Jane Eyre Sexism

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Charlotte Bronte published Jane Eyre in 1847, a novel that follows an orphaned Jane and her endeavors throughout the early years of her life. Bronte introduces specific social structure criticisms including sexism and feminism, independence, and orphan life regarding the time period in which the novel was written. Specific social criticisms discussed in Bronte’s work allow it to have stood the test of time, as high school students nationwide continue to read this fine work. Similarly, Lucy Maud Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables of 1908 parallels motifs discussed in Bronte’s Jane Eyre, such as sexism and feminism, independence, and orphan life. “By any standard, Lucy Maud Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables is a stunning success. The novel… has…show more content…
Bronte expresses Jane’s view of herself in the following: “I dressed myself with care: obliged to be plain—for I had no article of attire that was not made with extreme simplicity—I was still by nature solicitous, or careless of the impression I made… I sometimes regretted that I was not handsomer… I felt it was a misfortune that I was so little, so pale, and had features so irregular…” (Bronte 100). Jane expresses her insecurity with her body, and further on I the novel, this becomes more apparent with the introduction of Ms. Ingram, whom Mr. Rochester is infatuated with because of her striking features, unlike Jane’s. This passage clearly exemplifies the sexist views that men and society placed on women during this time era. As for Anne of Green Gables, Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert want a boy to do farm work rather than a girl, as seen in the following quotes, “We thought we’d get a boy. Matthew is getting up in his years… and you know how hard it’s got to be to get hired help” (Montgomery 7) and “Well, we’re not getting a girl… I’d never dream of taking a girl to bring up” (Montgomery 8). The “girly-girl” stereotype is implied between these two quotes, proving that Matthew and Marilla believe a boy will work the hardest to get the job done rather than a girl. As critic Julia McQuillan states the following “The tomboy figure has proved particularly rewarding for such…show more content…
Stream of consciousness plays a significant factor in novels as it reveals thoughts and feelings of the characters’. As in Jane Eyre, most of the stream of consciousness present is seen as Jane’s internal struggles and feelings, especially evident towards Mr. Rochester as apparent in the following: “Mr. Rochester was not to me what he had been; for he was not what I had thought of him. I would not ascribe vice to him; I would not say he had betrayed me…” (Bronte 301). Concerning vivid imagery, Bronte entices the reader with vibrant portrayals that complement the novel, such as the beginnings of most of the chapters in Jane Eyre, “A splendid Midsummer shone over England: skies so pure, suns so radiant as were then seen in long succession, seldom favour… the fields round Thornfield were green and shorn; the roads white and baked: the trees were in their dark prime; hedge and wood, full-leaved and deeply tinted, contrasted well with the sunny hue of the clear meadows between” (Bronte 251). As for Anne of Green Gables, Montgomery employs imagery not only to supplement the novel but also as a way to show Anne’s enticement towards nature and its beauty. “The sun was coming in at the window warm and bright; the orchard on the slope below the house was in a bridal flush of pinky-white bloom, hummed
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