Brontë, Charlotte - Jane Eyre: analysis

The prose of Charlotte Brontë

What is notable of this novel, which was published in 1847, is first and foremost the prose, the gentle wisdom of language, Charlotte Brontë's refined ability to observe and create, with an incredible clear naturalness, every nuance of the world and the characters living there.

She was also brilliant to mix together different literary genres: the fictional autobiography, love story, Gothic novel and Bildungsroman.

Victorian criticism and morality

As a matter of fact, Jane Eyre was criticized for the manifestation of violent, passionate and vibrant impulses, that were against the Victorian morality and habits, as well as for some accusation against contemporary church in England.
About the characters, we, as readers, cannot simply describe them, because they enclose in themselves the complexity of life and experience, as well as the consistency of behaviour and the ideals that guide them and the fears that follow them.

We should give a particular attention to the protagonist Although it may be blindly interpreted as the only inherent element common to everyone in our youth, Charlotte Brontë seems to want to emphasize this Jane's particularity since childhood, describing the points of view of the world and the people around her.

Despite this subjective attitude, Jane does not transform her passion into insubordination towards the rules of society: she tends to pay attention to hierarchy, manners and, in spite of it, she also perceives a obvious difference with people belonging to a different social class or status.

The childhood of Jane Eyre

Jane Eyre’s story is told, using the The first part is about the main character’s childhood with her wicked aunt and cousins who will lead her to a sort of nervous breakdown that will mark her for the rest of her life.

In the second one is narrated her pained life as a student first and a teacher later in school for orphans subsidized by the nobles’ charity.

The love and destiny of Jane

In the third section it is described her work as a governess and preceptor of a French little child at Thornfield where, after a lot of thoughts, doubts, disruptive self-persuasions and a fake fortune-teller, she felt in love with the grouchy owner, Mr. Rochester, who travelled a lot, was much older than Jane and was previously married with the crazy Bertha Manson who lived in an hidden attic.

The last part is about At the end Jane is reunited with Mr. Rochester, who became blind because of a fire set by Bertha which destroyed his mansion, and they lived happily together.