Literature review and analysis

Jane Eyre's Lessons In Inner Beauty

The notion of beauty, what it is and whether it is an inner or outward quality, has been long debated. For centuries people, and particularly women, have struggled with the concept of their own inner beauty as something as important, if not more important than their outward, physical beauty. This is no less true in literature. The idea of female inner beauty has not always been valued. In Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre, the protagonist, Jane, rejects her own outer beauty in favour of nurturing her intellect, her humility and those other inner qualities that she herself views as beautiful. She respects her wisdom and philosophy before any of her physical attributes, partly because of her need as a child to read, partly from the lessons she is taught. The ideas she embraces as a child regarding outer beauty are reinforced as they reappear in her adulthood. For the duration of novel, Jane lives in five homes. In each, the suggestion of inner beauty overshadowing exterior appearance becomes a lesson, built upon over time, and in her last home she gains her reward, a man who loves her solely for her mind.

Jane Eyre spends the first part of her childhood at her Aunt's house, known as Gateshead, where she struggles to become more intelligent through reading. Jane always has a burning need to learn, despite her cousin's insistence, "You have no business to read our books; you are a dependent" (pg. 42). Jane perseveres. Rather than give up, she requests Gulliver's Travels from the library. Upon its receipt, Jane comments, "This book I had again and again perused with delight" (pg. 53). While her quest for self-improvement is met always with criticism and opposition from her cousins, Jane continues to have a thirst for knowledge. She may be treated like an outcast by her family, but she rejects their criticism through self-improvement, reading whenever she possibly can.

The next location that Jane calls home is the Lowood Institution. Jane spends the next six years of her life there, learning to be an intelligent and morally stringent person, while remaining outwardly plain. Here, the lessons in outer and inner beauty lie in the hands of Mr. Brocklehurst, who is the institution's main benefactor. When he sees a girl with hair that is naturally curly he proclaims, "My mission is to mortify in these girls the lusts of the flesh, to teach them to clothe themselves with shamefacedness and sobriety" (pg. 96). Jane's young age and Mr. Brocklehurst's strong influence greatly affect her opinion of her own physical image. She comes to feel that her status in life remains, as it always will, humble and inconspicuous as a servant. The only benefit Jane received at Lowood was a good education. Jane's love for education is as fiery as was her desire to read at Gateshead, which is demonstrated when Jane explains that she "had the means of an excellent education placed within my reach; a fondness for some of my studies, and a desire to excel in all" (pg. 115). Her education is obviously more valuable to her than her perception of her own appearance. She remains at Lowood as a teacher for a time after she graduates.

After leaving Lowood, Jane takes a job which places her at Thornfield manor as a governess. Jane quickly falls in love with the master of the house, Mr. Rochester. He is not attractive, and most people, such as Georgianna, describes his image in a portrait as, "an ugly man" (pg. 262). Yet Jane falls deeply in love with him because of his outstanding intellect and the equality she feels with him. Her feelings remain underground for a long time, and she grapples with the thought of displaying her true heart, telling herself, "You are not beautiful either, and perhaps Mr. Rochester approves you: at any rate you have often felt as if he did" (pg. 186). While the world would not look upon Jane nor Rochester as physically beautiful, their minds and their hearts feel united, as Rochester explains when he says, "my equal is here, and my likeness" (pg. 282). They have both been searching for a connection with another based not on outer beauty, but on intellect and moral virtue. Sadly, Jane finds she has an opponent in winning Rochester's heart. Her name is Mrs. Blanche Ingram. She is a beautiful woman, and yet, with all her exterior magnificence, she fails to win the heart of Rochester. As Jane observes, she fails to win his heart because, "she could not charm him" (pg. 215). Rochester's actions strengthen Jane's belief that inner beauty far surpasses outer beauty. In Jane's other homes, the lessons in inner and outer beauty always left Jane feeling somewhat inferior. Though she knew the importance and value in inner splendour, she still always felt like she lacked something. Rochester made her feel different. Through the lessons Rochester teaches her, she begins to see the value in her inner beauty, that she can attract a man with her virtue and intelligence.

A tragic experience at Thornfield forces her to leave without any money or immediate means of getting a job. Fortunately, her cousins take her into their family. She helps the two children in their education. Fortunately, at the end of the novel, Jane returns to Mr. Rochester at Ferndean manor. Unhappily, she discovers that he has become blind, and the fire that took his vision, also gave him a deep scar along his face. Jane vows to take care of him in spite of his appearance, and he insists, just as he did before, that Jane become his wife. He proposes, "Jane will you marry me?" (pg. 469), proving that Rochester's desires for Jane do not stem from her physical appearance because he cannot see her. Instead he listens to her voice, which allows him to only see into her mind. His proposal demonstrates that his longing for Jane originates in her intellect and personality. Jane accepts, "Yes, Sir" (pg. 469) even though he appears as a crippled, old blind man.