Jane Eyre Coming Of Age Analysis

Coming Of Age Narratives: Essay 1

2. Examine how the text represents gender. Are these representations problematic or contradictory? How do they relate to the plot and structure of the novel?

In the novel Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë, the reader is presented with depictions of many aspects of Brontë’s own life. The novel is a classic example of a Bildungsroman, written in the Victorian period, and many characteristics are focal in the text, one of which was of course gender inequality, as men seemed to rule the society in which Jane Eyre lived in. A woman couldn’t be successful in this period without a powerful man. Jane Eyre however, sought to prove everyone wrong as she attempted to abolish the rules of this Victorian society. “The novel suggests possibilities for gender subversion within a seemingly normative romance narrative” (Godfrey, 2005).

It’s arguable that Jane was a dedicated feminist, who consistently fought against the boundaries and norms social existence at the time and that she rebelled against being overpowered by men. However, many events in the novel do emphasise how Jane can be vulnerable when she is outside the safekeeping of a man, as is shown when she leaves Rochester. Jane battles against the constraints of Victorian society but contradicts her own battles when she marries Rochester, as he becomes vulnerable from blindness. In conclusion, Jane Eyre was a woman with strong feminist beliefs and principals, yet it becomes clear that Jane’s own mind is not completely outside the constraints of society as she succumbs to love and marries Mr. Rochester and in doing so, becomes a heroine of romantic sorts. It is arguable even that this is a deliberate feature by Charotte Brontë to show the power men possess over women. No matter how stubborn a woman and her views are, they’re all susceptible to the power of men through