The very first chapter of the book made me so angry at the way she is treated by people who are supposed to be her family. Jane lives with her aunt and cousins who must be some of the most pathetic people. Jane’s only male cousin is the stereotypical fat teen bully who love to beat up those they deem lesser than them. Unfortunately, to her cousin, Jane is someone he deems as lesser. Currently Jane is only ten years old while her cousin is fourteen years old. Her cousin John literally throws the book that Jane was reading at her head. The book hits her in the head and she hits a sharp corner with her forehead. So, Jane kind of blacks out and just attacks John. When her aunt comes into the room, Jane is immediately blamed for everything. Jane gets treated like an animal by these people. She gets dragged into a dark room with no light and just about gets tied down to a chair. Of course, the entire time this is happening, she is fighting to get free so she can continue her attack. They proceed to lock Jane in this room and leave her there with no form of light. She thinks she sees the ghost off her uncle and has a breakdown. When she tries to explain what’s wrong with her, her aunt just says that she is acting and trying to manipulate them into letting her out of the room. Her aunt then proceeds to shove Jane back into the room and locks it. So of course, Jane, in her fright, passes out and is probably just left there until someone came to check on her. And as if this could get worse, guess what? Jane’s bedroom is the nursery and she must sleep in the crib. The girl, as I said earlier, is ten years old. If you think this is bad, just you wait. After the fight with her cousin, Jane is forced to sleep in a small closet. (To be perfectly honest with you this gave me Harry Potter vibes). Jane gets isolated even more from the people who are her supposed “family” and is to stay in her room, the nursery, always. The only time she could leave her room was to meet the owner of a school where her aunt proceeds to tell lies about Jane’s behavior to the man right in front of Jane. And when Jane leaves to this school, her aunt tells her not to wake them up to say goodbye. It’s safe to say that Jane was just fine with this. (I would like to give the “best and most loving family” award to Jane’s family! *Please note the sarcasm*)
One off the best parts of the book so far must be Jane shaming her aunt. After the owner of the school leaves the house, Jane made my day. She turns to her aunt and finally can stand up for herself. Jane tells her that she will make certain that everyone knows about how she was treated by everyone at the house. She is going to make sure that everyone knows the truth about the “proper” and “esteemed” family. She makes sure to bring up her dead uncle, who on his death bed, made his last wish be that she is cared for as his own children are cared for. Tells her aunt how disappointed and angry he would be that his last wish was not respected by his own wife. She also reminds her aunt that God knows everything she has done and said about Jane. She does all of this so smoothly and fast that it is funny. I mean this ten-year-old girl just outsmarted her aunt and shamed her so easily that her aunt is left with nothing to say. The reason she has nothing to say is because everything Jane said was the truth. I was honest to God smirking the entire time that I was reading this in the middle of class.
Now, let’s talk about this school Jane is sent to. This school host around eighty girls ranging from nine to twenty years old. All of these girls are “charity-children” who only have one parent or both parents’ dead, like Jane does. They seem to only be given enough food to keep themselves alive and all the adults are very strict. There are two girls per bed and six beds per washbasin. So far Jane only has one acquaintance and no friends. The acquaintance is an older girl named Helen Burns. Helen does not stand up for herself and when Jane why, Helen’s answer is very surprising and mature. Helen forgives those who hurt her and always looks for the hope of what is to come later in her life. This is where the sixth chapter ends, but what Helen says to Jane leaves readers and, I imagine, Jane with something to ponder on.
So far, this book has been great and interesting to read. Charlotte Brontë is very detailed when describing what everything and everyone looks like that you can just imagine it all in your head. I don’t know how many other people do this, but when I read a book, I am not in reality anymore. I, for a lack of how to say this, become the main character and feel what they feel. So, I can honestly say that this book makes me sad and angry on behalf of Jane Eyre. Her life is so unfair that I just want to make it better or at least be there for her, so she is not so alone. I am so invested in what hardship is going to be thrown at her next that I must force myself to not go ahead of my reading schedule. I would just sit down and read the book in one sitting but as this is apart of an assignment, I can’t afford to do that. I can not wait to continue to read the book more and find out what happens next in the sad life of Jane Eyre.
Jane Eyre:
- Lonely
- Miserable
- Sassy
- Silver-tongued
- Strong
- Independent
- Orphan
- Superstitious
Literature Review 