Week 51 Lesson 2 Jane Eyre

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• vwo
• Leerjaar 6

learning goals

- I know the circumstances for women during the Victorian Age

- I know the plot of Jane Eyre

and can apply some elements of fiction to the novel. 

What do you remember from previous literature class?

Romanticism

Victorian

pessimism

Nature = 

godlike

symbolism

Bildungsroman

inspired by the

Renaissance

concern 

for outcasts of society

daily life

visually

descriptive

supernatural

Characteristics

• daily life
  
• moral purpose
• idealism/ideal life
• pessimism
• visually descriptive
• dramatic monologue
• takes inspiration from renaissance

Bildungsroman

A Bildungsroman is a literary term describing a formative novel about a protagonist’s psychological and moral growth from their youth into adulthood. Bildungsroman novels are generally written in the first-person and often feature the name of the protagonist directly in the title, such as Emma, Jane Eyre, and David Copperfield.

The Bildungsroman literary genre originated in Germany. The German word “bildung” means education” and the German word “roman” means “novel.” Thus, “Bildungsroman” translates to “a novel of education” or “a novel of formation.”

Gothic novel

The adjective gothic describes something that is characterized by mystery, horror, and gloom — especially in literature. Gothic literature combines the genres of romance and horror. Some famous writers of Gothic fiction include Charlotte Bronte, Mary Shelley and Edgar Allan Poe.

Characteristics of Victorian Novel: 

1. Standard middle-class (bourgeoisie) habits and standards of behaviour.

2. The most popular topic is the adaptation of the individual to society. (Was this similar to the Romantic era?)

3. Emphasis on the way that characters develop. 

(lower class described in a boring manner, aristocracy portrayed in a jealous/arrogant manner). 

Why was the novel successful? 

1. intended for middle class

2. flexible

3. escapism (industrial revolution Vs. refuge in nature)

4. realistic

5. solutions to complex issues

Types of jobs for poor women

servants

nannies

governesses

prostitutes

Position of women in Victorian Times

*Poor women had to work

*Bad living conditions

* no rights to vote, husband was the boss

Difference between the classes:

*Rich women were supposed to be "the Angel of the House"

*Well-furnished houses & enough food, servants

* no rights to vote, husband decided on everything

Women's rights

Emancipation: women's rights

in GB called Sufragettes: rights & votes for women 

1918 :allowed to vote if 30 years old

1928: vote at 21 years old

Rights to vote for women & lower classes

Charlotte Brontë

Jane eyre

Which conflict is present in Jane Eyre?
man Vs. man? man Vs. nature? man Vs. society?

1. man Vs. man
2. man Vs. nature
3. man Vs. society

What could be a theme in Jane Eyre?

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