Sunday 17 March 2013

by PENG DEREN






Articles Profile:
Jane Eyre, is a poor orphan with a joyless life as a child in the opening chapters. Her wealthy aunt, the widowed Mrs. Reed, is bound by a deathbed promise to her husband to raise his orphaned niece, Jane. However, she and her children are unkind to Jane, never failing to emphasize how she is below them. Jane's plain, intelligent, and passionate nature, combined with her occasional "visions" or vivid dreams, certainly do not help to secure her relatives' affections.

When tensions escalate, Jane is sent to Lowood, a boarding school run by the inhumane Mr. Brocklehurst. She is soon branded a liar, which hurts her even more than malnutrition and cold, but Miss Temple, the teacher Jane admires, later clears her of these charges. She also finds her only friend in Helen Burns, who is very learned and intelligent, has a patient and philosophical mind, and believes firmly in God. Helen is often singled out for punishment by a teacher, Miss Scatcherd, who claims she is a bad child because she is disorganized, incompetent, and often late. Helen accepts these faults, and teaches Jane to accept discipline in order to improve her fiery temper and character. While Jane responds to the injustices of the world with a barely contained burning temper, Helen accepts earthly sufferings, including her own premature death from consumption (now known as tuberculosis), with calmness and a martyr-like attitude.

After a serious typhoid fever epidemic occurs simultaneously with Helen's death, the conditions in Lowood improve and Jane slowly finds her place in the institution, eventually becoming a teacher. When Miss Temple marries and moves away, Jane decides to change careers. She is desperate to see the world beyond Lowood and puts out an advertisement in the local paper, soon securing a position as governess in Thornfield Hall.

At first, life is very quiet with Jane teaching a young French girl, Adèle, and spending time with the old housekeeper, Mrs. Fairfax. But everything changes when the owner of the manor—brooding, Byronic, fiery Edward Rochester—arrives. Though on rough footing at first, he and Jane slowly become acquainted with and grow to respect each other. Mr. Rochester creates an elaborate set-up by seemingly courting a proud local beauty named Miss Blanche Ingram until Jane cannot bear it any longer. Mr. Rochester then admits that his courtship of Miss Ingram was a ruse to arouse Jane's jealousy and that it is she whom he truly loves. His feelings are returned, and they become engaged despite their differences in social status, age, and experience. Jane is young and innocent at nineteen years old, while Rochester is nearly forty—worldly, and thoroughly disillusioned with life and religion. Jane is determined to stay modest, plain, and virtuous, and Rochester is almost equally determined to offer her expensive presents and finery. The former has the moral high ground, though, and the weeks before the wedding are spent mostly as she wishes.

The wedding ceremony is interrupted by a lawyer, who declares that Mr. Rochester is already married. His mad wife Bertha Mason, a Creole from Jamaica whom his family forced him to marry, resides in the attic of Thornfield Hall, and her presence explains all sorts of mysterious events that have taken place during Jane's stay in Thornfield. Mr. Rochester offers to take her abroad to live with him, but Jane is not willing to sacrifice her morals or self-respect for earthly pleasures, let alone accept the status of mistress, even though Rochester insists Jane will break his heart if she refuses him. Torn between her love for Rochester and her own integrity and religion, Jane flees Thornfield in the middle of the night, with very little money and nowhere to go.

She wanders for a few days and finally finds safe haven, under an alias, with a vicar, St. John Rivers, and his two sisters. They bond, and in due course Jane is given a position as village schoolteacher. Later, St. John learns Jane's true identity, and, by an incredible coincidence, it transpires that he and his sisters are actually her cousins. Additionally, Jane conveniently inherits a large sum of money from an uncle who lived abroad. The cousins are left without inheritance because of an old family feud, but she promptly splits the money so that all four of them are now financially secure. This gives St. John the means to pursue his true calling, to go to India as a missionary, but not without proposing marriage to Jane in order for her to accompany him. Though this is her opportunity to choose a husband of high morals, she knows St. John does not truly love her. Contrary to her protest, he insists they must be married if they are to go to India. Jane nearly succumbs to his proposal, but at the last minute, in another supernatural episode, she hears Rochester's voice calling her in the wind, and feels the need to respond to it.

Jane immediately travels to Thornfield Hall, only to find it destroyed by a fire and abandoned. She learns that Mr. Rochester lost a hand, an eye, and sight in the other eye as a result of an unsuccessful attempt to save Bertha from the flames, of which she was the cause. Upon acquiring the knowledge of his location, at a country manor called Ferndean, she sets off for it. She and Mr. Rochester reconcile and marry, for he has adopted love and religion. She writes from the perspective of ten years after their marriage, during which she gave birth to a son and Mr. Rochester gained part of his sight back. Jane's long quest to find love and a sense of belonging is finally fulfilled. The book ends with a look at the noble missionary death of St. John Rivers far away in India, most likely representing the righteousness of the path Jane did not take.

Review

This is a realistic novel with a strong romantic flavor, the novel depicts the love of Jane Eyre and Rochester.The hero of Jane Eyre is a pure in heart, thinking women, her life at the bottom of society, had suffered. But she has a stubborn character, spirit and courage to pursue equality and happiness. Novel rich lyrical brushwork and profound and delicate psychological descriptions, fascinating show love experience the ups and downs of the hero and heroine, and praise to get rid of all the old customs and prejudices. Deep and sincere love, rooted in mutual understanding, mutual respect based on the power of art with a strong searing. Most of its success lies in shaping the image of a dare to resist the courage to fight for freedom and equal status of women.
"Jane Eyre" to show to us is the one kind of simplify, is a return to basics, a pursuit devote full feeling, without taking into account the feelings of the pros and cons of a simplified, it is like a glass of water,purify the mind of a reader, the article also tells us that the best life is dignity plus love.

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