Jane Eyre lecture

2.  Can men and women be truly equal in a
relationship?
 Can a person only find true happiness
through marriage?

3.  Family: “It may be of no moment to you; you
have sisters and don’t care for a cousin; but I
had nobody; and now three relations…are born
into my world full-grown. I say again, I am
glad!” (74)
 Acceptance: “I am resolved I will have a home
and connections. I like Moor House, and I will
live at Moor House; I like Diana and Mary and I
will attach myself for life to Diana and Mary”
(75)
 Financial Independence: “I! Rich?” “Yes, you,
rich—quite an heiress”(72).

4.  Handsome: “Tall, slender; his face riveted the eye; it
was like a Greek face, very pure in outline…it is
seldom, indeed, an English face comes so near the
antique models as did his.”
 Character: “St. John was a good man; but I began
to feel he had spoken truth of himself when he said
he was hard and cold. The humanities and
amenities of life had no attraction for him—its
peaceful enjoyments no charm. Literally, he lived
only to aspire—after what was good and great,
certainly; but still he would never rest, nor approve
of others resting around him”

5.  Controlling: “By degrees he acquired a certain
influence over me that took away my liberty of
mind: his praise and notice were more restraining
than his indifference”
 Loss of Self: “I daily wished more to please him; but
to do so, I felt daily more and more that I must
disown half my nature, stifle half my faculties, wrest
my tastes from their original bent”
 Reason not Passion: “You are formed for labour,
not for love. A missionary’s wife you must—shall
be. You shall be mine: I claim you—not for my
pleasure, but for my Sovereign’s service.”

6.  “I will give the missionary my energies—it is all he
wants—but not myself.”
 “As his curate, his comrade, all would be right…I
should still have my unblighted self to turn to: my
natural unenslaved feelings with which to
communicate in moments of loneliness. There
would be recesses in my mind which would be only
mine, to which he never came…but as his
wife…forced to keep the fire of my nature
continually low, to compel it to burn inwardly and
never utter a cry, thought the imprisoned flame
consumed vital after vital--this would be
unendurable.”

7.  Child: uncontrolled passion
 Young Jane: stiffled passion
 With Rochester: unsanctioned passion
 With St. John: reason without passion
 “I am cold: no fervour infects me.” “Whereas
I am hot, and fire dissolves ice”

8.  Bertha: Fire cleansing and illuminating what
was hidden and shameful
 Jane literally becomes Rochester’s eyes and
hands: “I was then his vision as I am still his
right hand. Literally, I was (what he often called
me) the apple of his eye. H saw nature—he
saw books through me; and never did I weary of
gazing for his behalf”
 “I love you better now, when I can really be
useful to you, than I did in your state of proud
independence, when you disdained every part
but that of giver and protector.”

9.  How do each of the following attempt to
control Jane and how does she resist?
› Mr. Brocklehurst
› Rochester
› St. John

10.  Choice: “Reader, I married him.” (85)
 Equality: “I hold myself supremely blest—blest
beyond what language can express; because I
am my husband’s life as fully as he is mine. No
woman was ever nearer to her mate than I am;
ever more absolutely bone of his bone and flesh
of his flesh.” (86)
 Independence: “I am independent, sir, as well
as rich: I am my own mistress.” (85)
 Love: “and I’ his een she’s fair beautiful,
onybody may see that.” [and in his eyes, she’s
beautiful; anybody can see that]

11.  Mr. Brocklehurst: hyprocrisy and lack of real
charity
 Helen Burns: suffering without justice
 St. John: righteousness without mercy
 Jane: justice tempered with forgiveness
 Rochester: judgment tempered with mercy