分析简爱人物__英文

A Self-respecting and Independent Female

——

An Analysis of

Jane Eyre

Abstract:

The

English

novelist

Charlotte

Bronte

is

famous

for

her

novel

Jane

Eyre

.

Jane

Eyre

—

the protagonist of the novel is a female who seeks for independence and true love. On the

basis of the collection and study of the documents which are related to the novel and given the

time background, this paper emphatically analyzes Jane Eyre

’

s character of pursuing equality and

independence.

Through

the

appreciation

of

Jane

Eyre

, we

can

improve

the

cognition

of

British

literature. And at the same time, the writer hopes the females in real life could follow Jane Eyre as

an example to look for their own dignity, equality and love bravely.

Key words:

Jane Eyre; self-respect; independence; equality

一位自尊而独立的女性

——

分析《简·爱》

摘

要：

英国小说家夏洛蒂·勃朗特以小说《简·爱》闻名于世，主人公 简·爱是一位

既向往独立又需要爱情的女性。在收集、研究与主题相关的资料的基础上， 结合时代背景，

本文着重分析研究简·爱追求独立，渴望平等的这一性格特征。通过对该 文学作品的赏析

,

可以提高我们对英国文学知识及其文化背景的 了解和认识，也希望现实生活中的女性以

简·爱为典范，勇敢地追求属于自己的尊严、平 等和爱情。

关键词：

简·爱；自尊；独立；平等

1. Introduction:

Everybody

has

his

own

dignity

and

maybe

all

the

people

believe

that

they

are

born

to

be

equal.

But

could

people

still

manage

to

keep

their

self-respect

and

courage

when

they

are

in

poverty

and

appalling

conditions?

I

think

no

one

could

accurately

answer

the

question

if

they

don

’

t

have

a

try.

But

I

want

to

say

that

perhaps

no

one

could

express

such

strong

beliefs

on

looking for independence, equality and true love as fully as Jane Eyre. In

Jane Eyre

, Charlotte

Bronte

portrays

one

woman's

desperate

struggle

to

realise

her

dream.

This

self- respecting

and

brave woman has become a model of countless women at the Victorian age, even in modern times.

From the novel, we should learn that all the people, especially women, have their right to pursuing

what they want. It is the time for women to take courage from asking to be given equal status with

men and for independence, dignity and love.

1.1 About Charlotte Bronte

The

author’s

name

is

Charlotte

Bronte

(1816-1855).

She

was

born

in

Yorkshire,

northern

England. Her father was a poor local Anglican priest. Her mother was a housewife.

Charlotte

had

30-year-old.

She

spent

nearly

a

year

to

write

a

novel

--

Teacher

.

Her

sister

Emily and Anne were to write a novel

Wuther Heights

and

Agnes Gray

. They sent the three novels

to the publishers together. Soon their publishers said,

Wuther Height

and

Agnes Gray

have been

accep

ted, but Charlotte’s

Teacher

will be returned.

It was a great blow to her. But she did not retreat, instead of beginning writing another novel.

This is

Jane Eyre

.

1.2 A summary of

Jane Eyre

Jane's father is a poor pastor. When she is still young, her parents both died of disease. Jane

Eyre was sent to Mrs. Reid’s family. Mr. Reid told his wife to take good care of Jane Eyre before

dying. But Jane Eyre in the family's status even was lower than the female. She never wanted to

stay in the home of Mrs. Reid. So Mrs. Reid put her into an orphanage, where a teacher called

Miss Tam Bern was very care about her. Jane stayed as a teacher for two years after graduation.

She could not stand the loneliness there. So she became a teacher by advertising. So she went to

the manor of Thornfield. There she fell in love with Edward Rochester, the owener of Thornfield.

Then they finally got married.

1.3 The writing background of

Jane Eyre

In Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte portrays one woman's desperate struggle to attain her identity

in the mist of temptation, isolation, and impossible odds. In its first publication, it outraged many

for its realistic portrayal of life during that time. Ultimately, the controversy of

Bronte’

s novel lied

in its realism, challenging the role of women, religion, and mortality in the Victorian society.

In essence, Bronte's novel became a direct assault on Victorian morality. Controversy based

in

its

realistic

exposure

of

thoughts

once

considered

improper

for

a

lady

of

the

19th

century.

Emotions

any

respectable

girl

would

repress.

Women

at

this

time were

not

to

feel

passion,

nor

were

they

considered

sexual

beings.

To

conceive

the

thought

of

women

expressing

rage

and

blatantly

retaliating

against

authority was

a

defiance

against

the

traditional

role

of

women.

It

challenged Victorian class structure in a strictly hierachal society.

2. An Analysis of the Protagonist

—

Jane Eyre

2.1 Jane

’

s character of pursuing dignity and equality

Jane

is

disadvantaged

in

many

ways

as

she

has

no

wealth,

family,

social

position

or

beauty. Jane does have intelligence though, and her disposition is such to make Rochester fall in

love with her. Here is seen resistance against class, as Rochester wishes to marry Jane in spite of

the disapproval that will come from his class, and Jane also resists this disapproval and will marry

him. However,

Jane

will

not

rebel

against

God

or

lose

her

self- respect

and

become

Rochester's

mistress when she finds out that he is already married. She expresses her strong belief on equality

in her words:

“

Do you think I can stay to become nothing to you? Do you think I am an automaton?-- a

machine without feelings? And can bear to have my morsel of bread snatched from my lips, and

my drop of living water dashed from my cup? Do you think, because I am poor, obscure, plain,

and little, I am soulless and heartless? You think wrong!-- I have as much soul as you,-- and full

as much heart! And if God had gifted me with some beauty and much wealth, I should have made

it

as

hard

for

you

to

leave

me,

as

it

is

now

for

me

to

leave

you.

I

am

not

talking

to

you

now

through the medium of custom, conventionalities, nor even of mortal flesh;-- it is my spirit that

addresses

your

spirit;

just

as

if

both

had

passed

through

the

grave,

and

we

stood

at

God's

feet,

equal,--

as we are!”

2.2 Jane

’

s character of independence

2.2.1 Showing independence through her actions

In the beginning of

Jane Eyre

, Jane struggles against Bessie, the nurse at Gateshead Hall, and

says,

“I resisted all the way: a new thing for me…

and, like any other rebel slave, I felt resolved,

in

my

desperation,

to

go

all

lengths

”

(Chapter

2).

This

sentence

foreshadows

what

will

be

an

important

theme

of

the

rest

of

the

book,

that

of

female

independence

or

rebelliousness.

Jane

is

here resisting her unfair punishment, but throughout the novel she expresses her opinions on the

state of women.

Tied to this theme is another of class and the

resistance of the terms of one’s

class.

Soon

after

Jane

is

settled

at

Lowood

Institution

she

finds

the

enjoyment

of

expanding

her

own mind and talents. She forgets the hardships of living at the school and focuses on the work of

her own hands. She is not willing to give this up when she is engaged to Rochester. She resists

becoming dependent on him and his money. She does not want to be like his mistresses, with their

fancy gowns and jewels. But even after she and Rochester are

married, she wants

to remain as

Adele’

s governess. She is not willing to give up her independence to Rochester, and tries to seek

her own fortune by writing to her uncle. In the end, when she does have her own money, she states,

“

I told you I am independent, sir, as well as rich:

I am my own mistress” (Chapter 37).

2.2.2 Showing independence through her thoughts

Jane not only shows the reader her beliefs on female independence through her actions, but

also through her thoughts. Jane desires to see more of the world and have more interaction with its

people. While she appreciates her simple life at Thornfield, she regrets that she does not have the

means to travel. She relates her feelings to all women, not just those of her class, saying:

“

Women are supposed to be very calm generally: but women feel just as men feel; they need

exercise for their faculties, and a field for their efforts as much as their brothers do; they suffer

from

too

rigid

a

restraint,

too

absolute

a

stagnation,

precisely

as

men

would

suffer;

and

it

is

narrow-minded

in

their

more

privileged

fellow-creatures

to

say

that

they

ought

to

confine

themselves to making puddings and knitting stockings, to playing on the piano and embroidering

bags”

(Chapter 12).

3. Conclusion

Jane

Eyre

shaped

an

image

of

a

woman

who

didn't

yield

to

mundane

pressure,

was

independent

and

positive.

In

the

novel,

Jane

Ey

re’s

love

story

with

Rochester,

vividly

demonstrated

that

the

fire- like

enthusiasm

and

absolute

sincerity

heart,

which

represented

revealing her concept of love. She boldly loved what she really loved. At the fictional end of the

novel, it said that Jane Eyre received a heritage and returned to the lonely and helpless Rochester.

It

shows

the

author’s

ideals—women’s

independence

and

equality

in

the

economic,

social

and

family and to the loyal love.

4. The Characters

Jane Eyre

Jane

Eyre

is

the

orphaned

protagonist

of

the

story.

When

the

novel

begins,

she

is

an

isolated,

powerless ten- year-old living with an aunt and cousins who dislike her. As the novel progresses,

she grows in strength. She distinguishes herself at Lowood School because of her hard work and