Jane Eyre: a Critical Analysis of Gender Relations in Victorian Literature Essay Example
Jane Eyre: A Critical Analysis of Gender Relations in Victorian Literature
Modern society tends to view the Victorian era as one of oppression and constraint, despite the social and cultural upheaval of the time. This contradiction refers, in large, to the constraints imposed on the female gender. Women in Victorian England were viewed as inferior to their male counterparts, and were allocated clearly defined roles within society. Their treatment is a subject that is explored and critiqued throughout the literature of the time, and subsequent analysis by literary commentators. As Maynard comments (1984); ‘Few observers of the Victorian Scene have failed to point out the unusual degree of sexual restraint imposed upon social life and published literature’. However, it is in the work of the Brontë sisters that one witnesses the most comprehensive, and sometimes startling account of the social and gender restraints of the time. This paper will concentrate on the novel Jane Eyre, written by Charlotte Brontë, and published in 1847 under the pseudonym Currer Bell. The adoption of a male pseudonym in itself reflects an underlying social prejudice towards female novelists, as outlined by the author; ‘Averse to personal publicity, we veiled our own names under those of Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell...while we did not like to declare ourselves women...we had a vague impression that authoresses are liable to be looked on with prejudice’ (Smith, 2000). This somewhat disturbing observation by the author sets the tone of the novel itself, and implies what it is exactly that set the Brontë sisters apart from their contemporaries; their ‘unfeminine’ style of writing.
Jane Eyre is, in effect, a love story, and concentrates on the main character’s quest to find true love. It cannot be classed, however, as a solely romantic novel as the character’s quest for love involves a struggle for equal treatment, social acceptance, and value. In doing so, she questions and refuses to
Modern society tends to view the Victorian era as one of oppression and constraint, despite the social and cultural upheaval of the time. This contradiction refers, in large, to the constraints imposed on the female gender. Women in Victorian England were viewed as inferior to their male counterparts, and were allocated clearly defined roles within society. Their treatment is a subject that is explored and critiqued throughout the literature of the time, and subsequent analysis by literary commentators. As Maynard comments (1984); ‘Few observers of the Victorian Scene have failed to point out the unusual degree of sexual restraint imposed upon social life and published literature’. However, it is in the work of the Brontë sisters that one witnesses the most comprehensive, and sometimes startling account of the social and gender restraints of the time. This paper will concentrate on the novel Jane Eyre, written by Charlotte Brontë, and published in 1847 under the pseudonym Currer Bell. The adoption of a male pseudonym in itself reflects an underlying social prejudice towards female novelists, as outlined by the author; ‘Averse to personal publicity, we veiled our own names under those of Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell...while we did not like to declare ourselves women...we had a vague impression that authoresses are liable to be looked on with prejudice’ (Smith, 2000). This somewhat disturbing observation by the author sets the tone of the novel itself, and implies what it is exactly that set the Brontë sisters apart from their contemporaries; their ‘unfeminine’ style of writing.
Jane Eyre is, in effect, a love story, and concentrates on the main character’s quest to find true love. It cannot be classed, however, as a solely romantic novel as the character’s quest for love involves a struggle for equal treatment, social acceptance, and value. In doing so, she questions and refuses to