Oppression Of Women In Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre

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Imagine a 19th century woman. A polite, quiet, submissive woman. When the reader looks back at Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre this is the overall picture they gain of her. Jane Eyre: A perfectly plain Jane… Well, let’s look a little deeper. Within the novel, Jane certainly does come off as a very traditional 19th century woman at times, preferring to stay silent in the face of conflict and choosing to be neither seen nor heard in some instances. However, this is only on surface level. Although, Jane prefers to be reserved throughout the story, this is merely a result of society at the time and surely not all that’s to be said of this dynamic, complex character. From Jane’s time at Gateshead Hall, Lowood school, Thornfield Hall, and even the miserably stagnant time spent with St. John, the reader can see how the 19th century society fiercely oppressed the female gender whilst men were considered independent and dominant over the seemingly fairer sex. Nevertheless, Bronte and Jane …show more content…
She is quiet yet outspoken. Shy and reserved yet self-confident and passionate. For a moment, she is thoroughly human and an absolute opposite of the stereotypical Victorian woman. She intrigues Rochester to no end, but yet she is still considered unequal to him despite their many similarities. Jane frequently proves herself to have thoughts and opinions just as powerful as any man’s, and yet, she continually refers to him as “master,” efficiently abolishing any hope for them to be seen as equals. Reluctantly, the reader must wave goodbye to the notion that she would be considered equal at this time, and perhaps figuring that the only reason Jane would even be considered to be on a man’s level in the 19th century is because a man himself almost dubbed her to be
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