The Physical and Emotional Journeys of Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre

At Lowood, a school which Jane is sent away to, she is again given the

     Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre is a coming-of-age story about an unconventional woman's development within a society of strict rules and expectations. At pivotal moments in Jane's life, she makes choices which are influenced by her emotions and/or her reason. Through the results of those choices, Jane learns to balance passion and practicality to achieve true happiness.

Jane's childhood trauma results as a product of her times at Gateshed and Lowood. There were a series of irreversible problems that Jane had to deal with. She was born an orphan into a house devoid of love or respect for her. It is not overly emotionally healthy to live with the "ostracism by the Reed family and the unrelenting anxiety over the chidings of the servants, the violence of John Reed, and the punishments and berating of Mrs. Reed." (Ashe 10) Evidently, Jane had this lifestyle since she was little. This can be inferred from Mrs. Reeds loving statement "I hated it the first time I set my eyes on it-a sickly, whining, pining thing" (7)

The character Jane starts off as an orphaned young girl. Jane was born into the poor class, she lives with her aunt and cousins that torture her. Jane is then sent away to a school called Lowood where she is taught how to become a woman. Jane remains as a student at Lowood until she is sixteen years old. When Jane reaches the age of Eighteen she then moves up to the working class and becomes a teacher at Lowood. Jane works as a teacher for a good amount of time and teach girls that were just like her. When a disease outbreaks, everything at Lowood falls apart. When an Mrs. Temple, a teacher who has helped Jane, leaves lowood to get married Jane realizes that she should leave and search for a new job. When Jane come across a job at a place called Thornfield she leaves Lowood for good and sets off to her new journey.

The next chapter of Jane’s life starts at Lowood School, her main foundation. She meets some very important people such as Miss Temple and Helen Burns who have a great impact on her success. Jane becomes better educated: book smart and world smart. She takes courses in French, drawing, history, literature, and much more. Jane is very eager and excited to learn. She discusses her academic achievements, “I toiled hard, and my success was proportionate to my efforts; my memory, not naturally tenacious, improved with practice; exercise sharpened my wits; in a few weeks I was promoted to a high class; in less than two months I was allowed to commence French and drawing” (Charlotte Brontë 107). Eventually, Jane graduates at the top of her class. This achievement raises Jane’s self esteem because in the eyes of her peers, she has finally done something right and id being properly honored for it. Helen’s impact in Jane’s live allows for Jane to become a better person overall. Helen helps Jane become a better person overall, by teaching worldly and Godly matter, and

Just as significant as Mrs. Reed, in the influence of Jane, was Helen Burns, Jane’s best friend at Lowood. Helen left only a positive impact on Jane in the short time that they were together and taught her how to forgive her enemies. An example of this is when Helen tells Jane, “‘Would you not be happier if you tried to forget her severity, together with the passionate emotions it excited?’” (71). In saying this, Helen shows Jane how childish it is to hold a grudge against Mrs. Reed when she was free of her. She was also trying to help Jane be rid of any resentment she might have towards her childhood so that in the future she could be free to achieve greatness without any regret. Additionally, Helen affected Jane positively by telling her “Hush Jane, you think too much about the love of human beings [...] why, then should we ever sink overwhelmed with distress, when life is so soon over,’” (66). In saying this Helen had taught Jane not to worry about what other people think of her. Likewise, Helen is also

The only time that a member of the Reed family speaks to Jane is when they are belittling her, hoping to further assert their elite dominance over the lower class. In one particular quarrel, John Reed, the oppressive “Roman emperor” and “slave driver,” throws a book at Jane’s head to physically proclaim his dominance over her, to which Jane responds by verbally firing back at his elitist oppression. (Brontë 13) The battle between the social classes concludes with Jane being banished to the horrifying red-room as punishment for attempting to overthrow the elite power, John Reed, even though John was the clear instigator of the scuffle. Jane is later condemned by the house servants for her attempt to overthrow her “young master.” Jane and John are both children, but due to the wealth and status of his parents, John is allowed to rule over Jane, making Jane, as the Gateshead servants would describe, “‘less than a servant’” because she does nothing for her keep. (Brontë 15) Jane continuously faces this maltreatment at Gateshead until an outburst directed towards Mrs. Reed causes her to be sent away to Lowood school, a place where Mrs. Reed hopes Jane will perhaps be taught to conform to the societal norm of how a young girl like Jane should act in

Following this dramatic scene, there are many situations in which her individualism can again be sensed. During her stay at Lowood Jane is emotionally subdued and her personality is in many ways suppressed. It is not until after Miss Temple, the person that seemed to shine light on the school, leaves that Jane realizes the restrictions that she is under. It is at his point that she has the sudden urge to leave the confinements of the school, seek a job as a governess, and experience the “varied fields of hopes and fears,

Even though Lowood Institute is Jane’s first experience with the outside world and is Jane’s first time making friends, she never cherished them nor brought them close to her heart. “True, reader; and I knew and felt this: and though I am a defective being, with many faults and few redeeming points, yet I never tired of Helen Burns; nor ever ceased to cherish for her a sentiment of attachment, as strong, tender, and respectful as any that ever animated my heart (112)” Helen being the first that Jane opened up her brutal past to did not think of her as a cherished friend or more like a best friend. In this quote Jane said that even though Helen Burns considered me (Jane) as a friend. Jane never felt the connection between her or thought she had a right to adore and love Helen Burns. Jane never felt a need to love Helen just like a how children love their plush toys and dolls. Lowood Institute is a strict school that will even punish minor mistakes of little girls, but being humiliated and shunned in front of everyone at Lowood made Jane’s education

Jane Eyre is a coming of age story following a young woman and her journey of self-growth. At the start of the novel Jane is living with her aunt and three cousins. They continuously abuse her, treating her like a stranger rather than a family member. At the age of ten Jane leaves her aunt's house and attends boarding school. It is at this school where she learns lessons of forgiveness and hope from a meek young woman named Helen Burns. Subsequently studying and teaching at the school for eight years Jane decides to become a governess at the mysterious Thornfield mansion. She falls in love with the owner of Thornfield and the two make plans to marry. Nonetheless on the day of there wedding Jane discovers that Mr. Rochester is already married and that he keeps his insane wife Bertha trapped away in the attic of Thornfield. Devastated by this information, Jane flees Thornfield and nearly dies from cold and starvation. Soon after she is taken in by the Rivers, two sisters and one brother. The passing of Jane's uncle reveals that she and the Rivers are cousins. It is also revealed that this uncle has left Jane all his fortune. This in turn leaves Jane extremely wealthy. Her cousin St. John Rivers ask Jane for his hand in marriage. However Jane comes to the conclusion that she still loves Mr. Rochester. After declining St. John's proposal Jane journeys back to Thornfield. When she arrives at Thornfield Jane discovers the mysterious mansion in burnt ruins. It is revealed that the

When the story begins, Jane is ten years old and lives with her aunt at Gateshead. She was constantly terrorized by her relatives. In her description of her life at Gateshead, she said, “John Reed was a schoolboy of fourteen years old, four years older than me, as I was but ten” (Brontë 12). His superiority in both age and size led him to constantly harass Jane while they lived together. Eventually, Mrs. Reed decided to send Jane to Lowood school where she would spend the rest of her youth. After being there for a bit of time, she stated,

Lowood also teaches Jane a great deal by giving her one of the greatest benefits to her life: a good education. Jane spends eight years of her life at Lowood where she, "had the means of an excellent education placed within my reach; a fondness for some of my studies, and a desire to excel in all" (pg. 115). Her education means more to her than her simple appearance. She had the option of just sliding by in her studies and leaving Lowood as soon as possible. Instead, she remains in a school

and the woods, which twelve hours since waved leafy and fragrant as groves between the tropics, now spread, waste, wild, and white as pine-forests in wintry Norway. My hopes were all dead." After leaving Thornfield and arriving at the Moore House, St. John, Jane's cousin, is described as an opposite to Rochester. He is described as "hard and cold" and his face was "still and pale as a white stone." St. John was frigid and stiff and his influence put Jane "under a freezing spell." After his marriage proposal Jane states that "as his curate, his comrade, all would be right ... But as his wife - at his side always checked - forced to keep the fire of my nature continually low, to compel it to burn inwardly and never utter a cry, though the imprisoned flame consumed vital after vital - this would be unendurable." Charlotte Bronte also uses "ice" to describe barren landscapes and seascapes. She uses it to represent loneliness and emotional desolation, even death. Gateshead would be an example of Jane's physical and spiritual isolation. Also at Lowood she makes comments of freezing temperatures, for example the frozen pitchers of water each morning. This all represents Jane in a state of exile (Sparkotes).

When Jane is sent to Lowood (an all girl's school), she finds the first true love shown by an adult. Miss Temple, the school's superintendent) treats all of the girls with extreme kindness and gentleness. When the girl's breakfast is burned, she arranges for them to have the luxury of white bread and cheese to make up for it. Also, even while some of the other teachers like Miss Scatcherd and even the school's headmaster, Mr. Brocklehurst, are mean to the girls, she is always there for them with a hug and a smile. When Helen falls deathly ill, Jane sees how motherly and unfaltering Miss Temple is towards Helen. Another character who shows Jane love at Lowood is Helen herself. She is the first person Jane's age who is nice to her. Jane grew up with the Reed children's spiteful actions and attitudes toward her and never experienced a peer's kindness until she met Helen.

Jane Eyre was born an orphan and raised under the hands of a heartless Aunt. Aunt Reed stressed to Jane that she was privileged to live so well without any