Gender roles and marriage

In the novel Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë explores the theme of gender in 19thcentury England. The novel presents a woman’s narrative as she rejects society’s expectations of her and seeks independence and equal treatment. 

Throughout the novel, Jane’s narration presents a woman’s perspective on the unequal treatment of women: 

Women are supposed to be very calm generally: but women feel just as men feel; (…) It is thoughtless to condemn them, or laugh at them, if they seek to do more or learn more than custom has pronounced necessary for their sex. (Chapter 12, 15%)

Jane’s education is one of her few paths to independence, as it allows her to work as a teacher or governess. Still, she meets men who attempt to stifle her independence in various ways and do not treat Jane as an equal. Brocklehurst humiliates Jane in...