Although Jane Eyre and Bertha Mason are both oppressed by the British patriarchal system, the two women differ greatly in the ways that they accept and cope with the reality of their place in society. (Waller) Jane Eyre follows the rules. Although she initially fights against what she believes to be unfair restrictions at Gateshead, she soon discovers that rebellion carries a high price. Therefore she soon learns to modify her behaviour to conform to socially accepted standards. Bertha Mason, on the other hand, never conform to society’s restrictions on women’s behaviour and so she blindly breaks all of the rules. Therefore, Jane is successful in securing her desired place in society because she ultimately learns the value of conforming to the rules and operating within the context of their established structures, whereas Bertha does not conform and therefore does not survive.
As an adult, Jane is a “plain governess”, (291) whereas Bertha is a big woman who “snatched and growled like some strange wild animal but it was covered with clothing.” (328) Jane is an orphan who lived in a charity school. Bertha on the other hand is the spoiled daughter of a wealthy West India merchant. Jane is modest and virginal and Bertha is “a nature who is the most gross, impure and depraved.” (345) Both of them have no choice but to live within the setting of the male-dominated society. In different ways, Jane and Bertha each attempt to function within society acceptable standards while still maintaining a sense of individuality. (Waller) Consequently, both women are judged and punished severely when they do not conform to society’s expectations.
Jane is bound to “powerful or economically viable men” like Uncle Reed, Rochester and St. John Rivers several times in the novel. Although it may seem that these attachments are necessary for Jane’s welfare, in reality they are signs of oppression. (Waller) At Gateshead, she is taken in as an orphan by her uncle. After he dies, Jane remains with his family but is unloved and unwanted. To make matters worse, she is resented by her wealthy relations, who usually enforce unjust rules that Jane has little choice but to obey. Jane’s rebellion brings about neither justice nor understanding, but only more harsh treatment and loneliness. She is eventually made known to the importance of conforming to social norms and by the time she becomes a teacher at Lowood, Jane no longer needs to be externally controlled by society. (Waller)
However, even after she learns the value of conformity, Jane continues to experience the oppression of patriarchy. When she obtains her position as governess at Thornfield, she initially enjoys relative liberty. She is earning more money than she did at Lowood and having Mrs. Fairfax as a companion. Rochester frees Jane from the traditional class conventionalities because he relates to her as a relative social equal. (Waller) However, Jane’s comfortable life at Thornfield begins to change. As Rochester’s feelings for her increase, his efforts in manipulating and controlling her also raises. However, Rochester’s efforts to dominate Jane have become less effective as the amount of force he employs increases. Rochester’s most intense attempt to control Jane is shown in his insistence that she runs away with him to the south of France, making her realise that he is leaving her no choice but to escape from him. Eventually, Jane senses that if she stays at Thornfield, Rochester will continue to press her to enter a sexual relationship with him, something she cannot accept. (Waller) Because she loves him so, Jane fears that Rochester may succeed in wearing away her determination in leaving Thornfield. Opposing and refusing his request, Jane leaves Thornfield in a panic following her own principle. This scene demonstrates that Jane would rather give up her chance for happiness than do anything that would yield her conformity to social custom. She is convinced that maintaining a strict adherence to the rules will, in the end, help her to achieve what she want, even if that turns out to be simply social acceptance and love desires. Eventually, Jane’s conformance to social rules has become the defining element of her adult self. (Waller) She knows her position in the society, and although she may not always be comfortable with it, she internally controls her own behaviour and conforms to society’s rules throughout the rest of her life. (Waller) Later in the novel, Bertha dies and Jane has finally married Rochester. As a result, Jane has now successfully established social acceptance and maintained her own self-respect. In the end, it is her conformity to the society standards that makes it possible for her to achieve her most cherished desires and goals, like being a legitimate wife of Edward Rochester and the mother of their children. (Waller)
Unlike Jane, Bertha Mason is interested in neither social acceptance nor self-respect. According to Rochester’s narrative, Bertha’s childhood experiences, which are very different from Jane’s, have not prepared her to operate within the framework of patriarchal society. Bertha is not taught in her childhood that non-compliance to social rules carries ultimate redemption and punishment, and consequently, she never learns the value of conforming to the expectations of others. As a child, Bertha is brought up in an atmosphere of wealth and extravagance, and is delighted in the luxuries provided by her wealthy family. Bertha’s father wants to marry her daughter off as quickly as possible. Rochester’s father and brother are also eager to arrange the match to provide wealth for him without having to divide the family estate.
Rochester is “ignorant, raw, and inexperienced” and is “dazzled” by the beautiful Bertha, who is admired by “All the men in her circle.” (343) However, after their hasty marriage, Rochester realises that he “‘never loved…never esteemed…nor even knew her” and that he was not sure of the existence of one virtue in her nature…neither modesty nor benevolence, nor candour, nor refinement in her mind or manners.” (344) He finds her nature is “totally alien” to him with “her cast of mind common, low, narrow, and singularly incapable of being led to anything higher, expanded to anything larger.” (344) It is clear that Bertha has neither intention nor desire to operate within the structure of traditional marriage or conform to the expectations of her husband or society. Therefore, Rochester considers Bertha’s lusty sexual appetite as an inappropriate and devilish act, even within the framework of marriage. (Waller) As a result, Rochester locks his wife in the attic at Thornfield for he thinks that she is “safely lodged in that third-story room, of whose secret inner cabinet she has now for ten years made a wild beast’s den–a goblin’s cell.” (348) As a member of the patriarchy, Rochester has the unquestionable power and authority to judge and punish Bertha. He is giving Bertha a life sentence of imprisonment for her aggressive sexuality and refusal to conform to patriarchal expectations.
However, Rochester’s description of Bertha and her behaviour are very different from Jane’s initial impression. It seems that Bertha, before her marriage with Rochester, is an enchanting lady, who is able to function within a polite society. However, after her marriage with Rochester, he starts to control Bertha’s behaviour by imposing patriarchal expectations and restrictions but Bertha does not comply, and rebels even further against her husband’s dictatorship. Rochester is humiliated and so he avoids her completely. Rochester’s increasing strength in confining Bertha leads her to the ultimately passage for escape, which also destroys Thornfield Hall. Even in death, Bertha refuses to be controlled by her husband. (Waller)
Jane Eyre may seem like a fairy tale with a happy ending but by looking closely, one will find that it truly reveals the oppressed and non-oppressed thoughts of Charlotte Bronte through the use of words, sentences and characters. All these add to the strong and fascinating character of Jane and certainly proved the phrase “no conformity, no survival.”