Effects of Religion on Jane

Throughout the novel, Jane first develops her faith in God from the influence of Helen Burns. What Jane learns from Helen becomes a life-long influence that affects her behavior, judgment, emotional responses and decisions. The morality in Jane is derived from Christianity, and also gives her a different perspective on life. Jane’s belief in God transforms her from an “insane” rebellious and disobedient child into a “sane” conforming woman with the ability to reason, judge and make decisions.

In the beginning of the novel, Jane is portrayed as an overly passionate child because she does not have any guidance, so she expresses it by rebelling against other people who forcefully controls her. When she gets confined in the red room for being disobedient, she becomes a maverick and gets outraged by how “unjust”(19) people treats her and judges her, and “how all [her] brain was in tumult, and all [her] heart in insurrection!”(19). The diction in this sentence expresses her violent eagerness to escape. She does not really know whether she is doing the right thing or not because she does not have anyone to guide her, so all she can think of is to escape from the confinement she experiences. When Jane sees Mr. Reed’s ghost in the red room, “[her] heart beat thick, [her] head grew hot”(21). This imagery stimulates the feeling of rage gushing throughout her blood. She also describes that “a sound filled [her] ears”(21) and her state of feeling “oppressed” and “suffocated”. This imagery expresses her lack of ability to revolt. Her metaphor of feeling “suffocated” also emphasizes rage that is too overwhelming for her. Until the point when her “endurance broke down”(21), her burst of fury is expressed with indignation when she “[utters] a wil...

... middle of paper ...

...n, what if Jane had not gotten the opportunity to seek faith, and decided to marry Mr. Rochester as a mistress? If she married Mr. Rochester as a mistress, her confusion, passion and craze might have led her to ultimately end up like the insane Bertha. The only distinction between Jane and Bertha is religion. So without religion, Jane and Bertha really do not have any difference in terms of personality and how others perceive them. If she did not go to Lowood and befriend Helen, she would have most likely gone crazy because of the way that her “family” treats her. Evidence of this would be by the end of the novel, her cousins did eventually go stir crazy because of the ignorance, jealousy, expectations the Reeds possess, the judgments they make, and the intense competition they engage in. As a result, they abandon each other, and never wish to see each other again.