JANE EYRE AS A REFLECTION OF THE TIMES By: Rishabh Jain, Erik Loewen, Sagar Mulchandani, Angelene Superable, and Kenneth Nguyen 3 rd Period October 23, 2012

FIRST AND FOREMOST… What does that even mean? How does Jane Eyre actually relate to the time period it’s set in?

SCARCITY OF FOOD  “Breakfast-time came at last, and this morning the porridge was not burnt… the quantity small; how small my portion seemed!” (Bronte 45)

SCARCITY OF FOOD  During the Victorian times, there were widespread instances of malnourishment and of children being underfed.  This is exemplified by Jane’s life during her stay at the Lowood School, because she wasn’t fed very much.

STRUGGLE OF EQUALITY  “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” (Bronte 101).

STRUGGLE OF EQUALITY  Throughout the Victorian era woman were looked down upon constantly, because of this women become aware of their situation and slowly started to take action for equality.  In the novel, Mr. Brocklehurst, Rochester, and St. John all attempted to command women. Bronte’s use of marriage in the novel portrays the struggle for gender equality. Jane shuns marriage proposals that she seems might expunge her identity and she strives for equality in her relationships.

TYPHUS EPIDEMIC  “ Inquiry was made into the origin of the scourge [Typhus]… The unhealthy nature of the site; the quantity and quality of the children’s food; the brackish, fetid water… all these things were discovered; and the discovery produced a result mortifying to Mr. Brocklehurst” (Bronte 75).

TYPHUS EPIDEMIC  There was a lower standard of living back in the Victorian Times: lack of running water, plumbing, and feed was often prepared in unsafe conditions.  The clothes the girls wore at Lowood did not protect them from the cold, and this made them more susceptible to disease.

MARRIAGE FOR MONEY  “Yet as little could [my father] endure that a son of his should be a poor man. I must be provided for by a wealthy marriage” (Bronte 290).

MARRIAGE FOR MONEY  During the Victorian Times, marriage was commonly used as a way to “get-rich-quick”.  Although religion was important during these times, people didn’t usually marry for love or God.

VIDEO MONEY MATTERS

WORKS CITED “Literary Ananlysis of Jane Eyre – Victorian Era.” Literary Analysis of Jane Eyre- Victorian Era. N.p., n.d. Web. Oct Bronte ̈, Charlotte, Fritz Eichenberg, and Bruce Rogers. Jane Eyre. New York: Random House, Print. “Jane Eyre: Money Matters & Flirting.” YouTube. YouTube, 12 Nov Web. 24 Oct