Sarah teaches college English, and she holds a master's degree in English studies.
The novel Jane Eyre is a coming-of-age story written by English author Charlotte Bronte and published in 1847. A coming-of-age story can also be referred to as a bildungsroman. The story follows the title character, Jane Eyre, from the age of 10 into adulthood, experiencing with her the trials and joys, the setbacks and victories of growing up.
To begin, Jane is an orphan left in the care of the Reed family. Unfortunately, the kind Mr. Reed died 9 years ago, and 10-year-old Jane has been forced to reside under the care of Mrs. Reed, who cannot stand Jane. Mrs. Reed's 14-year-old son loves to torment Jane, and he eventually provokes Jane to physically defend herself. In turn, Mrs. Reed resolves to ship Jane off to a strict boarding school called Lowood Institution.
In time and against the odds, Jane comes to thrive at Lowood. She endures many hardships
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Jane's position at Thornfield is a considerable step-up in a society where it is difficult for a woman to provide for herself - difficult, in fact, for any person to raise themselves to a station or class above the one into which they were born. Jane adjusts to life in Thornfield. Mrs. Fairfax manages the household, and Adele, a young girl and Mr. Rochester's ward, becomes Jane's pupil. The master of the house, Mr. Rochester, is aloof, gruff, and mysterious. And the house itself is mysterious. Before any of these mysteries reveal their realities, however, Volume I ends with the hinting that Jane Eyre is falling in love with Mr. Rochester, and he with her, in his peculiar way.
Jane tells us her story in the first person. We will now take an in-depth look at 3 of Jane's quotes from Volume I that exemplify her character and show us her development as a person through this portion of the story.
Despite all of 10-year-old Jane's efforts to be a delightful child, Mrs. Reed still hates her. In fact, Mrs. Reed has just slandered Jane's character in front of Mr. Brocklehurst, the leader of Lowood Institution. Mrs. Reed, essentially, has done her best to make the next stage of Jane's life as miserable as possible by telling Mr. Brocklehurst that Jane is a misbehaved girl who is prone to lying. Instead of defending herself, Jane silently pushes back her tears. In this quote, we can see the constant cloud of defeat that has loomed over Jane's head since infancy. The reader feels right along with Jane the unfairness of the situation. Jane has tried and tried to make Mrs. Reed happy, but it just never worked. Though this quote speaks of young Jane's difficult plight in life, both in the past and now in the future, her fighter's spirit is also found in these words. There is a sense that while it is in Mrs. Reed's nature to be horrible to Jane, it is in Jane's nature to strive, to keep going. And that is exactly what she does throughout the entirety of the novel. In the face of every battle, Jane bravely rises to the occasion.
Time has passed, and our Jane is now 18-years-old. Here, we see her mustering up the courage to leave Lowood behind. In her 8 years at Lowood, Jane spent 6 years as a student and 2 as a teacher. She gained knowledge and skills enough to apply for employment outside the walls of the Institution. And though Lowood was not the most welcoming of places, it had become Jane's home. With Miss Temple gone and her legal guardian - Mrs. Reed - far removed, Jane finds herself in a frightening position for a woman in her society: independent. She only has herself to rely on. While the world being wide is exciting, it is simultaneously terrifying. Jane realizes, however, that if she wants to experience life to the fullest, she will have to become one of the people who have the courage to face the world. She realizes that the knowledge of life is worth every risk she will have to take. And though Jane does not yet know it, her courage will be put to the test time and again; she will face many trials all on her own before she will find her happy ending among the perils of life.
It is at the end of Volume I when the reader begins to glimpse Jane's true strength and power of character. She has an incorruptible nature. Jane is a unique woman in comparison to the typical woman of her society. Though she is well-mannered, she is fierce. Though she should be frightened of Mr. Rochester, she is drawn to him. Though the house holds dangers, she is curious. Jane is not satisfied with tranquility. In this quote we see that Jane is determined to fill her life with action, even if that means she has to make that action happen. A dull existence simply is not in the cards for our Jane. It is her unending courage that leads her into unraveling the stories that Thornfield has to tell; it is her bravery that leads her into pursuing a friendship, which blossoms into something more, with the moody Mr. Rochester.
Though Volume I is only the first third of the novel, Jane Eyre, it is easy for us to see that she is and will become the resilient heroin we so desire her to be. It was wise of Charlotte Bronte to give us Jane's story from the lips of Jane herself. Because of this, we are invited to clearly see Jane's incredible strength as she grows from a little girl into a woman.
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