Women and Space in the book Jane Eyre

Thèmes abordés

Dissertation Jane Eyre

Résumé du document

Jane Eyre is an influential novel by Charlotte Bronte published in 1847 and is certainly one of the most famous classic texts of all time. It is obviously written from the person's point of view, besides, when it was initially published, the subtitle was "An autobiography".

Jane Eyre deals with the story of a girl who struggles to keep her independent spirit in spite of the problems that society throws against her. Her character also depicts maturation and development.
The subject we have to study, "Women and Space in the book Jane Eyre" links two essential notions that are mainly present in the novel. Indeed, we can observe that women are represented in a great number in comparison to men, and that their places in the novel are essential as they play a key role.

The notion of "space" is also significant in the novel. First of all, the term "space" can be associated with different meanings: it can refer to a concrete area or place (for example, a house), more generally, it can also refer to a whole area in which things, people exist: the world, the society, and at last, it could also be associated with the notion of freedom: when you need space, you need freedom.
This notion of space is central in the novel because we can observe that the story takes place in four successive places: Gateshead, Lowood, Thornfield and Marsh End. Furthermore, society is at the heart of the problem in Jane Eyre, and freedom is what Jane is searching for.

We are going to study to what extent a woman occupies a central place in the spaces in the novel, and more generally, how women are being represented. In the first part, we shall first analyze the link between women and the concrete places that appear in the novel and mostly the link between Jane and these places. In the second part, we will analyze the place of women in the general space, as in society.

Extraits

[...] Women and Space in Jane Eyre. Jane Eyre is an influential novel by Charlotte Brontë, published in 1847 which is certainly one of the most famous classic texts of all the time. It is obviously written from the first person point of view, besides, when it was initially published, the subtitle was autobiography”. Jane Eyre deals with the story of a girl who struggles to keep her independent spirit in spite of the problems that society throws against her. It is also a bildungsroman, insofar as it depicts Jane's maturation and development. [...]

[...] How is he my master? Am I a servant?” [Jane asked] you are less than a servant for you do nothing for your keep” [The maid replied]. Mrs Reed's daughter, Eliza and Georgiana are extremely antithetical, but each one has a special status. Eliza, the elder daughter represents the Catholic woman. She is stern woman described in terms of a “sallow face and sever mien nun-like ornament of a string of ebony beads and a crucifix.” (Chapter 21) She is unable to function or relate to the outside world, choosing “retirement where punctual habits would be permanently secured from disturbance, and place safe barriers between herself and a frivolous world.” (Chapter 21) Eliza shows an excessive religious behaviour whereas her sister Georgiana, being naturally beautiful, is a superficial girl. [...]

[...] Besides, at the end, she returns to Mr Rochester and she discovers that Thornfield has burned and that Bertha Mason has died: All the walls that have confined her are gone. As we have said in the first part, women that Jane encounters through the different locations she stays in play a key role in Jane's development. But women that appear in the novel are also representative of the society in the nineteen century. Indeed, in the nineteen century, women had a special status in the society. They had not a great importance since they had to stick to their traditional role: having children and taking care of the household. [...]

[...] When Celine abandoned her daughter, Mr Rochester nonetheless brought Adèle in England. Though this story, Celine Varens is depicted as a libertine woman and is also certainly a symbol for the fact that in the nineteen century, England was a self-centred country and had strong aggressive feelings toward France. The other character that embodies these “anti-French” feeling is Adèle, Celine's daughter. Indeed, she is depicted as a superficial and spoiled girl, only interested in beautiful dresses and hairdressing. The last, but not least important female figure being represented in the novel is Bertha Mason. [...]

[...] We might conclude that the notion of space is really important in this novel and even more important when it is related to women. Indeed, all the women are associated with a location, being sort of imprisoned in it, and sticking to their role, the role that a nineteen century woman is not supposed to contest or to complain. Jane is the only one who is able to go from one location to another, allowing her to evolve and to mature. [...]