Feminism in Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre

During her life, a girl was taught more necessary skills around the home than the information out of school books. A woman’s formal education was limited because her job opportunities were limited—and vice versa. Society could not conceive of a woman entering a profession such as medicine or the law and therefore did not offer her the chance to do so. It was much more important to be considered 'accomplished' than thoroughly educated. Elizabeth Bennet indicated to her sisters that she would continue to learn through reading, describing education for herself as being unstructured but accessible.

Women of the Victorian era were repressed, and had little if any social stature. They had a very few rights and fewer options open to them for self-support. For most women the only way to live decently was to get married, and in many cases it was not up to the women to choose whom she married. It was almost unheard of for a woman to marry out of her social class (Cain 20). If a woman did not marry, the only ways she could make a living other than becoming a servant was either to become a prostitute or a governess.

(VanTassel-Baska, 4) Domesticity and motherhood were portrayed as a sufficient fulfillment. A conventional woman in the Victorian era was married with children. (Proquest, 1) However, Bronte’s novel contains a strong feminist stance, with the main character Jane Eyre making and questioning assumptions about gender and social class, as a young independent woman. She ignored the expectations of society in the Victorian times and followed her own desires, which allowed her to develop into the dominant and assertive woman that became the essence of feminism. At the beginning of the 19th century, little opportunity exi... ... middle of paper ... ...ere only studied by the upper classes.

Women like Louisa May Alcott, were seeking a chance to explore their individual freedoms apart from men. Women weren’t granted the right to vote until 1919; however, Louisa May Alcott expressed early interest in the subject of women’s rights, having lived through this demeaning era herself. It was almost 50 years after writing her inspiring and revolutionary novel, Little Women, that women were finally and truly recognized as equals and in which the passageway to women’s rights was rightly unveiled. Louisa May Alcott’s life in a 19th century restrictive society led her to write feminist novels that ushered in the era of women’s rights. During the Victorian Era, countless restrictions were placed on women, and equality was not a social norm.

Throughout the 19th century, feminism played a huge role in society and women’s everyday lifestyle. Women had been living in a very restrictive society, and soon became tired of being told how they could and couldn’t live their lives. Soon, they all realized that they didn’t have to take it anymore, and as a whole they had enough power to make a change. That is when feminism started to change women’s roles in society. Before, women had little to no rights, while men, on the other hand, had all the rights.

Charlotte Bronte is, first and foremost, a storyteller at heart. She broke a mold for women at her time because there were not many occupations that were deemed acceptable besides ‘teacher’ or ‘governess’ in the mid-nineteenth century. Her imagination was far too creative to be left unwritten on a page. Charlotte Bronte’s writings reflect her opinions on women’s roles in society and such opinion is shown in Jane Eyre. Although Jane Eyre was considered radical for its time because women weren’t supposed to play the role of heroine, Jane Eyre rises up from her oppressors, fights for what she thinks is right, and above all stays true to herself and today is considered a true role model for heroine characters.

Furthermore, Rochester is blind at the novels end and thus dependent upon Jane to be his guide. There is no doubt Jane Eyre is a feminist novel because of Janes independence, her character, the feelings she has on independence and marriage, the symbolism, setting, and overall theme of the book. Janes independence is unusual for victorian times and is one part of her characteristics that makes her a feminist. With Janes view on marriage and being one of the first feminists it makes the novel very feminist. The author Charlotte Bronte consistently made the victorian people believe women could lead an interesting important life with her book "Jane Eyre".

Feminism was a subject that was rarely discussed in 19th century British society. This was mostly because the idea of equality among the sexes had not taken form in Britain’s very distinct social classes. The aspect of feminism is defined as the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes. However, the disdain for equal rights during the Victorian Era did not hinder some women writers from blatantly expressing their ideals through their writing. Some of these brave women were Elizabeth Gaskell, Charlotte Brontë, and Elizabeth Barrett Browning.

I wonder if my mother was content or did she ever want more in her life instead of just being confined to the home. Whatever the case may be, she did not have a choice. At that time, my mother’s life was no different than any other women’s life in India. Women were considered inferior to men. With the increasing amount of feminists and advocators promoting women’s rights, India’s treatment of women is still behind compared to other modern societies.

The work of female authors was not as well respected as those of male writers; therefore many women would assume a fictitious name in order for their works to get noticed. A well-known example of another female author writing under a pseudonym at the same time was Mary Ann Evans, who wrote under the name George Eliot. The reason for this oppression of women writers lies in the belief that a woman’s place was in the home. Domesticity and motherhood were portrayed as a sufficient fulfilment. A conventional woman in the Victorian era was married with children.