The notion of beauty, what it is and whether it is an inner or outward quality, has been long debated. For centuries people, and particularly women, have struggled with the concept of their own inner beauty as something as important, if not more important than their outward, physical beauty. This is no less true in literature. The idea of female inner beauty has not always been valued. In Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre, the protagonist, Jane, rejects her own outer beauty in favour of nurturing her intellect, her humility and those other inner qualities that she herself views as beautiful. She respects her wisdom and philosophy before any of her physical attributes, partly because of her need as a child to read, partly from the lessons she is …show more content…
Jane spends the next six years of her life there, learning to be an intelligent and morally stringent person, while remaining outwardly plain. Here, the lessons in outer and inner beauty lie in the hands of Mr. Brocklehurst, who is the institutions main benefactor. When he sees a girl with hair that is naturally curly he proclaims, “My mission is to mortify in these girls the lusts of the flesh, to teach them to clothe themselves with shamefacedness and sobriety” (pg. 96). Jane’s young age and Mr. Brocklehurst’s strong influence greatly affect her opinion of her own physical image. She comes to feel that her status in life remains, as it always will, humble and inconspicuous as a servant. The only benefit Jane received at Lowood was a good education. Jane’s love for education is as fiery as was her desire to read at Gateshead, which is demonstrated when Jane explains that she “had the means of an excellent education placed within my reach; a fondness for some of my studies, and a desire to excel in all” (pg. 115). Her education is obviously more valuable to her than her perception of her own appearance. She remains at Lowood as a teacher for a time after she
Jane is glad to have progressed in her journey even though the conditions of Lowood School are far from idyllic. However, Jane excels in her studies and develops her intellectual abilities greatly, taking advantage of the opportunity given to her. Once again Jane finds herself to be ill treated and looked down upon. This time it is by Mr. Brocklehurst, a religious hypocrite whom embezzles the schools funds to support the luxurious lifestyle of his own family while preaching a doctrine of deprivation of self-comforts and of poverty. It is because of him that Jane develops further belief in respect, fairness and equality whilst still standing by her fiery disposition of vengeance and retaliation.
In the novel, ‘Jane Eyre’ Charlotte Brontë focuses on the life of Jane, an unwanted orphan who can’t do anything right in the eyes of her aunt. When she is about nine she is sent to Lowood Institute where she is also treated as inferior by Mr Brocklehurst. Although Jane is treated so cruelly and unfairly all her life she proves everyone wrong in the end by making something of herself.
Jane is soon sent away to Lowood school. Lowood school has high walls and strict rules which holds the freedom of students. Lowood eats away at her body (inedible food, bad conditions), but Gateshead ate away at her soul (isolation).
The beauty of a woman is usually classified into two categories: superficial, or physical, beauty and inner, or intellectual, beauty. In the Charlotte Bronte's Jane Erye, the protagonist rejects her own physical beauty in favor of her intelligence and morality. This choice allows her to win the hand of the man she desires. Jane values her knowledge and thinking before any of her physical appearances because of her desire as a child to read, the lessons she is taught and the reinforcements of the idea appearing in her adulthood. During the course of the novel she lives at five homes. In each of these places, the idea of inner beauty conquering exterior appearance becomes a lesson, and in her last home she gains her reward, a man who loves her solely for her mind. She reads against her cousins wishes as a child at Gateshead, learns to value her intelligence as a child at the Lowood Institution, her mind and humility win the heart of Mr. Rochester at Thornfield Manor, she earns St. John's marriage proposal at Marsh's End, and in the end she wins her prize of Mr. Rochester's hand in marriage at Ferndean Manor.
At the beginning of the novel while Jane is living under her aunt, Mrs. Reed, she is treated disrespectfully and cruelly. She accuses Jane of being deceitful and a troublesome girl in front of Mr. Brocklehurst, the master of Lowood School. Jane is so hurt by this accusation that she cannot stop herself from defending her well being, and she stands up to her aunt. She knows she is being treated disrespectful and has much more self-worth than ...
Jane Eyre is not only a fictionalized version of her own creator and the epitome of the mankind . here in this novel charlotte Bronte has to encounter and go through some harsh time . here she had to face some kind of changes , the history of age shaped their thinking and personal lives . which she tries to show in her novel Jane Eyre . though Jane Eyre written during the Victorian period time where feminism topic is the most important issue which is to be taken in to consideration .
Miss Temple can be described as the nondiscriminatory woman superintendent of Lowood. During their very first meeting Jane claims how she is "impressed by her voice, look and air" (180). Helen, another student that Jane befriends at Lowood, describes Miss Temple as being "above the rest, because she knows far more than they do" and "overall good and very clever"(221). Having Helen describe Miss Temple this way speaks volumes because she herself is very fair-minded and admirable towards Jane. Miss Temple's strongest quality is her ability to be a role model from the girls, this quality is depicted by Jane as "considerable organ of veneration, for I yet retain the sense of admiring awe with which my eyes traced her steps" (216).
Jane is not as oppressed at Lowood school, but she still is not allowed to do as she pleases, especially not at first. The teachers treat her well, especially Miss Temple, one of her closest friends there. However, after she has been there a few weeks, Mr. Brocklehurst puts her in front of the class and denounces her as a liar. Helen Burns entreats Jane not to let it get her down because Brocklehurst "is not a god" and is disliked by everyone (71).
Women in the Victorian era were held to an inferior status. Many had to hide their feelings, conceal their creativity and they were sought to conform to societal rules. Jane Eyre never quite followed this, growing up in a contemptuous household Eyre acted out, calling her provider, Mrs. Reed, "deceitful" and describing her upbringing as "miserable cruelty" (Bronte 37, 36). Jane's upbringing instills her strong belief in justice toward those who treat others unfairly. When Jane becomes a student at Lowood Institute, the orphan school, Jane endures cruelty from the headmaster, Mr. Brocklehurst. Due to her rough childhood, Jane's passion is uncontrollable. Rather than being passionate for love, she is passionate for justice. While at Lowood, she eventually learns the meaning of forgiveness and strength. Her good friend, Helen Burns, teaches her to accept others opinions of her, to be humble and recognize one's own faults. Helen councils Jane, saying "Life appears to me too short to be spent in nursing animosity, or registering wrongs" (58). Helen's advice to Jane teaches her self-possession, to endure hardships that come her way ...
Similar to many of the great feministic novels of its time, Jane Eyre purely emerges as a story focused on the quest for love. The novel’s protagonist, Jane, searches not only for the romantic side of love, but ultimately for a sense of self-worth and independence. Set in the overlapping times of the Victorian and Gothic periods, the novel touches upon both women’s supposed rights, and their inner struggle for liberty. Orphaned at an early age, Jane was born into a modest lifestyle, without any major parent roles to guide her through life’s obstacles. Instead, she spent much of her adolescent years locked in imaginary chains, serving those around her but never enjoying the many decadences life has to offer. It is not until Jane becomes a governess that many minute privileges become available to her and offer Jane a glance at what life could have been. It is on her quest for redemption and discovery that she truly is liberated. Throughout Charlotte Bronte’s classic novel Jane Eyre, the story’s protagonist Jane, struggles to achieve the balance of both autonomy and love, without sacrificing herself in the process.
When Jane is shunned by Mr. Brocklehurst in front of the entire Lowood population, Helen is the one person that does not immediately judge Jane. In fact, she makes her feel more comfortable in a place that is filled with punishment and hypocrisy. Though Lowood does not truly feel like home, Helen is able to provide Jane with not only all the compassion she needs as well as support and respect. This is one of the first loves Jane experiences on her journey and it allows her to become more open to the love she finds in her future endeavors.
This provides us with a reliable but narrow perspective, as it is only Jane’s viewpoints we see and hear. Jane, as the first person narrator, is horrified to see Brocklehurst arrive at the school. She uses a number of metaphors describing Brocklehurst as a ‘black column’, a ‘piece of architecture’. To her, he is an unfeeling, inanimate object. She is waiting in fearful anticipation of Brocklehurst telling Miss Temple how evil Jane is.
...e ability to achieve anything in life. Hopefully, readers would learn from this novel that beauty is not the most important aspect in life. Society today emphasizes the beauty of one's outer facade. The external appearance of a person is the first thing that is noticed. People should look for a person's inner beauty and love the person for the beauty inside. Beauty, a powerful aspect of life, can draw attention but at the same time it can hide things that one does not want disclosed. Beauty can be used in a variety of ways to affect one's status in culture, politics, and society. Beauty most certainly should not be used to excuse punishment for bad deeds. Beauty is associated with goodness, but that it is not always the case. This story describes how the external attractiveness of a person can influence people's behavior and can corrupt their inner beauty.
Jane’s education at Lowood provides a foundation for her rise through the ranks of society and alters the predetermined course of action for Victorian women. Consequently, Jane is raised among a class higher than her own with the Reeds’, and although they are family, they make sure Jane understands her social position is not on the same level. Ironically, Jane is afforded the ability to go to a private school at Lowood and receive an upper class education. “Gendered performances become acts that are increasingly tied to material wealth, and the text suggests that only the middle and upper classes can afford the costly performance of gender” (Godfrey,...
At the beginning of the book, Jane was living with her aunt Mrs. Reed and her children. Although Jane is treated cruelly and is abused constantly, she still displays passion and spirit by fighting back at John and finally standing up to Mrs Reed. Even Bessie ‘knew it was always in her’. Mrs. Reed accuses Jane of lying and being a troublesome person when Mr. Brocklehurst of Lowood School visited Gateshead. Jane is hurt, as she knows she was not deceitful so she defends herself as she defended herself to John Reed when he abused her, as she said “Wicked and cruel boy! You are like a murderer – you are like a slave driver – you are like the Roman emperors!” to John Reed instead of staying silent and taking in the abuse, which would damage her self-confidence and self-worth. With the anger she had gotten from being treated cruelly, she was able to gain ...