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An analysis of the characters of Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
an analysis of the characters of Jane Eyre
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Jane Eyre: The narrator and protagonist of the novel. Jane begins thenovel an impassioned and confused orphan but gradually develops into
a sensitive, maternal, and independent young woman. Jane’s self-
esteem, sense of self, and character as whole is formed in path
through various worlds: Lowood, Thornfield, and particularly Moor
House. Jane serves as a heroine to whom everyone can relate; she
embodies the desire for love, the emotional conflict between passion
and reason, the search for independence, and the demand for justice
that every individual seeks.
“I am no bird; and no net ensnares me; I am a free human being with an
independent will.”
“Some of the best people that ever lived have been as destitute as I am; and if
you are a Christian, you ought not to consider poverty a crime.”
Edward Rochester: The master of Thornfield Manor, where Jane taught as
governess. Mr. Rochester embodies and encourages the passionate side of
Jane, as well as offering a contrast to her reason. Mr. Rochester is also
particularly important to Jane because he provides her with the unconditional
love and sense of family that she searches for throughout the novel. In one
respect, he is likely to appear to most readers as almost a villain. He has
hidden from every inmate of Thornfield Hall, with the sole exception of a
maidservant of the name of Grace Poole, the fact that he is an already
married man with a wife who is still alive and who is living in that very house
in which he resides. His keeping this fact a secret from everybody is no
offence, morally or legally. But he becomes guilty of a serious offence, both
morally and legally, when he hides the fact of being already married from
Jane with whom he has fallen ardently and passionately in love, and when,
furthermore, he tries to marry once more and thus commit bigamy.
St. John Rivers: The evangelist preacher who takes Jane in at Moor House,
brother to Diana and Mary and, it turns out, cousin to Jan. St. John, in
contrast to Mr. Rochester, embodies all that is icy and cold, and encourages
such qualities in Jane. He is also one of the three major models of religion
(Brocklehurst and Helen) that Jane encounters during the course of the
novel. However, he is not as positive a model as Helen, and embodies a
religion that is too cold and merciless for Jane. He is austere and ambitious.
, Jane often describes Rochester’s eyes as flashing and flaming, whereas she
constantly associates St. John with rock, ice, and snow. Marriage with
Rochester represents the abandonment of principle for the consummation of
passion, but marriage to St. John would mean sacrificing passion for
principle. When he invites her to travel to India with him as a missionary, St.
John offers Jane the chance to make a more meaningful contribution to
society than she would as a housewife. At the same time, life with St. John
would mean life without true love, in which Jane’s need for spiritual solace
would be filled only by retreat into the recesses of her own soul.
Independence would be accompanied by loneliness, and joining St. John
would require Jane to neglect her own needs for love and emotional support.
Her consideration of St. John’s proposal leads Jane to understand that,
paradoxically, a large part of one’s personal freedom is found in a
relationship of mutual emotional dependence. Jane's rejection of St. John's
advances seems to spur her return to Rochester, her one chance for spiritual
passion. While Rochester is described in terms of fire and flames, St. John is
constantly associated with ice and cold, a connection that heightens the lack
of passion and joy that would come with a marriage to him. Although the
book ends happily for Jane and Mr. Rochester, St. John's ending is far more
ambiguous. Although he has travelled to India to fulfill his Christian duty,
Bronte still gives the impression that St. John's life could have been more
meaningful if he had ever accepted love.
Helen Burns: Jane’s intimate friend and companion at Lowood. Helen
embodies the Christian doctrine of tolerance and forgiveness, Helen serves
as a contrast and abatement to both Mr. Brocklehurst, with his lack of
Christian compassion and religious hypocrisy, and Jane, with her passionate
temperament. Helen reveals a positive Christianity to Jane; in which
faithfulness and compassion are rewarded in Heaven. Although Jane
originally questions Helen’s brand of religion, she does embrace it in her life
later on.
Mr. Brocklehurst: The manager of Lowood, the school that Jane attends.
Mr. Brocklehurst attempts to embody Christian morals and then treats the
students at Lowood with distain and cruelty. He represents the hypocrisy in
religion in contrast to Helen and St. John.
Mrs. Fairfax: The elderly servant and housekeeper at Thornfield. Although
Mrs. Fairfax is not particulary intimate with Jane, she serves as another
loving maternal figure for Jane, in addition to Miss Temple.
Bessie Lee: A servant at Gateshead. Bessie is Jane’s only figure of love at
Gateshead. Bessie acts as quiet maternal figure to Jane, and believes in Jane
throughout her life.
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