miniseries was released on BBC in 1983. Directed by Julian Amyes, it features Zelah Clarke as Jane Eyre, and Timothy Dalton as Mr. Rochester. It is praised by critics and viewers, and is considered faithful to the source material.

A film adaptation was released in 1996. Directed by Franco Zeffirelli, it features Charlotte Gainsbourg as Jane Eyre, William Hurt as Mr. Rochester, Anna Paquin as Young Jane, Fiona Shaw as Mrs. Reed, and Joan Plowright as Mrs. Fairfax. The film generally received positive reviews, although it had several changes, such as rushing Jane's childhood sequence, and critics and viewers thought Hurt was miscast as Mr. Rochester.

A TV film adaptation was released in 1997. Directed by Robert Young, it features Samantha Morton as Jane Eyre, Ciarán Hinds as Mr. Rochester, Laura Darling as Young Jane, Gemma Jones as Mrs. Fairfax, and Rupert Penry-Jones as St. John Rivers.

A TV miniseries was released on BBC in 2006. Directed by Susanna White, it features Ruth Wilson as Jane Eyre, Toby Stephens as Mr. Rochester, Georgie Henley as Young Jane, Lorraine Ashbourne as Mrs. Fairfax, Tara Fitzgerald as Mrs. Reed, and Andrew Buchan as St. John Rivers. The adaptation was hugely successful, praised for its acting and has received various awards.

A film adaptation was released in 2011. Directed by Cary Fukunaga, it features Mia Wasikowska as Jane Eyre, Michael Fassbender as Mr. Rochester, Jamie Bell as St. John Rivers, Judi Dench as Mrs. Fairfax, Sally Hawkins as Mrs. Reed, Holliday Grainger as Diana Rivers, Tamzin Merchant as Mary Rivers, and Sophie Ward as Lady Ingram. Unlike the other adaptations, the entire film is mostly played in flashbacks after Jane left Thornfield. The film was critically acclaimed and considered the best adaptation of the novel, with Wasikowska praised for her role as Jane Eyre.

## References

1. ↑ https://chawtonhouse.org/the-library/library-collections/man-up-online-exhibition/bronte-sisters/
2. ↑ The Victorian era occurred during the reign of Queen Victoria, which spanned from 1837 to 1901.
3. ↑ https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/janeeyre/movie-adaptations/