Analyses of Jane Eyre39;s Selfrealization英语专业毕业论文

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1、Analyses of Jane Eyres Self-realizationAbstract Jane Eyre is a piece of autobiographical fiction written by Charlotte Bront, the famous talented English women novelist. It was written in the Victorian Age when women were considered subordinate to men. Women were taught that their duty was to submit.

2、 Jane Eyre is a story about a woman who is unwilling to submit to anything she perceives wrong or unfair. The heroineJane Eyre believes that she should have the right to make her own choice, and that she should be considered the equal of any man as a human being. Such a position was hard for any Vic

3、torian woman to achieve. However, as a woman raised from an orphan, Jane Eyre makes it and achieves her self-realization. Her wonderful transformation from an unfortunate infant to an independent woman with happy marriage is very remarkable till now. This thesis analyses Jane Eyres self-realization

4、by taking a lot of examples and shows the features of heroines under the pen of the author. Chapter I introduces the historical background of this book and the author Charlotte Bront, as well as the life of Jane Eyre. This part is helpful to improve our understanding of the novel. Chapter II mainly

5、analyses the factors that contribute to Janes self-realization from two aspects: her characters and the influence of her teacher and friend. It is the key part in studying the progress of her self-realization. Chapter III explores the linkage between Charlotte Bronts experience and the features of h

6、er heroines and reflects the authors call for womens rights. It is the inspirations obtained from Jane Eyres self-realization.Key Words: self-realization; independent; self-respect; equality; womens rights摘 要 简爱是一部由英国著名女作者夏洛蒂勃朗特写的一部自传体小说，写于维多利亚时期。 当时的妇女被认为是男人的从属，并受到这样的教育：妇女的责任是服从。简爱讲述了一个不愿对任何错误或不公屈从

7、的女性的故事。女主角简爱相信她应有权利作出自己的决定，她应和男人一样被同等对待。这样的地位对于任何一个维多利亚时期的女性都是很难达到的。然而，孤儿出身的简爱却达到了这样的地位并实现了自我。直至今天，她由一个不幸的孤儿到一个独立而拥有幸福婚姻的人的完美蜕变还是十分引人注目的。本论文通过一系列的例子分析了简的自我实现，并展现了作者笔下的女主角的特点。第一章介绍小说的历史背景，作者夏洛蒂勃朗特以及简爱的生活。这部分将有助于增进我们对这部小说的了解。第二章分析促成简的自我实现的因素：她主要的性格和老师朋友对她的影响。这是对简的自我实现过程的研究的关键部分。第三章研究了夏洛蒂勃朗特的经历与她的女主角间的

8、联系，并揭示了作者对女性权利的呼吁。这是我们从简爱的自我实现中得到的启示。关键词： 自我实现； 独立； 自尊； 平等； 女性权利 Introduction Jane Eyre is the first governess novel in the history of the English literature. It is Charlotte Bronts second novel and is one of her masterpieces. Charlotte always shapes the features on the basis of her experience and J

9、ane Eyre is a good reflection of the authors personal experience and individual point of view. Jane Eyre was written in the 19th century Victorian Age, when women were regarded as second-class and there was a rigid social hierarchy. The goal of existence for girls was to marry men from rich and powe

10、rful families or try to gain wealth and status through marriage. The only vocation for women to choose was to become a good wife and mother. Charlotte herself was like the heroine, Jane Eyre. She kept trying to improve her life. She had once learned French to establish a French school and been a tut

11、or for twice. On the matter of marriage, the novel Jane Eyre also shows the authors point of view, that is, marriage should be based upon mutual love and respect. Charlotte experienced a lot but she finally became famous and successful and married a man who also loved her. The hard self-realization

12、of Charlotte can be reflected from the experience of Jane Eyre. Jane Eyre is a young orphan being raised by Mrs. Reed, her cruel, wealthy aunt. She has no way of appeal whatever against her cousins frequent bully on her. One day, as a punishment for fighting with her cousin John Reed, Janes aunt imp

13、risons Jane in the red-room, the room in which her Uncle Reed died. While locked in, Jane believes that she sees her uncles ghost. Jane screams and faints. Then Jane is packed off to Lowood. There she is exposed to the harsh conditions and unreasonable rigid disciplines. Jane makes friends with a yo

14、ung girl named Helen Burns, who later dies of typhus epidemic. When she works as a governess, she falls in love with her master, Mr. Rochester. However, just on their wedding day, Jane discovers that Rochester already has a wife. She is unwilling to become a mistress and chooses to leave him. Later

15、Jane rejected St. Johns appraisal for marriage and returns to Rochester, who is now blind and lost his left hand. The two lovers finally married and find happiness together.Chapter I Overview of Jane Eyre1.1 An Introduction to Its AuthorCharlotte Bront was born in Haworth, Yorkshire, a poor mountain

16、ous region in north England in1816. Her mother died when she was only five years old, leaving six children to her father, a poor clergyman. Fortunately, her father was an intellect. He taught his children read books and told them stories. So Charlotte developed her interest in literature when she wa

17、s a little girl. In1834, Charlotte was sent to a boarding school together with her three sisters. The next year, her two elder sisters died of tuberculosis, then she and her younger sister were brought home. This period of time leaved her a terrible memory and was reflected in her novel Jane Eyre. T

18、hereafter, Charlotte lived at home and developed a wide interest. Among them, she showed the talent in literature. Charlotte returned to school again when she was 15. She became a teacher in that school in1835 in order to support her younger brother and sister to go to school. After she left this sc

19、hool, she took up the job as a tutor for twice, but she didnt like the job because people didnt respect teachers at that time. After she studied French, she established a French school with the hope of improving her life. However, theres no student visiting it. The school was a failure and her caree

20、r as a writer was not smooth, too. The Professor was Charlottes first book, but never found a willing publisher during her lifetime. In1847, her second novel, Jane Eyre, was published under the name of Currer Bell. The book was a great shook at that time and made her successful. She later created Sh

21、irly and Villette. She married Bell Nicholls, her fathers curate, when she was 38 years old. She died a few months later in pregnancy. 1.2. Historical Background in Jane Eyre Jane lives in the Victorian Age. British literature flourished and reached its peak in the 1940s. The early years of Victoria

22、n England was a time of rapid economic development as well as many social problems. England developed into a rich, advanced country while there existed the sharpest contrast between the rich and the poor and wide spread poverty among the working class. Meanwhile, the Victorian England had a rigid so

23、cial hierarchy and the law controlling property and inheritance were very strict in Victorian England. George C. Brodrick once wrote: “The Law of Primogeniture, in its strictest form, has now determined the descent of land on intestacydying without a will to determine the transmission of ones proper

24、tyin this county for more than six centuries.” This law deprived women of the right to acquire income by inheritance. Whats more, there were few possibilities open to women outside of marriage and they had few right to speak for themselves. 1.3. The Life of Jane Eyre Jane Eyres life path is full of

25、ups and downs, but she finally achieves her self-realization step by step. When Jane is still an infant, her parents both dies of typhus fever. Her uncle Mr. Reed is a kind-hearted man. He takes Jane to Gateshead. After her uncles death, Jane suffers her cousins bullying behaviors frequently. One da

26、y, her cousin John strikes her cruelly. Jane is imprisoned in the red-room for her fight back. Then Jane is sent to a charity school run by a cold-hearted hypocrite called Mr. Brocklehurst. Children there are given scanty supply of food and freezing rooms. Both Miss Temple and Helen help and influen

27、ce Jane greatly. Unluckily, Helen died of a massive typhus epidemic. After Janes graduation, she becomes a teacher there. Then with the hope of exploring the wide world out of Lowood, Jane advertises on a newspaper for a job as governess. Soon she is employed to teach a French girl named Adle Varens

28、 in Thornfield Hall. One January afternoon, while taking a walk, Jane helps a man who falls from his house. She latter finds out that the man is the master of Thornfield Hall, Mr. Rochester. Mr. Rochester is a very proud, harsh and quick-tempered middle-aged man. He seldom talks to his servants for

29、he doesnt have the same language with them, but he enjoys talking with Jane after supper. He is attracted by her quick wit, honesty, frankness, self-dignity, and her spirit of independence. Jane also loves Rochester deeply. But their wedding is interrupted by a man named Mason and her lawyer. They d

30、eclare that Rochester still has a wife who is alive. The word turns out to be true. Although Mr. Rochesters wife has gone mad for many years, Jane doesnt choose to stay at Thornfield Hall as a mistress and flees into the moorland. Homeless and penniless, Jane would have died of starvation but for th

31、e help of St. John Rivers and her two sisters, Diana and Mary. Jane soon recovers her energy under the care of them and gets a job with the help of St. John. To her surprise, St. John turns out to be her cousin, and she becomes a rich heiress. St. John once asks Jane to marry him. Jane rejected his

32、loveless proposal for he just wants to find a wife as an assistance of his missionary work. Just at this time, Jane hears Rochester calling her. She returns to Thornfield which has been burned down by a big fire. Rochester becomes disabled, and his mad wife died. When Jane encounters Rochester in Fe

33、rndean garden, she sees a blind man without left hand. The two lovers are finally united and live happily ever after. Chapter II. Analysis the Factors Contribution to the Self-realization of Jane Jane Eyre, once a plain orphan and depended on her harsh and unsympathetic aunt, finally becomes an inde

34、pendent woman with a happy ending. How could she improve her life and reach self-serealization? We can get the answer by analyzing the following factors.2.1 The Main Characters of Jane Eyre Ever since the publication of Jane Eyre, it has attracted millions of readers. Jane Eyre is neither beautiful

35、nor wealthy, but her life finally achieves a happy ending. In a sense it is her unique characters that help her a lot. 2.1.1 Jane Eyres IndependenceJane Eyre is less important than a servant in Gateshead. She often hears the servants saying to her:“ You ought to be aware, Miss, that you are under ob

36、ligations to Mrs. Reed: she keeps you: if she were to turn you off, you would have to go to the poor house. ”Jane feels that: “ I had nothing to say to these words: they were not new to me: my very first recollections of existence included hints of the same kind. This reproach of my dependence had b

37、ecome vague singsong in my ear, very painful and crushing, but only half intelligible. ”Little Jane shows her disgust at the fact that she depend on her aunt. She wants to leave Gateshead to begin a new independent life. Soon she grasps a chance to go to a school called Lowood, separating from Gates

38、head entirely. Janes independence is fully displayed during her eight years staying at the school. She not only habituates herself to the rigid rules and harsh conditions there, but also makes full use of the advantages the excellent education in the school. She studies hard and reaches the head of

39、the class. Her performance gives her the chance to be a teacher at Lowood and becomes financially independent. At Thornfield, when Jane and Rochester have planed to marry, Jane still keeps working as a governess to maintain her economical independence. 2.1.2 Pursuit of EqualityJane insists on the eq

40、uality between different classes as well as the equality between men and women. Once Rochester pretends that he will marry a rich and beautiful woman to see if Jane loves him. Jane declares to Rochester: “ Do you think that I can stay to become nothing to you? Do you think I am automation? a machine

41、 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 am poor, obscure, plain, and little, I am soulless and heartless? You are wrong! I have the same soul as you and full of such heart! And if God had

42、gifted me with the same beauty, and much wealth, I should have made it as hard for you to leave me, as it is 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, equal as we are! ”Such

43、declaration is a cry for equality between different classes. She believes that everyone is equal at the Gods feet. No matter rich or poor, people all have equal personality and the same rights to live a better life. Such an equal attitudes was an astonishment and wonder to people of the day, but it

44、is the first manifestation of the awakening of the exploited and maltreated women.Jane lives in the Victorian period, when women were considered inferior to men. They are confined to limited jobs. As a woman with the wakened women consciousness, Jane asks the equal chance as men do to improve hersel

45、f. She believes that 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 restrain, too absolute a stagnation, precisely as men would suffer: an

46、d it is narrow-mined in their more privileged fellow-creatures to say that they ought to be confine themselves to making puddings and knitting stockings, to playing on piano and embroidering bags. It is thoughtless to condemn them, or laugh at them, if they seek to do more or learn more than custom

47、has pronounced necessary for their sex.2.1.3 Jane Eyres Self-respect Jane Eyre has done two kinds of work: first as a governess, then as a school teacher. Both of the works are not respected by people at that time. But Jane never feels abject or looks down upon her job. Instead she enjoys it and dev

48、oted to it. So she finally gains respects from her students. Her self-respect and straight speech also gain her true love between Rochester. She loves Rochester deeply but when she knows he has a mad wife who is still alive, she determines to leave him. Because she believes “I care for myself. The m

49、ore solitary, the more friendless, the more unsustained I am, the more I will hold to the principles received by we when I was sane, and not mad as I am now.” It is difficult for Jane to make the decision for she still loves Rochester. But her self-respect and reason helps her take the determination

50、. She is clear that being a mistress means losing her integrity and relying on Rochester for the unprotected marriage bond. Janes self-respect also makes she rejected St. Johns proposal. St. John just wants to have a wife as convention and hope Jane can help him as a wife of a missioner. Jane refuse

51、s to be a tool for the fulfillment of his religious ambition. With her self-respect, Janes free will is saved, which leads she choose to go back to Rochester. Otherwise, she would have sacrificed all her energy and dream for the work pointed by St. John, rather than her own dream of self-realization

52、.2.2 The Influence of Janes Teacher and FriendAt Lowood, Jane is influenced by one of her teachers, Miss Temple, and her best friend, Helen. She gains power from them to live through the miseries in Lowood. Miss Temple is the most kind-hearted teacher at the school. Her kind, merciful and brave acti

53、ons gain her love and respect of all students. When the porridge is so burnt at breakfast that it is inedible, she arranges, against the order of Mr. Brocklehust, to have the children fed a different, better meal. When Mr. Brocklehust announces to the entire school that Jane is a bad and deceitful g

54、irl, based on the information given by her aunt, Mrs. Reed, Jane is very sad because she thinks all classmates and teachers will either despise or dislike her. Just at this time, Miss Temple helps her clear the imputation and relieves her from a grievous load. Miss Temple teaches Jane that it is her

55、 present and future behavior that matter most, that if she behaves herself well at Lowood, her reputation will be based on that behavior, not on the criticisms of someone from her past. Miss Temple also serves as a mode of independent woman for Jane. She is among those early independent women who su

56、pport themselves by their own hands and directs Jane towards self-realization. Helens martyrlike attitude towards the schools miseries is helpful to Jane. She learns from Helen the ability of endurance. But Jane wont accept the unjust blame and punishment so passively. She shows her endurance during

57、 the 8 years hard life in Lowood and the almost desperate wonder on the moor. But for her endurance and strong will, she would have died of hungry and coldness before she is saved by St. John. Chapter III. The Inspiration Obtained from Jane Eyres Self-realization3.1 The Linkage between Charlotte Bro

58、nts Experience and the Features of Her HeroinesAs a famous English female writer, Charlottes work is famous for the depiction of the life of the middle-class working women, particularly governesses. Jane Eyre is the first governess novel in the history of English literature. “Charlottes works are ab

59、out the struggle of an individual consciousness towards self-realization, about some lonely and neglected young women with a fierce longing for love, understanding and a full happy life.” All Charlottes novels are more or less based on her own experience and feelings and the life as she sees around.

60、 In other words, by writing from an individual point of view, she projects herself into her leading characters and follows her innermost feelings, her secret impulses to color her narratives. Charlotte herself is an independent and persisting woman. When she was young her mother died early and her f

61、ather was a poor clergyman. Her fathers income was only able to meet their basic need of life. In order to support herself and their family, Jane worked hard. She had been tutor for twice. But the work was not respected by people at that time. So she left that work at last. During that period she wa

62、s proposed by two men. She rejected their loveless proposal, because they didnt love her at all. They just wanted to marry a wife as convention. Latter, she married Bell Nicholls with true love. Her pursuiting of true love showed her self-respect and was also shown on the character of her heroines.

63、In 1836, Charlotte sent some of her poems to the famous poet, Robert Southey. However Southey said that literature was not the career for women, because they didnt have the talents in writing poems. This hurted Charlottes heart. But she didnt lose her confidence and kept writing. This character is s

64、hown on Jane Eyre. In a sense, she creates the story of her inner life. It is easy to find her characters in her work. 3.2The Call for Womens RightsThe Bront Sisters lived in the time when women were as second-class and their rights to speak for themselves were restraint by the various creeds based

65、on the benefit of the male. The birthright deprived womens economic income. Women could only receive elementary education, only to become refined madams, limitating within the traditional world for women: Church, Cookery and Children. The way to realize their value was to be good assistants and vassal of men. Because“ Women were considered to be subordinated to men according