A life does not end the moment a person stops breathing. Although the person may be gone, the impact and lessons they leave behind will be carried on by those who loved them. In Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre, the protagonist Jane meets a young girl named Helen when she attends the Lowood School. Although Helen dies soon after from consumption, her interactions with Jane are enough to spark a lifelong change in the heart of the young girl. Helen teaches Jane a new way to look at religion and exemplifies elegance in the face of hardships. When she dies, it burdens Jane with carrying on Helen’s legacy, but also teaches her valuable lessons about her relationships with other people. When Jane meets Helen Burns, her entire view of religion is …show more content…
Before Jane comes to the Lowood School, she gets into an altercation with her cousin John that catalyzes her move to the institution. After finding Jane reading a book, John took it from her. He proceeded to “hurl it” at Jane, who tried to move out of the line of fire, however “it hit [her], and [she] fell, striking [her] head against the door and cutting it” (Bronte #). John’s torment towards Jane was constant. She describes it, saying “He bullied and punished me; not two or three times in the week, nor once or twice in the day, but continually: every nerve I had feared him, and every morsel of flesh in my bones shrank when he came near” (Bronte #). However, after the incident with the book, Jane retaliated, calling him a “wicked and cruel boy” and comparing him to a “murderer” and a “slavedriver” (Bronte #). Of course, Jane’s outburst is punished, but she has no control over her emotions when provoked. Helen Burns takes a completely different approach to counteracting the terrible situations she is in. At the Lowood School, she faces extreme criticism from Miss Scatcherd, a teacher there. Helen is constantly critiqued for her clothes being out of order, her posture, and her attitude, just to name a few. The first time Jane observes Helen being made a spectacle at the hands of Miss Scatcherd, she notices “she neither wept nor blushed: composed, though grave, she stood, the central mark of all eyes” and that “her sight seems turned in, gone down into her heart: she is looking at what she can remember, I believe; not at what is really present” (Bronte #). Once they become acquainted with one another, Helen says of Jane’s behavior “You think to much of the love of human beings; you are too impulsive, too vehement” (Bronte #). Helen does not value the love
Images of death and rebirth presented throughout Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte suggest the life that was Jane Eyre 's came literally and figuratively from death. The death of her parents, Uncle Reed, Helen Burns, the horse chestnut tree, and Bertha Mason Rochester all significantly gave birth to some aspect of Jane 's life.
Jane being ignored is a reason why she has some mental issues. She feels ashamed of what she is feeling and society makes it hard for her to want to talk about this with anyone. Not being able to talk about it, causes Jane’s depression to get worse with
Deception can be used as a noble shield to protect someone from a hideous truth that can be to their undoing, or it can be a means of intentionally destroying someone; destroying their happiness, their trust, and their peace with the vile vice that is deception. How can the motive for the deception be determined? A straightforward answer is rarely available, and it must be something that the reader decides for him or herself. By examining specific evidence, a conclusion can be drawn about one’s character. Jane Eyre is the subject here.
However, Helen Burns claims that "Brocklehurst is not a God" (28). Helen Burns is a contrasting character to him; she embodies the concepts of sympathy and submission. Helen, "the foil, or antidote, to Brocklehurst" (Franklin 464), sympathizes with the people Brocklehurst unjustly punishes. Lara Freebrug Kees defines sympathy as a motivation for altruistic behavior (Kees 873). Helen, risking her life at Lowood, disobeys Brocklehurst by visiting Jane (28).
It is ironic that Jane is seen as the guilty party in the incident with John Reed because John started the fight when he slapped Jane. Then when John’s sisters, Eliza and Georgina, go to “tattle tale” on Jane, their mother blames Jane for the whole situation. Jane compares John to a “murderer,” “slave-driver,” and “Roman Emperors” (Bronte 9). During this comparison, she is implying that he is a very cruel and awful person. That he would beat her and boss her around.
It is Helen who advises Jane to study the New Testament and follow Christ's example, in particular his injunction to "Love your enemies"--a counsel that clearly influences the forgiveness Jane grants the dying Mrs. Reed” (Lamonaca
Oftentimes, minor characters help to reveal a theme or contribute to the characterization of the protagonist. In the novel Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë, Helen Burns serves as a foil character to the protagonist, Jane Eyre. Throughout the novel, Helen’s docile and pious nature helps to emphasize Jane’s development from a passionate girl to a modest woman. Helen’s theological beliefs also allow her to serve as a foil character to Mr. Brocklehurst, the headmaster of Lowood Institution, and St John Rivers, a zealous missionary, in order to reveal how Christianity is used to control Jane. Compared to the male characters in the novel, Helen’s positive use of religion proves to be more effective in encouraging Jane to adopt Christian values.
Examine how either text represents either class or gender. Are these representations problematic or contradictory? How do they relate to the plot and structure of the novel? Jane Eyre is a female Bildungsroman written by Charlotte Brontë in 1848.
One of the biggest character foils in Jane Eyre is between Mr. Edward Rochester and St. John Rivers. From the first time we meet these characters, it is easy to tell the two apart. While one is ruled by a religious forces the other is controlled by emotions. Jane has to make a choice, and decide how she is going to live the rest of her life. At the end of the novel, she makes a choice between what is expected of her, and what she wants.
The worst part of was that in there was the 1882 Married Property Act that when a women gets married she has to pass on all her wealth, and virtually there life to their husband (Women and the Law in Early 19th Century.) In the case the sacrifice of Jane is to “relive the press of [writing],” the only thing that seem to keep her at rest. However, the real reason for the downfall of the narrator is that her condition becomes worse due to the fact that there is a mysterious room that keeps calling her, and she will not stop thinking this place as this room symbolizes her isolation that she from society. The cause of the down fall of Jane is really the fault of John because he for the most part wants the narrator to stop thinking about her episodes, but in reality that only makes her think of her depression even more she is “nervous weakness.”
First, Jane Eyre’s attributes displays women in our society who are still in search for meaning and love in their lives. Just like Jane’s spirit of passion despite abuse, these women continue to search for respect from other
Over the course of Jane’s journey, she struggles with her own Christian faith in God and beliefs as well as with the approaches to religion the characters Mr Brocklehurst, Helen Burns and St. John Rivers have chosen. Mr Brocklehurst Jane’s first encounter with one of the strongly religious characters takes place in her aunt’s house. Jane meets Mr Brocklehurst, the master Lowood school, where she will be studying and eventually become a teacher later in the novel. During her first interaction with him Mr Brocklehurst promptly asks Jane “Do you read your Bible?”
Helen’s religion is seen as detrimental; it appears as though it is almost ruining her potential as she is continually unable to stand up for herself or enjoy the life she has. Helen’s religious views turn her into an unfeeling person who does not enjoy life the way that people are meant
Jane states that she doesn 't love her aunt or even acknowledge their familial bond when she doesn 't address her aunt by the title of "aunt." Even as a child, Jane has a strong moral standard. After Jane gratefully leaves her aunt for Lowood, Jane conflicts with Mr. Brocklehurst. Mr Brocklehurst publicly accuses Jane of being a liar. Jane later approaches a teacher of Lowood, calling in evidence from a doctor from her aunt 's
Jane goes against the expected type by “refusing subservience, disagreeing with her superiors, standing up for her rights, and venturing creative thoughts” (Margaret, 1997, p. 325-346). She is not only successful in terms of wealth and position, but more importantly, in terms of family and love. These two needs that have evaded Jane for so long are finally hers. Adding to her victory is her ability to enjoy both without losing her hard-won independence. Everybody has the rights to pursue happiness, to pursue the true spirit of life, which can be seen from Jane Eyre’s struggle for independence and equality.