Jane Eyre takes place in England in the nineteenth century. During this time, women were treated far differently than men. There weren't as many jobs available for women. The most acceptable choices for a woman in Jane's position were to become a governess, teacher, or a housewife. This is probably why Jane almost agreed to become a missionary's wife when St. John asked; (Bronte 491-492) it would be a chance to do something beyond the limits of a woman's work in those days.
Women were also expected to behave in a different way than men during this time period. In the book Bronte says on the matter, "Women are supposed to be very calm generally; but women feel just as men feel... they suffer from too rigid a restraint... precisely as men would suffer...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." (159) Throughout the book I noticed how important it was for a woman to be educated and have talents such as playing the piano or painting to gain respect from anyone. For instance, Blanche Ingram was considered to be a very desirable bride because of her beauty and talents.
It was also much more common in this time period to marry someone for money or rank. For example, Jane did not look down upon Mr. Rochester when she believed he was going to marry Miss Ingram for her social status because she knew it was not an uncommon purpose for marriage in his social class. (Bronte 240)
This novel represents the gender roles and social classes of society in the nineteenth century. It disagrees with the ideas of how a woman should behave, and expresses that the wealthy and poor should not be separated from each other.
Brontë, Charlotte, Susan Ostrov. Weisser, and George Stade. Jane Eyre. New York: Barnes & Noble, 2003. Electronic.
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