Jane Eyre Question 3

After I finished reading Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, I decided on the themes she used in the novel. The ones I came up with were relationships and social classes. As Jane was growing up, she was able to have a few good relationships along with a couple of bad ones. The loving relationships were with Helen Burns, Mrs. Temple, and Mr. Rochester. Jane met Helen and Mrs. Temple at Lowood, the school Jane was sent to. Helen was a young girl that was shy but sweet and became close friends with Jane. Mrs. Temple was Jane's kind teacher who treated her with respect and love. After leaving Lowood and moving to Thornfield, Jane met Mr. Rochester. At first he was very unwelcoming but once they started talking he soon started giving her his love. When Jane was little, Mrs. Reed was her aunt that took care of her. She was rude, unloving, and very mean to Jane. Mrs. Reed's son, John, was also disrespectful towards Jane by bullying her emotionally and physically. Social classes was a big topic in the 1800s meaning that people were separated by the way they live and how much money they make. And they are also separated by men and women. Jane was considered poor and was a lower class. Mr. Rochester comes from a wealthy family and is well known, which puts him into a higher class. I think Charlotte Bronte has a commendable understanding of human nature. Through the book, she shows us that people cannot always have what they want, but in the end everything will work out.

Brontë, Charlotte, Susan Ostrov. Weisser, and George Stade. Jane Eyre. New York: Barnes & Noble, 2003. Print.