Abstract

In 1847, Charlotte’s masterpiece Jane Eyre was published. The novel is about the heroine Jane Eyre, although she was an orphan, she could also continue to pursue the freedom and dignity in a very difficult condition. And after a series of hardships, she got married with hero at the end of novel. When the author created this novel, Britain has been the world's top industrial country. But from the viewpoint of equality, British women's status has not been improved. They were still in the position that subordinated to men. The female writer was a new kind of occupation which was considered to violate the image of women at that time. It could be seen that the publication of Jane Eyre went through so many difficulties at that time. 

Predecessors always analyze Jane Eyre in the perspective of feminism. But some other people analyzed it in other point of views, such as education, psychoanalysis and from the perspective of Maslow's theory of human motivation. The author described so many aspects of Jane Eyre through the experiences of her life, her language and the way of getting along with people. After we read this book, we can know so much about her attitude for different things and her spiritual world and how the author shape Jane Eyre’s character in detail. Feminism is also reflected in the book.

Both Charlotte and the heroine Jane Eyre are full of the spirit of perseverance and the desire for women's freedom and happiness. Therefore, the image of Jane Eyre set up the resistance to oppression, freedom and dignity of the society at that time. And even now, influenced so much and deeply on women's rights movement. To summarize, this paper aims to study how the author describes the character’s personalities and values. And we can have a deeper understanding about the meaning of feminism.

Key Words: Charlotte Bronte; Feminism; Equality

Contents

Abstract

摘要

1  Introduction-1

2  An Introduction to Feminism-4

2.1 Definitions of Feminism-4

2.2 History and Development of Feminism-4

3  An Analysis of Characteristics of Jane Eyre-6

3.1 Persistence and Optimism-6

3.2 Equality-7

3.3 Kindness and Reason-8

4  Reasons for Characteristics of Jane Eyre-10

4.1 Environmental Reasons-10

4.1.1 Mrs. Reed’s Home.-10

4.1.2 Lowood-11

4.1.3 Thornfield-12

4.1.4 St. John’s home-13

4.2 Influences by Some Other Characters in the Novel-13

4.2.1 Bessie-13

4.2.2 Helen Burns-14

4.2.3 Mr. Rochester-14

4.3 Influence by Author Herself-15

5  Conclusion-16

Bibliography-17

Acknowledgments-18