The Perception of Feminism in Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

Abstract

The aim of this study is to illustrate the Feminist aspects in Charlotte Brontë’s novel Jane Eyre. To depict these aspects from the novel, the researcher has studied the historical background of the writer, which is the Victorian era. This research shows women’s status in the era. Victorian women were living under men’s control, they were discriminated in a patriarchal society. Besides, the extended essay gives a definition of Feminism in order to embody the Feminist aspects of the novel. Then, it examines the themes and the characters of the novel to study the perception of Feminism through the work. From this work, the researcher has noticed that Charlotte Brontë’s protagonist ‘Jane’ is based on her personal experiences. She is a feminist writer who contradicts the norms of her society and creates a protagonist who is also rebellious and seeking for her self-realization, in a period of time considered woman as a man’s toy, who has no rights or voice, she is in man’s service without any right to decide or act as she wants or feels.