Uzbekistan state world languages university philology faculty

4. The main theme of the novel.

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  Colonialism
  
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  Self-Discovery
  
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  Love and Marriage
  
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  Gothic Elements
  
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  Class Struggle
  
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  Gender Equality
  
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  Social Status
  
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  Religion
  
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  Role of the Family
  

Jane Eyre's central quest is Jane's search for family, belonging, and love. However, this quest is always tempered by Jane's need for independence.
He begins the novel as an unloved orphan who becomes almost obsessed with finding love as a way to define his identity and find happiness. Although she receives no parental affection from Mrs. Reed, Jane finds surrogate mother figures throughout the rest of the novel. Bessie, Miss Temple, and even Mrs. Fairfax care for Jane and give her the love and guidance she needs, and she returns the favor by caring for Adele and the students at her school. Still, Jane doesn't feel like she's found her true family until she falls in love with Mr. Rochester at Thornfield; he becomes more of a kindred spirit than his biological relatives. However, she cannot accept Mr. Rochester's first marriage proposal because she realizes that their marriage - based on unequal social status - would undermine her autonomy.
Jane similarly rejects St. John's proposal of marriage because it would be duty rather than passion. After receiving her inheritance and the familial love of her cousins, when she has financial and emotional autonomy, Jane can accept Rochester's proposal. In fact, Rochester, who is blind, is more dependent on her (at least until he regains his sight). In her marriage to Rochester, Jane finally feels completely free, bringing her dual quest for family and independence to a satisfying conclusion. Brontë uses the novel to criticize class distinctions in the Victorian era. Jane is always a poor person in a rich environment, particularly the Reeds and Thornfield. His poverty creates many obstacles for him and his pursuit of happiness, including personal insecurities and rejection of opportunities.
The social position of the beautiful Miss Ingram, for example, makes Jane the main competitor for the love of Mr. Rochester, although Jane is far superior in intelligence and character. Also, Jane's refusal to marry Mr. Rochester because of their difference in social positions shows her belief in the importance of her morals and personal independence, especially compared to Miss Ingram's gold-mining tendencies. Although Jane insists that her poverty does not make her poor, her escape from poverty helps her overcome personal obstacles. Not only does she generously share her inheritance with her relatives, but her financial independence makes it difficult for her to deal with low prices and allows her to fulfill her desire to become Mr. Rochester's wife. As well as criticizing the Victorian class hierarchy, Brontë's more subtle condemnation of the gender inequalities of the time period. The novel begins with Jane's imprisonment in the "red room" at Gateshead, and later in the book Bertha's imprisonment in a tent at Thornfield is revealed. The connection is that Jane's imprisonment is a symbol of her lower social class, and Bertha's imprisonment is a symbol of Victorian marriage: all women, if they marry under unequal conditions like Bertha, will eventually be imprisoned by their husbands. and crushed. It is noteworthy that Jane is consciously aware of the problems associated with unequal marriages. So, even though she loves Mr. Rochester, she refuses to marry him until he has her own fortune and can make a marriage contract as her equal. Although it is difficult to separate Jane's economic and gender barriers, it is clear that her status as a woman prevents many of the male characters from entering the world, such as Mr. Rochester, his uncle John, and St. John. , for example. Indeed, his pursuit of worldly experience makes his last name ironic, as "Eyre" is Old French for "to travel." If Jane had been a man, Brontë believes, she would not have had to submit to so many economic hardships; he could actively try to make his fortune. Still, Jane must work as a governess, the only legal position open to a woman of her station, and simply wait for her uncle to leave her his fortune.
Throughout the novel, Brontë plays with the dichotomy between outer beauty and inner beauty. Both Bertha Mason and Blanche Ingram are described as stunningly beautiful, but in each case the outer beauty hides an inner ugliness. Bertha's beauty and sensuality blinded Mr. Rochester's hereditary madness, and only after they were married did he gradually recognize her true nature. Blanche's beauty hides her arrogance and pride, as well as her desire to marry Mr. Rochester only for his money. Yet in Blanche's case, Mr. Rochester seems to have learned not to judge by appearance, and he ultimately rejects her despite her beauty. Missing only the outer beauty of Victorian heroines, Jane has the inner beauty that Mr. Rochester likes.
Her intelligence, wit, and calm demeanor represent a greater personal beauty than any other character in the novel, and Bronte wants to emphasize the importance of personal development and growth over superficial appearances. After Mr. Rochester loses his hand and eye, they are also equal in appearance: both must look beyond superficial qualities to love each other.