Themes

Love Versus Autonomy

Jane Eyre is fundamentally a novel about Jane’s quest for love.
Her desire for love is always balanced by her fiercely independent spirit.
Jane’s inner conflict between love and autonomy unfolds through her relationships with Rochester and St. John Rivers.
Ultimately, she chooses love with Rochester, but only after securing her own independence and self-worth.

The theme of social class is prevalent throughout Jane Eyre.
As an orphan, Jane is an outsider and encounters a society riddled with class prejudice.
Characters like Blanche Ingram and the Reeds represent Victorian class prejudices.
By the end of the novel, Jane challenges these social norms by opting for a life of equality with Rochester rather than one of convenience with St. John.

Religion and differing interpretations of faith are significant aspects of the book.
Various religious characters influence Jane’s spiritual journey, including Helen Burns, Mr. Brocklehurst, and St. John Rivers.
The contrast between Helen’s compassionate Christianity and Mr. Brocklehurst’s hypocritical variant represents the novel’s exploration of organized religion.
Jane’s faith portrays a balanced Christianity that is moral, compassionate, and without the destructive fanaticism seen in St. John Rivers.

Jane’s quest for a sense of belonging and family is a central theme.
She experiences a lack of familial love with the Reeds but finds a sense of family at Lowood.
Jane’s feelings for Thornfield and Rochester represent her longing for a true home.
Ultimately, Jane creates her own family with Rochester and their child, underscoring the importance of self-made families.

Bertha Mason, the ‘madwoman in the attic’, is symbolic of Victorian attitudes towards mental illness and women’s sexuality.
Bertha symbolizes the repressed fear of the ‘other’ and the socially unacceptable aspects of Rochester’s character.
She represents the suppressed rage of women oppressed by patriarchal society and the constraints of Victorian marriage.
Bertha’s story raises questions about the treatment of the mentally ill and the confinement of women in the 19th century.