Joy Myers

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Chapters 1-10
In the first few chapters, the reader meets Jane as an abused and victimized orphan that resents her circumstances. Jane, "humbled by the consciousness" of her "inferiority" (Bronte 7) to the Reed children, generally allows any of the Reed family members to mistreat her without retaliation. She portrays herself as the poor victim that cannot stand up for herself. However, she occasionally strikes back at her abusers, showing her passionate and strong-willed side that she usually hides. For example, when John Reed hits her, she "received him in frantic sort" (Bronte 12), meaning that she hit him back. Also, after Mrs. Reed gives her a bad repuation with Mr. Brocklehurst, the principal of Lowood school, Jane calls her "bad", "hard-hearted", and "deceitful" (Bronte 48). This shows that although Jane seems to be calm, collected, and submissive, she sometimes slips up and allows her passionate/fiery side to show. Jane's childhood contains many psychological traumas that will affect her behavior later on. For instance, Jane's life lacks any loving relationships. To make up for her loneliness, Jane begins "loving and cherishing" (Bronte 37) her doll as if it were a real person. This attachment shows that since Jane's life contains few loving relationships, she becomes extremely attached to the few bonds she does make with people/things. This attachment shows through when Mrs. Temple leaves Lowood school, when Jane states that she "was no longer the same" after she left because Mrs. Temple made Lowood feel like "a home" (Bronte 115). Another result of Jane's lack of love in childhoos is when Helen realizes that Jane thinks "too much of the love of human beings" (Bronte 95). This statement shows that since Jane never received any love as a child, she values love much more than the average child would. Another childhood experience that stays with Jane is her feeling of being unfairly treated by the Reeds. She tells Helen that she "must dislike" the people who "persist in disliking me" and who "punish" her "unjustly" (Bronte 79). Jane holds this belief because of the hate she feels for the Reed family for how they treated her. Also, the reader discovers that Jane personifies herself as quiet and reserved when she states that she "appeared" "disciplined and subdued" "to the eyes of others" (Bronte 115) while at Lowood school. However, she later admits that she not only "desired liberty", she "gasped" (Bronte 117) for liberty. These two statements by Jane contrast the person she appears to be and the person she really is on the inside.

"The fear of failure in these points harassed me worse than the physical hardships of my lot" (Bronte 82)

"When we are struck at without a reason, we should strike back again very hard" (Bronte 79)

"Why could I never please? Why was it useless to try and win any one's favour?" (Bronte 18)

Chapters 11-20
In chapters 11-20 the reader sees many of Jane's past experiences come back to haunt her. For example, when she believes Mrs. Fairfax is the wealthy owner of Thornfield, she instantly becomes suspicious. She expects "only coldness and stiffness" in her welcome and is "rather confused" at the fact that someone "superior" (Bronte 132) to her treats her so well. Her expectations show that her past treatment at Gateshead influences her judgments of people now. She also is very conscious of her lacking looks - saying that she wished she was "handsomer" and had "rosy cheeks", a "straight nose", and a "finely developed figure" (Bronte 135). This wish shows that the Reed's criticisms of her physical appearance have stayed with her and affect how she sees herself. Although in the first ten chapters Jane's passionate side rarely shows, once she meets Rochester, the owner of Thornfield, she begins to show her true colors. When he asks Jane if she thinks he has a right to order her around, she immediately responds with a resounding no. She tells him that he he has no "right to command" her just because he is "older" than her or because he has "seen more of the world" (Bronte 184) than her. This bold statement traces right back to when John Reed would order her around and tell her that he was better than her for no reason. Due to her unfair treatment, she now holds a strong belief that a person's "claim to superiority" depends on how the person uses their "time and experience" (Bronte 184). Jane's time in Lowood also reflects on her current behavior, enought to where Rochester notices it. He informs her that her time at Lowood is still "controlling" her "features", "muffling" her voice", and "restricting" her "limbs" (Bronte 191). His statement shows that Jane allows her times at Lowood to directly influence how she acts around him. Once Jane learns that Rochester may be interested in Blanche Ingram, she becomes extremely angry at herself for having feelings towards him. She wonders how she ever believed she was "a favourite with Mr. Rochester" and "of importance to him in any way" (Bronte 219). She immediately scolds herself for believing that she is important to anyone on this earth. She believes that nobody holds any space for her in their heart, which comes directly from how little love she was given at Gateshead. She begins to allow Rochester's behavior to drive her actions, being happy when he is there and sad when he leaves. She begins to only see the good in his character, ignoring the flaws. When Rochester disguises himself as a fortune teller, he tells Jane that her "passions may rage furiously", but "reason sits firm and holds the reins" (Bronte 277). This declarations shows that Rochester realizes that Jane only appears complacent.

Chapters 21-30
In chapter 21, Jane has several consecutive dreams about a small "infant", which Jane either "hushed" in her "arms" or "dandled" on her "knee" (Bronte 305). Jane remembers an instance at Gateshead where Bessie's sister dies after she also has dreams about a baby. Shortly after these dreams, Jane must return to Gateshead because Mrs. Reed is deathly ill and is calling for Jane. Once Jand arrives at Gateshead, it becomes apparent that she has changed in some aspects. She realizes that when she left her "heart" was "desperate and embittered", yet when she comes back she possesses "firmer trust" in herself and her "powers" (Bronte 316). This realization by Jane shows how although her experiences at Thornfield were hard, they truly changed her and allowed her to trust in herself more as a woman. Jane also realizes that "time quells the longings of vengeance and hushes the promptings of rage and aversion" (Bronte 319). When she realizes this it becomes clear that her time at Thornfield changed her. She no longer holds the spiteful grudge against Mrs. Reed that she once did, but now feels neutral towards her. Some things about Jane, however, never change. After Mrs. Reed dies, Georgiana asks Jane to stay until "she could get off to London" (Bronte 333). Instead of leaving for Thornfield to follow Mr. Rochester's instructions of a one week "leave of absence" (Bronte 333), she instead stays a whole month afterwards. She stills obeys Georgiana just as she did when she was raised at Gateshead. Once she returns to Thornfield, she dreams of "Miss Ingram" "closing the gates of Thornfield against" her with Mr. Rochester "smiling sardonically" (Bronte 336) at her. This dream shows Jane's fear of losing Rochester, the man she loves, because her social standing isn't good enough. It also shows her fear of Rochester turning against her once he marries Blanche. This fear traces back to the Reed's not loving her because she was an orphan and punishing her for no reason, so therefore she always believed she was never good enough. Although Jane has hidden her true feelings for Rochester throughout the course of the book, she finally reveals them when she tells Rochester that "wherever" he is becomes her "only home" (Bronte 339). This comment shows that even though Jane knows Rochester can never reciprocate the feelings towards her, Jane insists on revealing her feelings to him. Jane really doesn't expect any feelings at all to come from him. This expectation, in part, comes from the lack of love she experienced at Gateshead. Nobody loved her there, so she doesn't expect anyone to love her at all in her life. Jane also illuminates one of her beliefs that come from her experiences at Lowood - she states that "human beings never enjoy complete happiness in this world" (Bronte 358). She has learned to believe this through Helen's death and Miss Temple's departure from the school. The departures of these people so soon after Jane became attached to them have lead her to believe that no human can enjoy complete happiness. Jane also tells Rochester that his love for her will "turn cool" (Bronte 360). When she tells Rochester this, her expectations for love shine through. Since nobody has ever loved her for an extended period of time, she cannot comprehend the idea of somebody truly loving her forever. Jane also dreams again in chapters 21-30. She dreams that she is walking down a road while "obscurity environed" her and she is holding a "little child" (Bronte 389). Earlier Jane remembers that dreaming of a child usually means bad news. Jane dreams again on the same night that Rochester leaves her at Thornfield hall forever with a small child. Shortly after Jane awakes from these dreams, she sees Bertha in her bedroom. Since dreams about an infant result in the death of something, the dreams Jane has represent the death of her and Rochester's marriage. Right when she wakes up, she sees Bertha, who represents the obstacles that keep Jane from marrying Rochester. Also, Rochester is able to decipher what is the real Jane and what she shows to the world. When talking to her, he tells her that her "garb and manner were restricted" and that she had a "diffident" "air", yet when he talked to her her looks had "penetration and power" (Bronte 433) in each of them. This statement shows that Rochester has the ability to tell what/who Jane really is and what persona she puts out towards the world. i honestly dont have the energy to write anymore this is so long omg!!! Jane also comes to the realization that she must not obey Rochester in order too respect herself. Once she leaves Rochester and Thornfield, she wants to be independent. She tells St. John that she wants "to be independent" (Bronte 483) of their hospitality. When St. John offers her to be the mistress of a girls' school, she realizes it was more "independent" than "that of a governess in a rich house" (Bronte 492), and that is why she takes the job. Lastly, St. John realizes that Jane thinks too much of "human affections and sympathies" (Bronte 494). This observation shows that already in the short time he has known Jane, St. John is able to pick out the thing that Jane needs most in life.

Chapters 31-38
In chapters 31-38 Jane becomes a schoomaster due to St. John providing her with this job. Due to her bad experiences at Lowood, Jane does not "expect" "much enjoyment" (Bronte 497) to come from this job. Even though Jane grows to love her job, she continually thinks of Mr. Rochester. She has "strange dreams at night" (Bronte 508) that have Mr. Rochester in them every night. Another thing that I noticed in these chapters is that she speaks to St. John almost exactly like she spoke to Rochester. St. John had never "imagined" that Jane "would dare to speak so to a man" (Bronte 518). It also becomes apparent in these chapters that Jane values family - something she never had as a child - over money in her life. Her priorities becomes clear when she receives a fortune from her dead uncle and, after finding out Mary, Diana, and St. John are her cousins, splits up the fortune evenly. She thinks that having a family is so wonderful because she had never had one her whole life. This lack of family has left her starving for human love, and now that she has found it in the form of a family, she intends to keep it. Just as Jane talks the same way to St. John and Rochester, she also submits to both of them without thinking. Jane realizes that St. John holds a "certain influence" over her that "took away" her "liberty of mind" (Bronte 550). However, Jane also realizes that by submitting to St. John, she also forgets "half" of her "nature" (Bronte 551). This struggle is the same one she went through with Rochester. When St. John insists that she go to India with him, she struggles with whether to go or not. In the end, Jane decides to stay because she knows she will not receive the love she needs if she marries St. John. She leaves Moor House because she suddenly hears Rochester's voice calling her to come to him. She immediately drops everything and goes back to Thornfield. Her lack of hesitation to leave shows that Rochester still drives a large amount of Jane's actions.