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- Jane Eyre: themes
Jane Eyre: themes
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Jane's journey is about finding love without losing herself. That balance links all the main themes.
Independence and equality
Jane refuses to be owned. She will not marry Rochester as a mistress or St John without love.
She says "women feel just as men feel" and need room to use their talents.
She says "women feel just as men feel" and need room to use their talents.
Love and morality
Jane loves Rochester passionately but leaves him when staying would be wrong.
They reunite only when they can be equals: Jane has money and family; Rochester is humbled.
They reunite only when they can be equals: Jane has money and family; Rochester is humbled.
Religion, class and the Gothic
Religion appears in different forms: Brocklehurst's hypocrisy, Helen's gentle faith and St John's strict duty.
Class matters: as a governess, Jane is neither servant nor equal.
Gothic elements (the red-room, laughter in the night, the madwoman in the attic) build mystery and fear.
Class matters: as a governess, Jane is neither servant nor equal.
Gothic elements (the red-room, laughter in the night, the madwoman in the attic) build mystery and fear.
Why do Jane and Rochester only marry at the end?
- Earlier, Rochester was rich and powerful and Jane was poor.
- By the end Jane has her own money and Rochester is humbled by injury.
- They can now meet as equals.
Answer: Because now they are equals: Jane is independent and Rochester has been humbled.
Themes: independence and equality (especially for women), love versus morality, religion (three kinds), class (the governess), and Gothic mystery.
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