Jane Eyre: Fanning the Flames and Seeing Double
the mad young Jane who once panicked in the red room. When fire consumes Bertha, Jane's identities merge and she becomes whole. Rochester, however, is maimed, some critics contending that he has been metaphorically castrated. In the end, plain Jane triumphs (regardless of what the reader may think of Rochester) in that she secures a home and a husband. Furthermore, she is no longer servant to Rochester but rather views herself as his equal. She proclaims, "I know what it is to live entirely for and with what I love best on earth. I hold myself supremely blest - blest beyond what language can express; because I am my husband's life as fully as he is mine" (439).
As Jane transfers her anger to Bertha, one might argue that, similarly, the novel provides an outlet for the author's transposed frustrations. The nineteenth century culture she depicts is her own, of course, one in which female's imaginations were not encouraged, and their voices were not heard; hence, Brontë wrote under a male pseudonym (Currer Bell) to ensure successful publication of her work. Indeed, autobiographical elements (a girls' school, life as a governess) throughout the novel support such a reading. Perhaps, then, Jane is Charlotte's alter-ego and by association, Bertha is as well. As looking-glasses will attest, the possibilities for such reflections are endless.
Quotes are from: Brontë, Charlotte. Jane Eyre. Ed. Beth Newman. Boston: Bedford Books, 1996.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Loved reading it the first time and simply don't have time to revisit the text? Check out a recent screen adaptation, which received favorable customer reviews, or the 1944 classic , starring Orson Welles and Joan Fontaine. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
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