Jane Eyre Bildungsroman Essay

Jane Eyre Bildungsroman Essay

Judy Shen
Ms. Reavis
Honors Freshman English, 6
16 February 2010
The Sprouting of the Seed
The protagonist of the romantic, gothic, and bildungsroman novel, Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte undergoes many changes. Jane Eyre develops in many ways: intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually. She grows intellectually by attending school as well as meeting important characters, flourishes emotionally by passionate feelings of love, sorrow and hatred, and develops spiritually with the guidance of a close companion and handsome lover.
Jane grows intellectually while attending Lowood in many ways. At Lowood, she learns more about religion because of Helen Burns, as well as Brocklehurst. Her classes at Lowood consist of learning French as well as painting and etcetera. Her education is one example of Jane's intellectual advancement. She learns to speak fluent French, as well as paints beautiful portraits. These aspects greatly help prepare Jane for the future. After a couple days at Lowood, Jane notices that another older girl, Helen Burns, doesn't talk back to the strict teacher, Miss Scatcherd, when she is wrongly punished. Jane and Helen Converse: “But then it seems disgraceful to be flogged, and to be sent to stand in the middle of a room full of people; an you are such a great girl: I am far younger than you, and I could not bear it.” “Yet it would be your duty to bear it, if you could not avoid it: it is weak and silly to say you cannot bear what it is your fate to be required to bear” (Bronte 58). Jane, being young and naive does not understand why Helen is this way until she explains how strongly she believes in the Bible and Christ and his doings. This teaches Jane to gain intellect through religion by getting a better understanding of Christ and the Bible. Brocklehurst, one of the owners of Lowood, also impacts Jane by showing her the hypocritical and wrong side of Christianity. The first time Jane mets Brocklehurst, he accuses her of being a liar and...

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