Jane Eyre

Jane Eyre is a groundbreaking novel about an orphaned governess who overcomes poverty and hardship to find love and independence. The story of Jane's growth from an abused child to a morally strong, independent woman explores themes of feminism, morality, social class, and the search for belonging.

• 1Orphan Jane suffers abuse at her aunt's house and is sent to harsh Lowood School
• 2Jane becomes a governess at Thornfield Hall and falls in love with Mr. Rochester
• 3On their wedding day, Jane discovers Rochester has a mad wife locked in the attic
• 4Jane flees Thornfield and is taken in by the Rivers family
• 5Jane discovers she has inherited money and is related to the Rivers
• 6Jane returns to Rochester, now blind and free to marry after his wife's death

• •Independence and self-respect
• •Social class and gender equality
• •Morality and Christian values
• •The search for love and belonging
• •Passion versus duty
• •The position of women in Victorian society

• Jane Eyre: Passionate but morally principled narrator seeking love and independence
• Edward Rochester: Brooding master of Thornfield with a dark secret
• Bertha Mason: Rochester's first wife, hidden in the attic
• St. John Rivers: Cold, ambitious clergyman who proposes to Jane
• Helen Burns: Jane's friend at Lowood who teaches her forgiveness
• Mrs. Reed: Jane's cruel aunt who raises her

• Published in 1847 during early Victorian England
• Brontë challenged conventions by creating a plain, poor, but morally strong heroine
• Reflects limited options available to educated but poor women
• Explores tensions between passion and Victorian moral expectations
• Revolutionary for featuring a female narrator asserting her equality

• Analyze Jane's character development and moral education throughout the novel
• Examine how Brontë presents the position of women in Victorian society
• Discuss the role of passion versus duty in Jane's decisions
• Consider the gothic elements and symbolism (the red room, fire, Bertha)
• Explore how social class affects Jane's relationships and opportunities