Characters of Jane Eyre

I think a good place to start is with the characters. They, after all, are what the story is based around. A book is always dull if there are not sophisticated characters for the plot.


Let's start with the main one shall we? Jane Eyre. She is the protagonist of the novel. This poor girl has to deal with so much during the duration of the novel. Everything from abusive cousins, to unfortunate circumstances that keep her from being married to the man she loves. Tragic is it not? Jane is a plain, honest, and quite intelligent girl for this era. Repeatedly she comes into contact with characters that try to change that. However, every time she asserts her position and is true to her sense of justice, and she manages to make decisions that people in this generation would be afraid and unsure of making. Jane is a strong female character in a world where women being independent was an odd thing. I guess you could say she was the lighthouse for a stormy era.


Now what would a story be without the "knight in shining armour"? Well, in this case perhaps the "knight in greasy armour"...for he tends to slip out of it quite a few times and reveals to the reader his flaws. The one and only Edward Rochester. This man is Jane's employer; she is the governess for his daughter Adele. He is the owner of Thornfield manor, and he is the one with the big, dark, nasty secret that takes the plot for a ride of suspense. Though he acts cold, we find him to be passionate and caring. If only he really knew how. The climax of the novel also is caused by him: his marriage to Jane is cancelled because he already has a wife...a woman named Bertha who is insane and is locked in a room in the vast manor. She tends to try to kill the occupants in the manor as well.


Now time to discuss the woman who started it all with her cruel and demeaning actions towards dear Jane. Mrs. Reed, Jane's aunt. This woman is spiteful, and INCREDIBLY blind. She allowed the abuse of Jane from her son, John. However, her actions are some what justified because she's jealous that her husband, the late Mr. Reed, always loved Jane more then he did his own children. We know this because it is Mr. Reed that takes Jane in and, on his death bed, made his wife promise to care for Jane like she was her own child. Which, to say the least, Mrs. Reed did not like.


Finally, it's time for Helen Burns. Helen is Jane's friend when she first attends Lowood Institution. She helps Jane realize many things because Jane was still a child and had seen many things she did not understand. Jane admires her because she sees life positively even when things seem to be at their worst. This is a trait Jane attempts to learn from Helen. However, before she can get a chance to fully understand Helen's thinking, she falls ill. A scene that makes the novel that much more powerful is when Jane visits Helen and falls asleep with her. The next morning, she finds out that Helen had died during the night.


These characters are the ones I find really shape the novels events. They are the key characters, each one from a different stage in Jane's life that shape who Jane is at the end of the novel.