The British society was a patriarchal during the Victorian age. Women were considered inferior in the society as they were dominated by men in the society. This affected the progress of women in the society and equality as evidenced in Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronté and Gender and power by Susan Kingsley Kent. The Britons believed their world in which they lived to be hierarchical. The social order was a chain.
God and angels were placed at the top of the hierarchy and then the monarchs and other people followed. Women held different positions in the hierarchy based on their relationship with men as their partners and daughters. Women were considered inferior in the society. They were inferior to men as demonstrated by God when making Adam and Eve. The Britons claimed that God made Eve out of Adam rib and thus women were lesser in the society according to Susan Kingsley Kent. The Britons believed that Eve actions had affected all women. The patriarchy was evidenced in the country, society and family. Men were considered the head of the house and owned all the property at home including women and children.
Women lost their names after being married and they were considered the husbands property. This meant that women did not have independence and were supposed to be controlled by men. Such beliefs affected the position of women in the society as they continued to be treated badly by men. Jane portrays how women like Bront’e were treated in Britain during the Victorian era and their social standing. She shows the challenges that women in the society faced as they tried to overcome the dominance of men and inequality. The novel Jane Eyre is not a feminist novel, but it shows the inferior status of women in the society during the Victorian times (Kent ,p4-6)
Charlotte Bronté has explored different themes in her novel Jane Eyre. For instance, Charlotte examines the inferior status of women in the Victorian society. This is evidenced by Jane. Jane struggles to overcome the patriarchal domination in the society. The Victorian society was governed by social norms, traditions and beliefs during the Victorian era. Men and women were supposed to behave according to the social norms, traditions and beliefs. The members in the society believed that women are inferior to men and men treated women as inferior. There was no equality during the Victorian era and this forces Jane to strive for equality in the society. Jane meets different men who have different characters. The men try to create some kind of power and control over her. The men ensure Jane is submissive and he has no control over his life. The men include Mr. Brocklehurst, Edward Rochester and St .Johns Rivers (Bront’e, p1-483).
Mr. Rochester tries to control Jane and this makes it hard for him to make her own decisions and have autonomy. Mr. Rochester orders Jane and commands her though he loves her. Women did not have any say in their relationships during the Victorian period and they were unable to make decisions. The women were controlled by men and men were supposed to make all the decisions regarding their relationships. This is exemplified by Jane as she has no say in their relationship and she is not able to make decisions (Bront’e, p1-483). Mr. Rochester is the head in the relationship and demands instead of questioning Jane. In addition, Mr. Rochester manipulates when he wishes and evaluates Jane’s feeling towards him.
However, Jane does not agree with Mr. Rochester’s decision to control her and affect her independence and works hard to bring equality in the society. Jane believes that independence of women is important for their progress in life and also to ensure women are not considered inferior to men in the society. Jane tries to uphold a position in life that devoid of any debt to other people. Jane is of a low social status standing and this makes her unhappy as she does not have the means to be independent in life. Jane believes that without the means to be independent she will depend on a man. This compels Jane to marry Mr. Rochester to be able to survive in life. Jane feels uneasy as Mr. Rochester continues to shower her with luxurious gifts as this will make her depend on Mr. Rochester and remain in debt to him. As a result, Jane attempts to resist them (Bront’e, p1-483).
Additionally, women in the society were treated inferior by men as they were not able to earn a living and hence did not have the ability to remain independent in life and make decisions. Jane is determined to make her own money to avoid relying on her husband and also have autonomy. Jane informs Mr. Rochester that he will continue to work for Ade’le’s to earn a living as she does not want to depend on her husband. Though the men try to dominate her, Jane refuses to fully submit or loose all of her autonomy. Thus, Jane clearly shows the patriarchal society during the Victorian era and how women were treated (Bront’e ,p1-483).
Reference
Bront’e,C.Jane Eyre.1984. Oxford University,p1-483
Kent,S.K. Gender and power in Britain in 1640-1990.1999. Routledge,p4-6
