Reader, it's Jane Eyre - Crash Course Literature 207

In which John Green teaches you about Charlotte Brontë's classic coming of age novel, Jane Eyre. Look, we don't like to make judgment values here, but Jane Eyre is awesome. By which we mean the book is great, and the character is amazing. When Jane Eyre was published in 1847, it was a huge hit. It really hit the controversial balance beautifully, being edgy enough to make news, but still mainstream enough to be widely popular. It was sort of like the Fight Club of its day, but not quite as testosterone-fueled. You'll learn a little about the story, learn about Jane as a feminist heroine, and even get some critical analysis on how Bertha might just be a dark mirror that acts out Jane's emotional reactions.

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[sewageratatata]

Is no one gonna talk about Helen Burns? Cause I damn bawled my eyes reading reading this section of the book.

[tomisoetan]

can we all acknowledge that bertha kind of has a right to be upset after being locked in an attic alone and miserable watching her husband fall in love?

[CapitalMort]

"disguises himself as a fortune telling gypsy woman to find out how she feels about him" ...I'll have to try that one some time.

[ariellakahan-harth]

I love the "Bertha is Jane's dark double" analysis. It's perfect and really says a lot about Victorian womanhood. It's like Jane's dark side must die so she can marry Rochester.

[sammiwyatt]

I only thought Bertha symbolized the confinement of marriage in the Victorian era but I never put it together that all her episodes followed a scene of Jane being upset but unable to act on her emotions. INTERESTING.

[alfienice]

"When you look at someone through rose colored glasses, all the red flags just look like flags." - Wanda Pierce "BoJack Horseman" S2E10

[megryder]

My mind has been BLOWN by that Bertha/Jane mirror example!!! 

[bethisabee]

I think one thing that gets looked over is the relationship of Jane Eyre (and the other characters) with children; more specifically, with Adele - Mr Rochester's ward. Other character's interactions with Adele shows some of the harsh attitudes towards children at the time; and is reminiscent of Jane's upbringing under her Aunt and Lowood School. Jane has little confrontations with characters about how they should treat children as if they had feelings, and are independent (- just like adults! :o shocking revelation!) Jane treats her students as equals, with thoughts, opinions and feelings that need to be heard. Just like Jane strives for her independence, and to be herself within her position as governess. 
There is also the fact that Adele is often put down for her 'vain' behaviour and constantly compared to her mother - especially by Rochester - and how because she is her mother's daughter she is somehow inherently 'bad' and tainted. Therefore making her more worthless than other children. Jane often brings Rochester round to seeing Adele as separate from her mother. 

[hatorigirl]

I quite like the reading of Bertha as Jane's mirror. It bothers me to no end when people try to play off Jane Eyre as a love story, when it is so obviously about identity and personal growth. And so much proto-feminism. The love story is only relevant in the context of this personal journey. My favorite paper I've written in university was in my third year when I wrote a 10 page paper about the ways in which the many characters named John represent different parts of Jane's identity that she is trying to reconcile. My argument was that in the same way that Bronte wrote under a male pseudonym, Jane is not allowed to feel or think certain things, so by giving them male voices, Jane has a reason outside of herself to consider these things without straying too far from her role in society.

[skyetaylor]

I'd rather be locked up in an attic than locked up in the mad house. In the mad house, patients were plunged in cold water to cool the over-heated brains that caused their madness. Food was denied to patients sometimes, the beds were hard and full of bugs, and some patients got chained to their beds; having to urinate etc. while in those beds because they weren't allowed to be unchained to relieve themselves. And of course they got confined into straight-jackets and beaten by the staff. Mad houses didn't help people get sane... they made people become insane! The attic is better than the mad house!

[theoriginalsache]

The thing that always got me about this book that no one ever brought up: If Bertha had syphilis, odds are pretty good that Mr. Rochester did, too. Which made it an inevitability for Jane as well. In college, I almost wrote a whole treatise on STDs in the victorian era based around this book. (I'm a microbiologist. I relate everything to diseases of I can.)

[fishe]

Your parallels with Bertha at the end were amazing. Thanks a lot for these videos. As a Creative Writing major, I really appreciate them.

[MichieHoward]

In my opinion, Jane Eyre has one of the best if not the best scene of lovers reuniting.  I read this book over and over just to read Rochester and Jane's coming together again.

[RoxanneRichardson]

I definitely need to re-read Jane Eyre.  It was my favorite book when I was 17, which was, uh, 35 years ago. 

As for who would want to wear knitted stockings?  If you lived in 19th century, damp, cold England, with no central heating...*you* would want to wear knitted stockings! Those argyle socks on your feet were knitted, after all.

[sydneyca]

Why has no one EVER explained Jane Eyre like this!?!?
Now I want to read it!

[yo.kodiak]

John is foreshadowing his tuberculosis era in this one.

[Wwdancwe]

This was a wonderful analysis. I would like to offer:
I also see that Mr. Rochester has to lose much of himself as well in the end. Mr. Rochester is a rich character as well that, as well as Jane, had to tame a lot to be worthy of the new Jane. I honestly take the fire, from which he attempted to save Bertha and was injured thusly, and his subsequent injuries as his punishment for his previous indiscretions. So in a way society crushed a part of both of them.

[dropUrPeaches]

Ooooh! Bertha represents the repressed side of Jane. I kind of feel like an idiot for missing that. Great episode.

[kieram]

Jane Eyre is one of my favourite books, it is the first classic that I've read and I couldn't have made a better choice.

[slytherindork]

Wow. I am mind blown about how Bertha represents the wild part of Jane that must die. I never even realized that while reading it, but now that I think about it, it makes so much sense!
Thanks John!!!