Character Analysis Of Jane Eyre

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Jane Eyre is narrated by its title character and so presents us with a story from a sole point of view. When the novel was first published it included the subtitle, ‘An Autobiography,’ thereby drawing further attention to its narration by one person very much involved with the story to be told. The nature of the narrator and their relationship with the reader has a great effect on how we judge their character, and Jane Eyre is no exception. Jane Eyre provides us with a narration of events and dialogue, as well as an account of her thoughts and feelings.

The novel can be classified as a bildungsroman, as it charts the growth of Jane from a child into a young woman. This particular genre of the novel capitalises on the first person narrator …show more content…

However, because of the way Bronte characterises Jane – of good moral nature and of constant character – we accept her as a credible narrator. Our sympathy and bias towards her cause is aided by the fact that we are given an insight into Jane’s life right from her childhood. This means that we can relate to her and sympathise with her situation, knowing where she has come from and what drives …show more content…

In fact, the narrator of Jane Eyre makes the relationship between reader and herself very clear, frequently bringing attention to the our position as reader ‘True, reader, and I knew and felt this’ (p79). The power of the narrator becomes very clear as the novel progresses, with Jane Eyre often speculating on her role as narrator, ‘A new chapter in a novel is something like a new scene in a play; and when I draw up the curtain this time, reader – you must fancy you see a room in the George Inn at Millcote’ (p95). She draws the reader into the story and in doing so identifies the reader as someone akin to a companion or friend. Again, this tone of narration enables us to connect and empathise with the narrator. We experience events as Jane remembers them, and are given explanations at the same point in the story as she would have received

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