Hindy Indig
Mrs. Karten
Jane Eyre, Essay
4/17/23
Foils in Jane’s Relationships
Efficacious relationships depend on three primary elements: affection, emotion, and passion. In Jane Eyre, the 1847 Gothic romance novel by Charlotte Bronte, Jane the protagonist, discovers the essential traits and characteristics of a relationship through foils in her life. Jane, who is raised by her aunt Mrs. Reed, grows up in an abusive home and never learns to be loved or nurtured. After she leaves home, she becomes enmeshed with many people along the way: Miss Temple, Mr. Rochester, and St. John Rivers. As Jane engages in these relationships, she learns something new from each of them, playing an important role in her life. Charlotte Bronte uses character foils in her novel, Jane Eyre, to display the centrality of affection, emotion, and passion, in
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Jane was raised by two significant women: Mrs. Reed and Miss Temple. It is evident from these relationships that it is imperative to have respect and affection for a connection to flourish. Although Mrs. Reed does not have Jane's best interest at heart, Miss Temple shows her the opposite remark. Mrs. Reed is abusive and harsh towards Jane, depriving her of the love and care that she deserves. She treats Jane as inferior, excludes her from family events, and makes her feel insignificant. Mrs. Reed’s children do the same and are vicious toward Jane. John Reed, Mrs. Reed’s son, and the other children proclaim, "you are a dependent, mama says; you have no money; your father left you none; you ought to beg, and not to live here with gentlemen's children like us, and eat the same meals we do, and wear clothes at our mama's expense" (Bronte 5). Mrs. Reed does not come to Jane's defense when John is throwing these insults; instead, she allows her children to mistreat Jane and use these scathing words toward her. Later on, Jane is forced to attend Lowood, a school for orphans, where she meets Miss