1 Ana-Maria Amza

Ana-Maria Amza British Cultural Study, 1st year 22nd January 2014

I had before resolved to assume an ALIAS: Exile in the Destiny of a Woman in Charlotte Bronts Jane Eyre
Jane Eyre is the story of a young, orphaned girl ho li!es ith her aunt and "ousins, the

#eeds, at $ateshead %all& 'hen she is sent a ay to a religious (oarding s"hool for orphans ) *o ood +nstitute& Jane remains at *o ood as a student until she,s si-teen, and then as a tea"her until she,s eighteen& .anting more than (eing a tea"her she arranges to lea!e the s"hool and (e"ome a go!erness& So she goes to a "ountry house "alled 'hornfield, here she falls in lo!e ith
Mr& #o"hester& Being disappointed (y him she "hooses to run a ay and li!e under a pseudonym in the #i!ers, house, near a "ity "alled Morton& But she misses her lo!e and so she de"ides to go (a"/ to Mr& #o"hester and she "an finally (e happy&

My Edward and I, then, are happy: and the more so,because those we most love are happy likewise. 0Bront1, Jane Eyre ,2345
'a/ing into a""ount the life story of Jane 6yre, one may say that dislo"ation is her ay of li!ing& She e-perien"es many forms of e-ile during her all life& +f one ta/es into a""ount that e-ile "omes

from the *atin

ord exsilium

hi"h literary means banishment, one "an "ome to the "on"lusion

that the definition of the term as loss, absence, punishment, lack of identity& Considering this definition, it "an (e easily seen that from "hildhood, after her parents, death she is sent to her aunt,s house, punishment& 8A (rea/fast-room ad9oined the dra ing-room, + slipped in there& +t "ontained a (oo/"ase7 + soon possessed myself of a !olume, ta/ing "are that it should (e one stored pi"tures&: 0Bront1, 25 ith here she is treated as outsider& +n this situation, e en"ounter t o forms of e-ile7 the one that she is loo/ing for in order to (e alone, and the one that is imposed to her as a

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8.ith Be i"/ on my /nee, +

as then happy7 happy at least in my

ay& + feared nothing

(ut interruption, and that "ame too soon&: 0Bront1, Jane Eyre ,115 Another type of e-ile, perhaps the most "omple- one, is a moment of her maturity& After finding out the truth a(out Mr& #o"hester, Jane de"ides to lea!e him and arri!es to a house, here she "hanges her name, she la"/s herself of identity, suffering in silen"e& 8+ felt + "ould spea/, and + ans ered;<My name is Jane 6lliott&, An-ious as e!er to a!oid dis"o!ery, + had (efore resol!ed to assume an A*+AS&: 0Bront1, Jane Eyre, 3445 Mir"ea 6liade also used the term exile to define a religious (anishment& 'he e-ile of Adam and 6!a from the %ea!en the "ontinent people as, for 6liade, similar to the e-ile of human/ind on earth& So, ere li!ing on is "alled (y 6liade 86uropean %ell:& *i!ing in this sort of

e-ile, people stated desiring 8for a rene al of old !alues and stru"tures:, they hoped of 8a radi"al renovatio:& 'his return to 8their primordial history, their absolute beings: meant going to Ameri"a, hi"h as seen as =aradise or 6den& 06liade, The Quest. History and Meaning in Religion, >3->05 By e-trapolating 6liade,s 8reno!atio:, one may see that for Jane, her rene al, her paradise is only near Mr& #o"hester, the lo!e of her life& My dear master, I answered, I am ane Eyre: I have !ound you out"I come back to you. 0Bront1, Jane Eyre, 2?25 @n her returning to Mr& #o"hester, Jane finds out that there as a (ig fire hi"h (urnt his

house& Ao , the ruins of it are (ut 9un/ for all the people& Bor Jane it is a s eet memory of her life there& 'his (la"/ened house is a /ind of monument of her lo!e li!ed inside those alls hi"h are no a ruin& 8+ loo/ed ith timorous 9oy to ards a stately house7 + sa a (la"/ened ruin&: 0Bront1, Jane Eyre, 2145 8And there as the silen"e of death a(out it7 the solitude of a lonesome ild& Ao onder that letters addressed to people here had ne!er re"ei!ed an ans er7 as ell despat"h epistles to a !ault in a "hur"h aisle& 'he grim (la"/ness of the stones told (y hat fate the %all had fallen;

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(y "onflagration7 (ut ho /indledC .hat story (elonged to this disasterC .hat loss, (esides mortar and mar(le and ood- or/ had follo ed upon itC %ad life (een re"/ed as ell as propertyC: 0Bront1, Jane Eyre, 21D5 'he "riti" Jonathan Culler uses the terms unk or rubbish to des"ri(e 8the general heading of momentos or sou!enirs:& %e ants to emphasize the idea that there are some things from our hen past that "ould (e used as a representation of an e-perien"e, or they "ould simply (e a proof of an e-perien"e that they represent& By e-trapolating Culler,s definition to the feelings of Jane might one day "ome to fun"tion as mar/er and ma/e an e!ent, e-perien"e or signifi"ant one:& 0Jonathan Culler, !raming the "ign, 1415 'his image of the house as a (la"/ened ruin is "ontrasted (y its earlier image in the (oo/& 8Bor 'hornfield is a fine old hall, rather negle"ted of late years perhaps, (ut still it is a respe"ta(le pla"e&: 0Bront1, Jane Eyre, 1225 86!erything appeared !ery stately and imposing to meE (ut then + a""ustomed to grandeur& 'he hall-door, Eyre, 1235 8 0F5 (attlements round the top ga!e it a pi"turesGue loo/& +ts grey front stood out from the (a"/ground of a roo/ery, fen"e, and hose "a ing tenants ere no on the ing7 they fle the la n and grounds to alight in a great meado , from hi"h these ell o!er hi"h as so little seeing the ruins, one may noti"e that 8one "olle"ts a "ertain amount of 9un/ in the hope that it hate!er a truly

as half of glass, stood open&: 0Bront1, Jane

ere separated (y a sun/

here an array of mighty old thorn trees, strong, /notty, and (road as oa/s, at on"e

e-plained the etymology of the mansion,s designation& Ao need to "o er (ehind a gate-post, indeedH;to peep up at "ham(er latti"es, fearing life as astir (ehind themH Ao need to listen for doors opening;to fan"y steps on the pa!ement or the gra!el- al/H 'he la n, the grounds ell- li/e all, !ery high and !ery fragile-loo/ing, perforated ith paneless ere trodden and aste7 the portal ya ned !oid& 'he front as, as + had on"e seen it in a dream, (ut a indo s7 no roof, no (attlements, no "himneys;all had "rashed in& 0Bront1, Jane Eyre, 21D5

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'he image of a "omforta(le house, a house as an ideal shelter for her poor soul appears also hen Jane re"ei!es her house in a !illage& +t does not matter that it is poor, all that she finds important is the pea"e it (rings& +t is her house her home& 8My home, then, hite ashed hen + at last find a home,;is a "ottageE a little room ith

alls and a sanded floor, "ontaining four painted "hairs and a ta(le, a "lo"/, a

"up(oard, ith t o or three plates and dishes&: 0Bront1, Jane Eyre, 3235 8 <My "ottage is "lean and eather-proofE my furniture suffi"ient and "ommodious& All +

see has made me than/ful, not despondent&, : 0Bront1, Jane Eyre, 3>05 8 <+ ha!e hardly had time yet to en9oy a sense of tranGuillity, mu"h less to gro impatient under one of loneliness&, : 0Bront1, Jane Eyre, 3>15 A proof of the "omple-ity of Bront1,s no!el is the theme of the @rient& Jane, an 6nglish oman, is as/ed (y her "ousin, St& John, to follo to (e"ome "i!ilized& 8 <As a "ondu"tress of +ndian s"hools, and a helper amongst +ndian assistan"e ill (e to me in!alua(le&, : 0Bront1, Jane Eyre, 4445 @ne may e-trapolate the "on"ept of otherness des"ri(ed (y Said, ho thin/s that 8the ith omen, your him in a missionary or/, in +ndia& 'his mission is seen important (e"ause of the 6uropeans, (elief that the +ndian,s need help from them

di!ision of ra"es into ad!an"ed and (a"/ ard, or 6uropean-Aryan and @riental-Afri"an:

the theme of the @rient used in the no!el& So, for the 6uropeans, the @rientals are the other, in relation ith hi"h they are a (etter ra"e& 8Sin"e the @riental as a mem(er of a su(9e"t ra"e, he had to (e su(9e"ted&: 0Said, #rientalism, 203-2045 'he (oo/ of Charlotte Bront1 is "alled JANE EYRE - AN AUT !I "RA#$Y and the story is all authoress ritten in the 1st person singular& 'a/ing this into a""ount, it is !ery "lear that the ants to present the story as a retrospe"tion of her o n life, su""eeding in gaining the

reader,s attention and "redi(ility& 8+t as near7 and as + had lifted no petition to %ea!en to a!ert it;as + had neither 9oined

my hands, nor (ent my /nees, nor mo!ed my lips;it "ame7 in full hea!y s ing the torrent

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poured o!er me& 'he

hole "ons"iousness of my life lost, my lo!e lost, my hope Guen"hed, my aters "ame into my soulE + san/ in deep mire7 + felt no standingE +

faith death-stru"/, s ayed full and mighty a(o!e me in one sullen mass& 'hat (itter hour "annot (e des"ri(ed7 in truth, 8the "ame into deep atersE the floods o!erflo ed me&: 0Bront1, Jane Eyre, 4>35 +n order to demonstrate this, one may refer to the "ritiGue =eter Broo/s ho e-amines the ay in hi"h a story is ritten& %e uses the term plot to define the story7 8+t is indeed plotting, as an a"ti!ity, as a dynami" ma"hination, that may pro!ide our (est ay into the reading of a fully a"hie!ed plot& And this a"ti!ity of plotting may (e most readily dis"erni(le in a retrospe"ti!e firstperson narrati!e:& .riting a (oo/ in the first-person narrati!e means remem(ering your life and, in this ay, gaining "redi(ility and emphaty& Aothing dra s attention more than the real life& By e-trapolation, one may see that this is the te"hniGue used (y Bront1 in "onstr"ting the plot for her no!el, too& 0Broo/s, Reading for the plot, 1145 As it has (een presented, literary or/s are !ery "omple- and the authors ma/e use of a

large !ariety of su(9e"ts and themes to emphasize the human (eings, life& 'his is the "ase of Charlotte Bront1, too, hi"h paints ma9esti"ally a story to remem(er7 that of Jane 6yre&

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Works cited Ba"helard, $aston, The $oetics of "pace& 'rans& Maria Jolas& Boston, Massa"husetts7 Bea"on =ress, 1>>4& Broo/s, =eter& Reading for the $lot. Cam(ridge, Mass7 %ar!ard Ini!ersity =ress, 1>>2& Bront1, Charlotte& Jane Eyre& *ondon7 S6#J+C6 K =A'@A, 12>4& Culler, Jonathan, !raming the "ign. @-ford7 Bla"/ ell, 1>22& 6liade, Mir"ea, The Quest. History and Meaning in Religion & Chi"ago7 Ini!ersity of Chi"ago =ress, 1>3>, 1>24& Said, 6d ard, #rientalism& *ondon7 #outledge, 1>42&

*read by: Irina Bratu Cristina Musat