Jane's Use Of Symbolism In Jane Eyre

Although the isolation that defines much of Jane Eyre’s life seems only alienating, it also proves to be enriching, for Jane uses that isolation as a basis to truly appreciate the love she discovers when her family is revealed to her after she gains a large inheritance from a distant relative. She would not have been able to truly find and value the love in her family if not for the despair experienced early in life, as that despair led her to her family. She uses her loneliness to gather strength when it is most needed, allowing her to totally heal from the trauma of the red-room and enjoy the eternal warmth her new loving life

In both texts, the rooms are symbolic of church. As Jane is sent to the bedroom of her dead uncle, Bronte relates it to a place of worship. "A bed supported on massive pillars of mahogany, hung with curtains of deep red damask, stood out like a tabernacle in the center". Due to the vast size and illustrious beauty

This treatment of women was very common in the 1800’s because women were seen as incapable of taking care of themselves and it was believed that they “needed to be protected by a male family member” (Cruea 189). In the context of “The Yellow Wallpaper” this puts John's behavior into perspective because his actions were standard for the 1800’s and he believed that by making decisions for his wife he was “protecting” her. Jane didn't get a say in a lot of the things that were happening, she didn't get to pick which room she stayed in, rather john picked the room that he thought would be best for her, instead of consulting with her and asking her opinion. He treated her as if she were his child he would call her “little girl” and make all of

Toward the beginning of her entries, her relationship with John appeared civil, if not loving: in one of her entries, she wrote “Dear John! He loves me very dearly, and hates to have me sick” (DiYanni 546), and several lines later, described how “… dear John gathered me up in his arms, and just carried me upstairs and laid me on the bed, and sat by me and read till it tired my head. He said I was his darling and his comfort and all he had, and that I must take care of myself for his sake” (DiYanni 547). Jane seemed to believe that he truly loved her and wanted her to feel better. Her conversations with Jennie, John’s sister and the housekeeper, were initially also pleasant, and Jane described her as “a dear girl… and so careful of me!” (DiYanni 545) The “woman in the wallpaper” did not yet exist. However, Jane separated herself from both of them: John was away for much of the day, “and even some nights when his cases are serious” (DiYanni 545). Even when he was home, he was often asleep, leaving his wife to spend her nights with the wallpaper and the woman running around within it (DiYanni 548). Toward the end, Jane even mentioned that she was thankful that John would not be returning until the next morning, so she would be able to finally do something about letting the woman in the wallpaper out. Jane also began to

First, the writings of her journal show that the narrator is not convinced with her “rest cure” treatment. Her writings depict that her husband, John, continuously belittles her condition and concerns while she knows that her illness is real and more severe than he

After running away from Thornfield, Jane is homeless and without any possessions, she wanders lonely, freezing and hungry. I agree with Gilbert and Gubar that Jane‟s situation symbolizes “the nameless, placeless and contingent status of women in a patriarchal society” (364). Jane does however stumble on the home of her cousins at Marsh End, the name representing the end of her search; she will be able to find her identity and place in the world at last. The wailing infant of Jane‟s recurring dream is finally silenced. The dream she had while at Thornfield could symbolize Jane that cannot be comforted, representing the suffering and loneliness she has experienced in her childhood which she carries with her into adulthood.

John picks the upstairs nursery for Jane to stay in and she does not like it one bit. Jane’s opinion of the room is this: “I don’t like our room one bit. I wanted one downstairs that opened on the piazza and had roses all over the window” (Gilman 479). It becomes a very unhealthy environment for her to reside in, but John simply cannot see it since he does not believe that anything is truly wrong with her. Because her husband has her on the rest cure, part of the cure is for her to not work or write at all.

In the same way, Jane is literally placed in a big empty room, in isolation from everyone else in the house. Gilman gives us glimpses of Jane’s confinement as the story progresses. Look at how her room is described. “…the windows are barred for little children, and there are rings and things in the walls” (Gilman 341). This suggests that Jane is placed in a mental hospital room. There are bars on the windows so she cannot escape, and rings on the walls to keep her from roaming about.

Their differences created the conflicts between them. John, as a physician, is very practical and rationalistic. He disregards the existence of anything that cannot be seen or felt and therefore does not believe that his wife was ill even though through reading her thoughts and emotions it was clear that she was suffering severely. The woman on the other hand, is very imaginative and sensitive. John believes that all his wife needs is rest and therefore her treatment is that she does no work and especially no writing. He felt that her condition would be made worst if she does any form of work or writing. The woman strongly disagrees with John on the type of treatment that he has suggested. She thinks that having daily activities, freedom, and interesting work would help her condition and so she starts to create secret journal in an attempt to alleviate her mind and to prevent her illness from getting the best of her. John continuously suppresses her thoughts, feelings and concerns about her illness which portrays him in a sense as a “villain”. He does not provide her with the space or opportunity to try other alternatives other than the “rest cure” so that she might overcome her illness. The woman wants to write about her feelings and her conditions but she is not allowed and so she has to struggle to hide her writings from John and his sister. The fact that she cannot freely write and openly express her feelings to John strains her and drains

Charlotte Bronte created one of the first feminist novels--Jane Eyre--of her time period when she created the unique and feminist female heroine, Jane Eyre. Throughout the novel, Jane becomes stronger as she speaks out against antagonists. She presses to find happiness whether she is single or married and disregards society’s rules. The novel begins as Jane is a small, orphan child living with her aunt and cousins due to the death of her parents and her uncle. Jane 's aunt--Mrs. Reed--degrades her as she favors her biological children. Jane 's aunt--Mrs. Reed--degrades her as she favors her biological children. Her cousin--John Reed--hits her and then Mrs. Reed chooses to punish her instead and sends her to the room in which her uncle

The pivotal moment that affected Jane Eyre’s outlook on life was due to her harsh upbringing by her aunt and her cousins. It is first introduced to the reader that Jane was adopted by her kind Uncle Reed, and his family, while Jane was sent to the red room as punishment and she was pondering about the past in order to pass time. The red room was a chamber, with décor that was almost all red, which could be locked from outside. The reason Jane was sent to the red room was because she had lashed out at her snobby and obnoxious cousin John Reed that on a regular basis would torment Jane. After years of pent up anger and frustration Jane couldn’t take it any longer. On regular occasion, she was outcast by her own family, although only she was only blood related to her deceased Uncle Reed and partly to his children. Before he had passed, Jane’s uncle had made a promise with his wife that she would raise Jane as if she were one of her own children. But, as time went on the Reed family’s

    Charlotte Bronte wrote the novel Jane Eyre in the mid-eighteen hundreds. In her novel she expresses her views on many important factors present during this time including social problems such as race, class, gender, and the role of religion. Each of these factors affects the way that the protagonist, Jane Eyre, grows as a person. Throughout the novel Charlotte Bronte uses images and symbols that either influence or represent Jane's growth. Bronte uses a common imagery throughout the novel reflecting images of "fire and ice." She also uses symbols in Jane's life such as the red-room, from her childhood, and the character Bertha Mason Rochester, during her time at Thornfield. Other characters who

Another example of the narrators domestic role due to male dominance includes; When John bringing her to a colonial estate for the summer, because he says he has work near the city. The narrators description of this estate; “ It is quite alone, standing well back from the road, quite three miles from the village.” (Knight 167) which could be interpreted as an isolated environment, away from social or intellectual stimulants, or could be an abandoned insane asylum of sorts. In order to keep her mind off of her condition, as john suggest is the worst thing she can do, she turns her attention to the house.

Jane would not like to be poor as poverty is looked down upon and equivalent to being an immoral and degraded human being. For Jane to be a respectable woman in society she must remain with the Reeds. John acknowledges Jane’s dependency: “You have no business to take our books; you are a dependent, momma says; you have no money; your father left you none; you ought to beg and not to live here with gentleman's children like us, and eat the same meals we do, and wear clothes at out mamma’s expense (14).” Jane is continuously reminded of her inferior position at Gateshead and powerless dependency to people that do not even love her. At this early age Jane has already been integrated into Victorian society as negative notions about the poor have been internalized. Born the daughter of a poor clergyman, Jane is believed to be of lesser value than the Reeds; however, she has passionate tendencies and is unable to control her emotions when necessary.When being abused by John and accusing him of being “like a murderer” (14) she is described as being a “picture of passion (15).” Jane must learn to temper her “fire” because untamed emotions have consequences. Her consequence comes when she is imprisoned in the red room, a visual representation of the intense emotions that have manifested in

After struggling to find a new home, Jane finally finds Moor House where everything “grows in harmony with and echoes its environment” (Fuller 160). This reflects the spectacular, new family she finds in St. John, Mary, and Diana. This is a significant change from any other location where Jane has stayed before as she is now able to “sit in the sunshine, calm[ly] and sweet[ly]” (Brontë 373), and “nature almost climbs through the window to embrace the house’s inhabitants” (Fuller 160), symbolizing that Jane is very close to achieving her goal of freedom. Jane’s new life is her version of perfection, or so she thinks. This perfection comes crashing down due to one of “the house’s inhabitants:” St. John. St. John pushes Jane away from nature as he “is separate from an antagonistic towards the balance between humanity and nature” (Fuller 161), because of this, Brontë changes the weather back to its cold, dark ways to show Jane that it is time to move on again. As Jane and St. John’s interactions increase a “whirling storm continue[s] all night” (Brontë 383). St. John’s marriage proposal truly throws Jane for a loop and due to his persistence, “Jane cannot find peace at Moor House as long as St. John disrupts her connection with the natural world” (Fuller 161). The storms increase until it finally reaches a climax, the “frozen hurricane” (Brontë 383), where Jane finds herself trapped in her own real life disaster. While Moor House began as an “idyllic paradise” (Fuller 161) for