Lecture 9

1. Biography of Charlotte Brontё

2. Charlotte Brontё’s Jane Eyre: A
Literary Analysis
3. Jane Austen “Pride and
Prejudice”
• Charlotte Bronte was born in Yorkshire, England on April
21, 1816. She is one of six children of clergyman, Patrick
Bronte and his wife Maria. Charlotte suffered from early
death of her mother Maria. Soon after, the family moves to
Howarth, England. In 1824, Charlotte and her sisters go to
the Clergy Daughters’ school at Cowan Bridge where bad
and harsh conditions that had caused Charlotte’s eldest
sisters, Maria and Elizabeth death and fortunately, Charlotte
and Emily brought home. The three sisters and their brother
Branwell were commended to the care of their aunt Elizabeth
Branwell. Charlotte, Anne, Emily and Branwell were
educated at home in isolation and they created their own
literary world in Reverend Bronte’s Parsonage. By their
creativity and talent, the sisters and their brother could create
an imaginary world which they called Angeria and began to
write in details.
• In 1831, Charlotte went to school at Roe Head where she became a
teacher and went to serve in many places as a governess before
completing her school in Brussels.
• Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë was originally published under the
pseudonym Currer Bell in 1847. The novel was a success and became
very popular; the second and third editions were prepared quickly after
the release. Today, more than 150 years later, the novel is often claimed
as one of the greatest and most popular works of English fiction. It is
possibly one of the most read, appreciated and discussed pieces of
literature of the western world.
• Jane Eyre is a Bildungsroman; it is a novel that narrates the story of
protagonist’s growth and internal development on her search for a
meaningful existence in society. The novel also contains elements of a
romance novel and a Gothic novel. It is written in the form of an
autobiography and narrated by the protagonist Jane Eyre in a friendly,
confessional tone. In the novel we follow the protagonist’s development
from childhood to becoming a young woman. An orphan, forced to battle
a cruel guardian, a patriarchal society and a rigid social order.
• During the Victorian era the ideal woman's life revolved
around the domestic sphere of her family and the home.
Middle class women were brought up to “be pure and
innocent, tender, submissive and obedient” to fit the glorified
“Angel in the House”, the Madonna-image of the time. A
woman had no rights of her own and; she was expected to
marry and become the servant of her husband. Few
professions other than that of a governess were open to
educated women of the time who needed a means to support
themselves. Higher education was considered wasted on
women because they were considered mentally inferior to
men and moreover, work was believed to make them ill. The
education of women consisted of learning to sing, dance, and
play the piano, to draw, read, write, some arithmetic and
French and to do embroidery. Girls were basically educated
to be on display as ornaments.
• Women were not expected to express opinions of their
own outside a very limited range of subjects, and
certainly not be on a quest for own identity and aim to
become independent such as the protagonist in Charlotte
Bronte's Jane Eyre. When Charlotte Brontë published
Jane Eyre she used a pseudonym that did not reveal the
gender of the author, the name she used was Currer Bell,
a name not distinctly masculine and yet not feminine.
The reviews were positive and the novel became a
bestseller. There was much speculation on who was
behind the name Currer Bell and some more negative
reviews started coming when it became known that there
was a female author behind the name. To some critics it
was inappropriate for a female writer to write such a
passionate novel.
 Charlotte Brontё’s Jane Eyre: A Literary Analysis

• The novel opens with ten-year-old Jane living in the home of her aunt Mrs.
Reed, where she is abused by her aunt and by her cousins. While living at
Gateshead Hall she is constantly reminded that she is not part of the Reed
family. She is excluded from the activities of Mrs. Reed and her children even
though Mrs. Reed had promised her husband, Jane’s uncle, on his deathbed,
to bring Jane up as one of her own children. According to Mrs. Reed, Jane was
to be excluded until she “was endeavoring in good earnest to acquire a more
sociable and childlike disposition, a more attractive and sprightly manner –
something lighter, franker, more natural”. Jane does not fit the ideal picture
of a small girl at the time, she has a strong sense of justice and she questions
too much; traits not suitable in a little Victorian girl who was supposed to be a
pretty ornament. Jane is not a pretty little girl and well aware of it, she is as
her name suggests “invisible as air, the heir to nothing, secretly choking with
ire”. Even though Jane is like air, invisible on the outside she is like fire on the
inside which will be the fuel for her quest for identity and independence.
• After defending herself against John Reed’s
bullying, she is sent to Lowood School, a
boarding school for orphaned girls. At Lowood,
she falls into the hands of the hypocritical
clergyman Brocklehurst who starves his charges
and singles Jane out to be neglected by the other
girls. She is befriended by Helen Burns, a
fellow student who dies in a typhoid epidemic
that sweeps through the school . She also finds
help and kindness from Miss Temple who
refuses the brutality. Eventually, Jane becomes a
teacher in the school.
• When she reaches the age of eighteen, she
advertises her services and is hired as a
governess at Thornfield Hall. At Thornfield,
she supervises the education of Adele, the
ward of the master of the house, Edward
Rochester. At the beginning, Rochester is a
hard and bitter man but he is impressed by
Jane’s intelligence and independent spirit. One
night, Bertha escapes from her attic room and
sets fire to Rochester’s bed but Jane saves his
life.
• “I felt at times as if he • Shortly after Jane learns who
the Master of Thornfield is and
were my relation rather gets to know him she becomes
than my master [..] I intrigued and affected by him,
ceased to pine for she feels as they have a
kindred: my thin mental connection. Rochester
adds interest to Jane’s life with
crescent-destiny seemed the intellectual stimulus of
to enlarge; the blanks of their evening conferences,
existence were filled up; which she was lacking before
my bodily health he entered the scene. Jane
and Rochester can be
improved; I gathered considered quite equal
flesh and strength”. intellectually, however to
begin with many inequalities
exist. Jane’s relationship with
Rochester is complicated with
a power imbalance.
• Despite the widespread belief that he will marry selfish Blanche
Ingram, he proposes to Jane who joyfully accepts and plans are
made for the wedding. As Jane and Rochester stand at the altar,
Bertha’s brother, Richard Mason rushes into the church and
reveals the existence of his wife. The principals visit Bertha in
her attic and see a madwoman. Rochester suggests to Jane that
they go away and live as husband and wife where no one knows
them, but Jane refuses and leaves Thornfield.
• Jane does not know where she will go and she loses her suitcase
while traveling and nearly starves to death. She travels as far as
she can to be far away from Rochester till she arrives at the
doorstep of St. John Rivers and his sisters. They take care of her
till she regains her health then she earns her a living by teaching
in a local school. She receives an unexpected inheritance from
her uncle John Eyre, and in the process, she discovers that she is
related to the Rivers family on her father’s side. Jane shares the
money with her cousins.
• Suddenly, St. John proposes to Jane, asking her
to accompany him on his coming missionary
mission. She is on the verge of accepting when
she hears the voice of Rochester calling to her,
after which she leaves to seek him. Upon
returning to Thornfield, she finds the Thornfield
mansion in ruins as a result of a fire set by
Bertha. Rochester, while seeking to save his
insane wife, is injured and blinded by the fire,
and she plunges to her death from the burning
roof. Jane finds Rochester and they are finally
married. He regains his sight, and they have a
child as the story ends.
 Major Characters
• Jane Eyre: The narrator and protagonist. Jane is an orphan girl
who lives until the age of ten with her cruel uncle widow Mrs.
Reed in Gateshead. Jane was abused physically and emotionally
by the inhabitants of the house especially her cousins. Charlotte
described her heroine as plain, poor, little and rebellious, she is
not a beautiful as she wishes to be. One day she asserts to her
sister Emily that “I will show you a heroine as plain and small
as myself”, thus, she contrasts with other female characters in
the novel like Georgiana and Blanch Ingram. Jane spends eight
years at Lowood, a girl boarding school where she is neglected
and called liar by Mr.Brocklehurst . On the other hand, she
meets her best friend Helen Burns and Miss Temple.
• From Lowood to Thornfield, Jane is employed
as a governess to Mr. Rochester’s ward Adele.
At first time Jane falls in love with Mr.
Rochester who admires her because of her
cleverness and her intellect. In the novel, Jane
meets several of individuals who threaten her
autonomy but she succeeds at asserting herself
and maintains her principles of justice, human
dignity, and morality.
 Jane and Rochester
• Mr. Rochester rides in to Jane's life as a fairy tale dark prince resembling a
Byronic hero. He makes a quite dramatic entrance in the novel. "It was
exactly one form of Bessie's Gytrash – a lion-like creature with long hair
and a huge head: it passed me however, quietly enough, not staying to look
up, with strange pretercanine eyes, in my face, as I half expected it would:
The horse followed, - a tall steed, and on its back a rider”. Rochester
appears the very essence of patriarchal energy.
• The relationship between Jane and Rochester is unequal on many points;
he is twenty years older than her, much more experienced, he is from a
higher social group, he is rich and she is poor and he is her master,
inequalities that were a major barrier at the time. Due to their master
employee relationship she only can talk to him when he calls for her and
cannot seek his company whenever she wishes. During their evening
conferences Jane shows strength by standing up to Rochester: “I don't
think, sir that you have a right to command me, merely because you are
older than I, or because you have seen more of the world than I have;
your claim to superiority depends on the use you have made of your time
and experience”.
• Rochester is however not as strong as a Byronic hero
would be and shows immediate weakness by hurting
himself when his horse takes a fall, thus needing the
help of Jane. Further, he will show more signs of
weakness in regard to his hidden mad wife. Shortly
after Jane learns who the Master of Thornfield is and
gets to know him she becomes intrigued and
affected by him, she feels as they have a mental
connection. “I felt at times as if he were my relation
rather than my master [..] I ceased to pine for
kindred: my thin crescent-destiny seemed to enlarge;
the blanks of existence were filled up; my bodily
health improved; I gathered flesh and strength”.
• Rochester adds interest to Jane's life with the intellectual
stimulus of their evening conferences, which she was
lacking before he entered the scene. Jane and Rochester
can be considered quite equal intellectually, however to
begin with many inequalities exist. Jane's relationship
with Rochester is complicated with a power imbalance.
Rochester tests Jane by spreading a rumour that he will
marry Blanche Ingram causing Jane to feel insecure in
regards to her looks. Blanche is a beautiful woman and
Jane is aware of how the society and men rate women
regarding how beautiful they are; beautiful women have
a higher value than unattractive women. Beauty in a
woman is regarded more important than intellect,
because a woman was expected to be an ornament
without much opinion.
• When Rochester intends to marry Jane even though
he already has a wife and is not able to enter another
legally binding marriage it is a way of trying to
exploit her. During the wedding preparations Jane
realizes the great social difference and how she is to
be financially dependent on Rochester; Rochester
reminded her of a “sultan”, who “bestow on a slave
his gold and gems” . When the marriage is stopped
Jane turns down a comfortable life as Rochester's
mistress because even though she loves him and
wants to be with him she will be dependent and in a
sense imprisoned as a slave. To Jane independence is
very important and she will not sacrifice her integrity
and dignity.
 Marsh End
• Jane finds her relatives and finally belongs to a family. After
running away from Thornfield, Jane is homeless and without any
possessions, she wanders lonely, freezing and hungry. At Marsh
End, some of her wishes come true; she finally belongs to a
family, she is intellectually stimulated by studying together with
her cousins Diana and Mary, and her dream of starting a small
school comes true with the help of her cousin St. John Rivers,
who seeks her company more frequently and to begin with seems
to offer a viable alternative to the life offered by Rochester. St.
John offers Jane to become his wife and helper as a missionary in
India, however tempted Jane to accept the proposal, she realizes
that such a loveless union will shorten her life.
 St. John
• St. John is the opposite of • “I could no longer talk or laugh
Rochester in many ways. He is freely when he was by, because
cold and without passion, and tiresomely importunate instinct
he aims to suppress Jane‟s reminded me that vivacity (at
personality and independence. least in me) was distasteful to
him”. Women at the time were
brought up and conditioned that
• Jane's eagerness to please a
men were powerful and women
product of that she has never
followers that suppressed their
before felt true belonging
own identity. “I felt his
could be one of the reasons influence in my marrow – his
why she has such difficulties to hold on my limbs”.
fend herself from St. John’s
increasing power over her.
• Jane agrees to follow him to India to become a missionary
as his helper but not his wife as she feels that he does not
love her, she feels as he rather hates her and marrying send
her to a premature death. St. John is using arguments such
as “God and nature intended you as a missionary's wife”.
His arguments of duty and service called by God are
difficult to object to for Jane, conditioned by her years at
Lowood where religion had an important role to educate
the girls to obey patriarchal leaders. While on the verge to
give in to St. John's persistence, Jane is saved by
Rochester's call for her. When Jane reunites with Rochester
she is independent and the power balance between them
have shifted. During her stay at Marsh End Jane finds out
that she has inherited a large sum of money after her uncle
in Madeira.
• When Jane reunites with Rochester she is
financially independent and Bertha is dead.
The fact that she now has relatives is another
factor that makes her more equal because she
is no longer alone in the world. Rochester hurt
himself in the fire while trying to rescue
Bertha and became blind and he now needs
Jane to be his eyes and care for him. Jane and
Rochester finally enter a marriage of two
equals which was unheard of at the time.
• In the end Jane found her place in life: “No woman
was ever nearer to her mate than I am […] To be
together is for us to be at once as free as in solitude, as
gay as in company”. Jane found the love and kinship
she longed for without sacrificing her own identity and
independence. To free herself in the patriarchal society
Jane meets and overcomes: oppression by the Reed
family and Mr. Brocklehurst, starvation at Lowood and
during her wandering before reaching Marsh End,
madness in the Red Room and at Thornfield and
coldness by being lonely and by the way St. John
treated her. Even though she longs for love she does
not let Rochester or St. John exploit her and in the end
she finds the equal relationship she longed for.
 Jane Austen
• Jane Austen was born at Steventon on December 16, 1775, the youngest
of seven children. She received her education—scanty enough, by
modern standards—at home. Besides the usual elementary subjects, she
learned French and some Italian, sang a little, and became an expert
needle-woman. Her reading extended little beyond the literature of the
eighteenth century, and within that period she seems to have cared most
for the novels of Richardson and Miss Burney, and the poems of Cowper
and Crabbe. Dr. Johnson, too, she admired, and later was delighted with
both the poetry and prose of Scott. The first twenty-five years of her life
she spent at Steventon; in 1801 she moved with her family to Bath, then
a great center of fashion; after the death of her father in 1805, she lived
with her mother and sister, first at Southampton and then at Chawton;
finally she took lodgings at Winchester to be near a doctor, and there she
died on July 18, 1817, and was buried in the cathedral.
• “Pride and Prejudice”
• VOLUME I CHAPTER 1-6 MEETING THE BENNETS AND THEIR NEIGHBORS
The narrator introduces the Bennet family and Mrs. Bennet’s interest in
their new neighbor, Mr. Bingley, “a single man of large fortune,” who has
just rented Netherfield Park. After several dinners and visits, it is obvious
that Bingley is attentive to Jane. However, his friend Darcy snubs the
group, particularly Elizabeth, and is judged critically by the locals. The two
men are contrasted—their personalities as well as their circumstances—
as are Jane and Elizabeth and their judgments. Visiting their neighbors
the Lucas’s, Mrs. Bennet and the girls have a chance to discuss Bingley
and Darcy at length. Jane withholds her feelings, while Charlotte Lucas
has a more pragmatic view of marriage. Readers learn that Darcy has
taken an interest, against his will, in Elizabeth.
• CHAPTER 7-12 VISIT TO NETHERFIELD Jane is invited to Netherfield by
Bingley’s sisters, and, caught in the rain on her way, comes down with a
bad cold. Elizabeth goes to check on her and is invited to stay as well. She
is able to observe the others’ true colors without Jane’s presence. Mrs.
Bennet and Lydia come to Netherfield to check on Jane, and Elizabeth is
caught between embarrassment for her mother and family loyalty.
Elizabeth and Darcy engage in a battle of wits. When Jane’s health
• VOLUME II CHAPTER 1-3 CHANGING IMPRESSIONS A letter from Miss Bingley to Jane, which
suggests that Charles Bingley is courting Miss Darcy, ends her hopes that he will return.
Meanwhile Collins makes preparations for his marriage, and the Gardiners, Mrs. Bennet’s
brother and his wife, invite Jane for a visit to London. She accepts with some hope perhaps
of seeing Bingley. Jane’s letters to Elizabeth indicate she now sees Miss Bingley for what she
is. Elizabeth is no longer involved with Wickham.
• CHAPTER 4-14 ELIZABETH AND THE GARDINERS VISIT THE COLLINS Elizabeth visits her aunt
and uncle, traveling with them to visit Charlotte and Mr. Collins at their home in Hansford.
They find Collins little changed, but Charlotte quite content. They are invited to Rosings,
where they get a clear view of the imperial Lady Catherine and her mousy daughter. During
their stay, Darcy arrives with his cousin Col. Fitzwilliam. Elizabeth and Darcy continue their
verbal jousting. Elizabeth encounters Darcy often—at Rosings and on her walks. She learns
from Fitzwilliams Darcy’s role in separating Bingley and Jane. Darcy catches Elizabeth off
guard with his proposal of marriage, an offer she turns down cold. Darcy later approaches
her and gives her a letter explaining his behavior toward Wickham, Jane, and Bingley. She
re-reads the letter until she finally sees the truth and her feelings begin to waver.
• CHAPTER 15-19 JANE AND ELIZABETH RETURN HOME Jane and Elizabeth return home
where they find Lydia and Kitty still infatuated by the soldiers who will soon be leaving for
Brighton. Elizabeth reveals to Jane secrets of Darcy’s proposal and Wickham’s true character
but withholds the truth about Bingley’s feelings. Lydia receives an invitation to visit Brighton
with the Forsters, leaving Kitty dejected, Elizabeth worried, and Mrs. Bennet ecstatic.
Elizabeth learns that a proposed trip to the Lake Country is cancelled, but instead she and
her aunt and uncle will visit Derbyshire— and particularly Lambton, Mrs. Gardiner’s
girlhood home
• VOLUME III CHAPTER 1-3 VISIT TO PEMBERLEY When the Gardiners wish to view
Pemberley House, Elizabeth goes along reluctantly after reassurances that Darcy is
away from home. However, he surprises them by an early return. She is
embarrassed but surprised by his civility and his wish that she meet his sister. He
calls on Elizabeth and the Gardiners with his sister and Bingley, inviting them to
dinner. The Gardiners take note of Darcy’s behavior toward Elizabeth.
• CHAPTER 4-11 LYDIA’S ELOPEMENT Elizabeth receives letters revealing Lydia’s
elopement with Wickham and the party immediately returns to Longbourn. Here
they learn that the two have not married. Mrs. Bennet takes to her bed, and their
father joins Gardiner to search for the couple. Meanwhile, the rest of the family
waits for mail. Mr. Bennet returns, unsuccessful and full of self-reproach. Gardiner
notifies the family that the couple has been found. Upon receiving a modest
monetary settlement, Wickham agrees to marry Lydia. Bennet suspects he is
indebted to his brother-in-law for the settlement and for arranging Wickham’s
transfer to the North. After the ceremony, the new couple is allowed to visit
Longbourn, where Lydia and Wickham are completely shameless. Mrs. Bennet is
thrilled to have a married daughter.
• CHAPTER 12-19 MARRIAGE PROPOSALS Bingley and Darcy return to Netherfield
and call on the Bennets. Bingley displays genuine affection to Jane and asks for her
hand. Darcy remains distant until his aunt, Lady Catherine, visits the Bennets and
demands that Elizabeth disavow any connection between her and Darcy.
Elizabeth’s refusal gives Darcy hope and he soon proposes. His proposal surprises
her family, but the marriage takes place with the family’s blessings.
 Analysis
• Shortly after arriving alone, Bingley brings to Netherfield his two sisters,
Miss Bingley and Mrs. Hurst; his brother-in-law, Mr. Hurst; and his friend,
Mr. Darcy, who also happens to be wealthy and unmarried. Not wanting
to miss a favorable introduction to their new neighbors, Mrs. Bennet
pleads with Mr. Bennet to call on Bingley so that she can begin
introducing her daughters to him.
• Initially Mr. Bennet refuses to play any part in matching any one of his
daughters with Bingley. He tells his wife that if she is so intent on
meeting the newcomers at Netherfield, she must visit Bingley herself.
However, prudent manners forbade a woman to call on a strange man,
making Mrs. Bennet powerless to begin the process which she hopes will
lead to a marriage between one of her daughters and Bingley. Following
the pronouncement that Mr. Bennet refuses to call on Bingley, Mrs.
Bennet despairs that her daughters will never be able to meet with the
eligible bachelor. Yet Mr. Bennet does call on Bingley, beginning the
family's acquaintance with him. He takes ironic pleasure in surprising
Mrs. Bennet with the news after letting her believe that he would not
call on him.
• The Bennet girls meet the Netherfield party for the first time at a small
ball. Bingley proves to be personable and polite to the local folk, making
him instantly well-liked. Darcy, while handsome and noble looking,
appears proud and indifferent to participating in the activities of the
evening or even socializing with the other guests. The eldest daughter,
Jane, is instantly drawn to Bingley, and he seems equally attracted to
her. Jane is portrayed as gentle, unselfish, and very mannerly. Elizabeth
is also well mannered, but possess a very sharp wit and refuses to be
intimidated by anyone.
• Inclined to be protective of Jane and her family, she nonetheless
recognizes the faults of her parents and other sisters. At the assembly,
because of a shortage of men who dance, Elizabeth is left sitting. She
overhears Bingley encouraging Darcy to dance, suggesting that he ask
Elizabeth. Darcy curtly replies that "she is tolerable; but not handsome
enough to tempt me; and I am in no humour at present to give
consequence to young ladies who are slighted by other men." Elizabeth,
though insulted, refuses to give Darcy's comment any weight, instead
telling the story to all her friends and ridiculing his pretentious behavior.
• Jane and Bingley's relationship continues to deepen
during family visits, balls, and dinners. His sisters
pretend to like Jane, but are appalled by her
mother's vulgarities, her younger sisters' wild, loose
manners, and their lower economic position among
the landed gentry. They find great amusement in
making fun of the Bennets behind Jane's back. A
particular point of hilarity stems from the way Kitty
and Lydia chase after the young military officers
stationed locally.
• Pride and Prejudice is essentially the story of how
Elizabeth (and her true love, Darcy) overcome all
obstacles—including their own personal failings—to
find romantic happiness.
 Elizabeth Bennet
• Elizabeth Bennet, the second daughter in the Bennet family, and the most
intelligent and quick-witted, Elizabeth is the protagonist of Pride and Prejudice
and one of the most well-known female characters in English literature. Her
admirable qualities are numerous—she is lovely, clever, and, in a novel defined
by dialogue, she converses as brilliantly as anyone. Her honesty, virtue, and
lively wit enable her to rise above the nonsense and bad behavior that
pervade her class-bound and often spiteful society. Nevertheless, her sharp
tongue and tendency to make hasty judgments often lead her astray.
• Elizabeth must not only cope with a hopeless mother, a distant father, two
badly behaved younger siblings, and several snobbish, antagonizing females,
she must also overcome her own mistaken impressions of Darcy, which
initially lead her to reject his proposals of marriage. Her charms are sufficient
to keep him interested, fortunately, while she navigates familial and social
turmoil. As she gradually comes to recognize the nobility of Darcy’s character,
she realizes the error of her initial prejudice against him.
 Fitzwilliam Darcy
• Fitzwilliam Darcy, the son of a wealthy, well-established family and the
master of the great estate of Pemberley, Darcy is Elizabeth’s male
counterpart. The narrator relates Elizabeth’s point of view of events more
often than Darcy’s, so Elizabeth often seems a more sympathetic figure.
• Darcy is her ideal match. Intelligent and forthright, he too has a tendency
to judge too hastily and harshly, and his high birth and wealth make him
overly proud and overly conscious of his social status. Indeed, his
haughtiness makes him initially bungle his courtship. When he proposes
to her, for instance, he dwells more on how unsuitable a match she is
than on her charms, beauty, or anything else complimentary. Her
rejection of his advances builds a kind of humility in him. Darcy
demonstrates his continued devotion to Elizabeth, in spite of his distaste
for her low connections, when he rescues Lydia and the entire Bennet
family from disgrace, and when he goes against the wishes of his haughty
aunt, Lady Catherine de Bourgh, by continuing to pursue Elizabeth. Darcy
proves himself worthy of Elizabeth, and she ends up repenting her earlier,
overly harsh judgment of him.