Essay On Gender Roles In Jane Eyre

1. Introduction

Gender was at the epicenter of social relations in the Victorian era, as there were clearly differentiated gender roles by which their society functioned on. These roles were largely based on the ideology of “separate spheres” with men inhabiting mainly the public working sphere and women inhabiting the private domestic one. Women were valued primarily as housewives, as “an Angel in the House, contentedly submissive to men, but strong in her inner purity and religiosity” (Showalter, 14): very simply, she was to be that of an obedient domestic helpmate of men, untainted by any form of immorality. Men, on the other hand, while enjoying the freedom of ready access to both spheres, were seen as the providers and protectors as the

From the tyrannical Master John to the hypocritical Brocklehurst and dogmatic St. John Rivers, Brontë presents us with a seemingly stock representation of normative Victorian masculine dominance that is manifested in each of these male characters. Despite failing to treat Jane as his equal throughout the whole course of the novel, Rochester is the only male character that remains at odds with the dominant narrative. Supporting Jane’s desire for autonomy as well as allowing Jane to reform his own masculinity according to this desire, Rochester becomes the unconventional Victorian man that irrevocably influences Jane’s life as a free woman. While much criticism centers on the heroine’s bildungsroman from helpless girl to empowered woman, the field lacks comparable analysis of how Rochester’s position as the dominant Victorian male is dismantled and redefined by Brontë to suit Jane’s narrative. This essay, therefore, will explore how the character of Rochester embodies a deconstruction of normative Victorian masculinity, ultimately allowing for both sexes to stand “at god’s feet, equal, -as [they] are!”