Travel as Experience in Jane Eyre
In his essay "The Progress of Error" William Cowper writes:
Returning he proclaims by many a grace,
By shrugs and strange contortions of his face,
How much a dunce, that has been sent to roam,
Excels a dunce, that has been kept at home. (Buzard 99)
In the novel, we are presented with the tale of Jane Eyre and her travels around the English countryside. What she has seen and done are not considered extraordinary but rather common to a woman of her social standing. On the other hand, Rochester as a man of wealth and land has traveled the world and seen the sights of many nations. He has been to the new world and has also completed the Grand Tour of Europe that so many aristocrats before him have done. Yet when he returns home jaded, he finds in the plainest of women something that he had not found in his countless expeditions. When Jane is betrayed by Rochester, she leaves on her own tour with only a hope of survival without him. She eventually returns from her trek and has learned what she truly desires is to be with Rochester. Rochester’s advantageous trip abroad does not deliver the hope and satisfaction that the Grand Tour promises. On the other hand, Jane’s inconvenient journey around her homeland proves revealing to her independent nature. These details closely mirror the questions that arise when the value of travel as a learning experience is considered. Ultimately, Jane learns that where one goes is less important than how one spends the time.
We see both sides of this argument in their first real conversation. While trying to explain why he finds her so interesting and at the same time must condescend to her, Rochester tells Jane that "…I have battled through a varied experience wit+h many men of many nations, and roamed over half the globe, while you have lived quietly with one set of people in one house" (140; ch. 14). Rochester believes this view of conquering more of the world makes him a stronger, better person. Jane retaliates that Rochester shouldn’t feel superior just because "…you have seen more of the world than I have – your claim to superiority depends on the use you have made of your time and experience" (140; ch. 14). Rochester responds by admitting he has "made an indifferent, not to say a bad use of both advantages" (140; ch.
Jane Eyre is born into a world where she is left bereft of the love of parents, family, or friends, but instead surrounded by hateful relatives. She resolves to attend school to begin her quest for independence. This theme is seen through Jane’s behavior when she renounces her relation to her aunt Mrs. Reed, ignoring the nurse’s orders and leaving her room to see Helen again, and when she acquires the courage to speak her opinion to Mr. Rochester.
To begin, when Mr. Rochester secretly returns to Thornfield as a gypsy he tells many fortunes but when the secret comes out there is nothing but distrust for him. For example, when Jane finds out that Mr. Rochester was the gypsy, and Mr. Rochester asks if she can forgive him for his trick, she says ¨[She] cannot tell till [she] [has] thought it all over. … [she] shall try to forgive [him]; but it was not right¨ (Bronte 213). This shows that Jane had lost some trust in her beloved Rochester by such a simple joke and it was that, the secret had been kept from her, that makes Jane really wonder if she could tru...
Throughout the novel Jane Eyre, true character was form by the people she encountered overtime from her childhood to her early adult stages. Jane’s travel has also impact the growth of Jane into being the character Charlotte Bronte wanted the audience to see farther in the novel. All Jane really wanted was Happiness and by traveling and meeting different people she was searching for that happiness that she never got as a child.
...ment and realization that he has lost Jane to another man in the following dialogue between them, “’I know where your heart turns, and to what it clings. The interest you cherish is lawless and unconsecrated. Long since you ought to have crushed it: now you should blush to allude to it. You think of Mr. Rochester?’ It was true. I confessed it by silence. ‘Are you going t seek Mr. Rochester?’ ‘I must find out what is become of him.’ ‘It remains for me, then,’ he said, ‘to remember you in my prayers; and to entreat God for you, in all earnestness, that you may not indeed become a castaway. I had thought I recognized in you one of the chose. But God sees not as man sees: His will be done.’” (Bronte 436) Though Jane Eyre’s stay at Moor House and Morton were crucial for her recovery to stability of her life, she yearned to be at Thornfield and wedded to Mr. Rochester.
Over the course of Act III, Juliet’s state of mind transforms from naïve and innocent to impulsive and independent due to the aspects of loyalty, love and maturity. Although conflicts begin to unfold, Juliet, despite the loss of her cousin Tybalt, remains faithful and honest to her newly wedded husband, Romeo. Juliet lived in a rather obedient lifestyle, as she was growing up – obeying her parent’s orders and everybody’s expectations, but as her affections towards Romeo continues to flourish, so does she as an independent human being.
The novel Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte consists of continuous journey through Jane’s life towards her final happiness and freedom. Jane’s physical journeys contribute significantly to plot development and to the idea that the novel is a journey through Jane’s life. Each journey causes her to experience new emotions and an eventual change of some kind. These actual journeys help Jane on her four figurative journeys, as each one allows her to reflect and grow.
Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre chronicles the growth of her titular character from girlhood to maturity, focusing on her journey from dependence on negative authority figures to both monetary and psychological independence, from confusion to a clear understanding of self, and from inequality to equality with those to whom she was formerly subject. Originally dependent on her Aunt Reed, Mr. Brocklehurst, and Mr. Rochester, she gains independence through her inheritance and teaching positions. Over the course of the novel, she awakens towards self-understanding, resulting in contentment and eventual happiness. She also achieves equality with the important masculine figures in her life, such as St. John Rivers and Mr. Rochester, gaining self-fulfillment as an independent, fully developed equal.
In conclusion, Jane Eyre’s painstaking journey to find a sense of acceptance, affection, and family was finally completed, attaining the things she yearned. She eventually discovered everything she was searching for through Mr. Rochester, forgetting her agonizing past and looking to what was ahead. As Jane looked for many different alternatives to make her feel as if she was complete, she found that Mr. Rochester was the only one who could make her feel
...ws us although he was mean to her at first, he did not hate her, and tried his best to save her. These actions make him less and less like a Byronic Hero. One could argue these kinds of actions done by Rochester makes him more attractive. As well as that, this shows the amount of love and care that Rochester gives to Jane, as he tries to be courageous and humble for her.
The classic tale of oppressing children to death remains one of the most dramatic descriptions of tension-filled families, centuries after its first performance. The feud between the Capulets and Montagues spans generations; when Juliet discovers Romeo’s last name, she mourns, “My only love sprung from my only hate!” (I.v.135) She even goes as far to say, “be but sworn my love, And I’ll no longer be a Capulet” (II.i.77-78). From the moment she meets the Montague, love pushes aside her loyalty to family. Her allegiances now side with her husband of mere hours over the family that raised her, proving her fickle nature. Neither half of the couple disappoints their respective family— their union remains a secret with only two other witnesses— until Romeo murders Tybalt and the Prince banishes him from Verona. Although she curses her nurse for blaming Romeo, Juliet never offers to run away with her husband, scared of the unknown road her husband must take. Although Romeo mentions nothing of it, her decision to remain in Verona disappoints, as it cements the relationship’s doomed fate. Not only does Juliet disappoint her husband, one of the two most important men in her life, she disappoints her father, the other most important, by refusing to marry Paris. Her parents, oblivious to their daughter’s change in marital status, cannot comprehend the girl’s outrage and refusal to the respected man’s proposal. The verbal sparring between Juliet and Lord Capulet ends with the elder commanding, “But fettle your fine joints ‘gainst Thursday next To go with Paris to Saint Peter’s Church, Or I with drag thee on a hurdle thither” (III.v.153-155). Women in Shakespeare’s time customarily obeyed all orders, so Juliet’s refusal impresses readers, but creates a major rift in one of Verona’s most elite families. Disappointment follows the girl no matter how she acts: either refusing to marry Paris or exposing her
Shortly after birth, Jane Eyre Becomes an exile. She physically lives in her aunt’s manor, but she is effectively exiled from the feeling of belonging that can only be found in meaningful familial connections. Her aunt treats her poorly and her cousins, when not ignoring her, openly bully her. She is isolated and, although technically within the boundaries of a stately house, homeless. Jane’s exile from a family and her search for deep human connection drive the plot of the book and is integral to her finally finding a home in her marriage to Mr. Rochester.
This brought into question Jane’s grand need for independence. Jane’s equality in a relationship is derived from her desire for independence. Jane reveals her need for independence in her relationship with Mr. Rochester when she told him she would always call him master but she would not be inferior to him. Haiyan Gao asserts in her article “Reflection On feminism in Jane Eyre,” “Jane loves Rochester with all her heart and Rochester’s status and wealth make him so high above for Jane to approach, yet she never feels herself inferior to Rochester though she is a humble family teacher.” It is also notable that Jane does not pursue a relationship with Mr. Rochester with the intention of gaining money.
Explore how Charlotte Bronte presents the character of Jane Eyre in the novel of the same name, noting the effects of social and historical influences on the text. Jane Eyre was a plain and insignificant unloved orphan, she was cared for by her aunt Reed, who did not like her but was obliged to look after her because it was a request of Mr. Reed who was also Jane's uncle. Eventually she was sent away to school after fighting with her bullying cousin John and getting locked in the room her Uncle died in, and she fainted. The school was awful with a horrible owner and bad conditions; there was a typhus epidemic in which her friend Helen Burns died.
Moseley goes on to say, “Liberty and love are in some way at war in the lives of all of us.” It is not until Jane reaches personal liberation, that she is capable of loving someone else to a full extent. Throughout Jane Eyre Jane must learn how to gain love without sacrificing herself in the process. Orphaned at an early age, Jane becomes used to a lackluster lifestyle without any true value. It is not until she finds love and comfort in her friends at Lowood that her life begins to turn around. Upon meeting Rochester, Jane’s life was only as plain as she made it. She untwines in a world wind romance, ultimately finding the love she craved without losing her self-value.
Women, in all classes, were still living in a world which was misogynistic and male-dominated. Their purpose in life was to produce male heirs and maintain the home by hiring and overseeing servants. It was also taboo for one to marry significantly below one’s social class. This is one reason that Jane is not a conventional heroine for the society of her time. Although, as a governess, she is not considered to be as low as a housemaid, she is still part of the hired help in the house. This is why it is unconventional for her and Mr Rochester to be in a relationship. Yet this is not as peculiar as how Jane Eyre ends their relationship due to her sense of betrayal. It would have been considered extremely foolish for a working-woman’s sense of betrayal to end and turn down a man of great wealth.