Thursday, July 28, 2011
Jane Eyre---Discussion Question #1
How is Jane Eyre a bildungsroman (which is a novel that tells the story of a child’s maturation and focuses on the emotions and experiences that accompany and incite his or her growth to adulthood)? What are some of the specific elements from the novel that show Jane Eyre's character coming of age?
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I think a very specific part of the novel that shows Jane maturing and coming of age is when Jane decides to leave Thornfield. Jane is put into a decision where she has to chose her first real love or go with her values and morals. How could Jane stay with a man who is still married but how could she just pick up and leave? I think Jane leaving and risking it all including begging for food and pverty until taken in by St. John. That was a crucial decision for her. ane has really never felt love and her resisitng him and listening to herself shows a great sign of maturity.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Shannon. In the beginning, I saw Jane as a very little girl, who has not yet mastered the way of human survival in the rude, corrupt world she lived in. I almost felt sorry for her, not in a "they're being so mean" kind of way, but in a "if you grew up, you'd be able to handle it" way. To be honest, at the beginning of the book, while the imagery was very nice, the story's plot made me very angry. I just wanted to yell at her, and tell her how to act. But I started to feel different when she decided to leave Thornfeild. It takes a lot to put the well being of yourself in front of the person you truly love, and I think that the choice was very mature of her. We always want to stay with the person we love, but as selfish as it is, when they are no longer of a service to us, is it healthy to stay?
ReplyDeleteIt can be determined relatively easily that it is a bildungsroman simply from the fact that it is told from the point of view from an individual for a number of years. This narrator documents her experiences (Like leaving Thornfield) and emotions toward them in a very forward manner. I think the biggest thing that shows her "aging" is her change as a person based on the influences from people or events in her life (like her friend Helen).
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Jane Eyre is no doubt a bildungsroman novel. They story is focused completely on Jane and her coming of age. It is told in sequence of everything that has happened to her and all the characters that effect her life. There is not one character thrown in randomly. Anyone mentioned by charlotte Bronte in the novel were characters that directly interacted with jane and her years of growing. i believe some specific elements of the novel that show Jane; coming of age are that of her religious vies. The older she got the more strength she gained in her faith and the more respect she had for herself as a woman. She did not allow herself to be trampled on as a woman like she did as a child with Mrs. Reed and at the school. She defends what she believes in. HEr character and beliefs drastically changed from the age of 10 to 18 and she definatley matured.
ReplyDeleteJane is a bildunsroman because it tells how she was oppressed by other people her whole life and how eventually she found the courage to take hold of her life. The elements used in the story show how mature she becomes when she confronts her abusive aunt how she dosen't take revenge but, notices how time served as her own avenger. It also led up to her becoming independent because she didn't marry Rochester and decided to be completely independent of herself.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree that Jane's departure of Thornfield represented the elements of a bildungsroman. However, I remember the scene when Jane stands up for herself against Mrs. Reed is when I accounted her as being quite the intelligent and capable young girl. This scene is the first example of Jane standing up against injustice and prejudices towards less fortunate citizens. She grows up so much after she scolds her cruel and wealthy aunt.
ReplyDeleteI also agree that Jane's departure from Thornfield represents the elements of a bildungsroman. Also the scene with Mrs. Reed does too. I think another one of these scenes would be when she decides to advertise for a position outside of the school she had been at for several years. This is the first point in her life where she really branches out on her own without the help of other people.
ReplyDeleteJane Eyre is a perfect example of a coming of age story. It involves a child maturing into a woman. It takes you on a journey through all of the personal struggles that take you from being a child to an adult. In Jane's case, she had a very hard childhood. Her parents died when she was very young, so her loving uncle adopted her, however, shortly after that he too passed away. Jane was left with her aunt reed who basically hated her for no reason. Through all of this, jane stayed true to herself and stayed strong, and she eventually fell in love and married that man of her dreams. This story was an inspirational one full of wonderful life lessons and stories of hope.
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