Motifs in Jane Eyre
The Red-Room
Mr Reed passed away in this room (male establishment)
The room inspires a feeling of fear, gothiscism, and emptiness
Recurrence of various shades of red – scarlet, pink, crimson – signifies passion, danger, aggression, suppression, and confinement…a way of policing female passion
The red-room can be viewed as a symbol of what Jane must overcome in her struggles to find freedom, happiness, and a sense of belonging. In the red-room, Jane’s position of exile and imprisonment first becomes clear. Although Jane is eventually freed from the room, she continues to be * socially ostracized (by Rochester’s aristocrat friends who visit Thornfield) * financially trapped, and excluded from love (asymmetry in wealth between R and J) * threatened by her sense of independence and her freedom of self-expressionare constantly
The red-room’s importance as a symbol continues throughout the novel. It reappears as a memory whenever Jane makes a connection between her current situation and that first feeling of being ridiculed. Thus she recalls the room when she is humiliated at Lowood (by Brockelhurst). She also thinks of the room on the night that she decides to leave Thornfield after Rochester has tried to convince her to become an undignified mistress (and live with him in France). Her destitute condition upon her departure from Thornfield also threatens emotional and intellectual imprisonment, as does St. John’s marriage proposal. Only after Jane has asserted herself, gained financial independence, and found a spiritual family—which turns out to be her real family—can she wed Rochester and find freedom in and through marriage.
Bertha Mason
Bertha Mason
She impedes Jane’s happiness and her union with Rochester, but she also catalyses the growth of Jane’s self-understanding (Jane’s double, her alter ego).
The mystery surrounding Bertha establishes suspense and terror to the plot and the atmosphere. Further, Bertha serves as a remnant and reminder of
Mr Reed passed away in this room (male establishment)
The room inspires a feeling of fear, gothiscism, and emptiness
Recurrence of various shades of red – scarlet, pink, crimson – signifies passion, danger, aggression, suppression, and confinement…a way of policing female passion
The red-room can be viewed as a symbol of what Jane must overcome in her struggles to find freedom, happiness, and a sense of belonging. In the red-room, Jane’s position of exile and imprisonment first becomes clear. Although Jane is eventually freed from the room, she continues to be * socially ostracized (by Rochester’s aristocrat friends who visit Thornfield) * financially trapped, and excluded from love (asymmetry in wealth between R and J) * threatened by her sense of independence and her freedom of self-expressionare constantly
The red-room’s importance as a symbol continues throughout the novel. It reappears as a memory whenever Jane makes a connection between her current situation and that first feeling of being ridiculed. Thus she recalls the room when she is humiliated at Lowood (by Brockelhurst). She also thinks of the room on the night that she decides to leave Thornfield after Rochester has tried to convince her to become an undignified mistress (and live with him in France). Her destitute condition upon her departure from Thornfield also threatens emotional and intellectual imprisonment, as does St. John’s marriage proposal. Only after Jane has asserted herself, gained financial independence, and found a spiritual family—which turns out to be her real family—can she wed Rochester and find freedom in and through marriage.
Bertha Mason
Bertha Mason
She impedes Jane’s happiness and her union with Rochester, but she also catalyses the growth of Jane’s self-understanding (Jane’s double, her alter ego).
The mystery surrounding Bertha establishes suspense and terror to the plot and the atmosphere. Further, Bertha serves as a remnant and reminder of