Removing the mask: A study of male dominance in Brontë’s Jane Eyre

Abstract

Although most scholars seem to accept that men generally regarded women as objects during the Victorian period, the field of gender studies is fast becoming a “hot topic”. As more and more scholars begin to examine the works of both major and minor female authors in the Victorian period, we are able to complete a more in-depth analysis of how women were both regarded, as well as treated, in the Victorian period. In Charlotte Brontë’s acclaimed novel, Jane Eyre, I decided to examine what part men played in the formation of the female identity. Using the central character, Jane, as my main study, I decided to look at three stages of her life: a young schoolgirl, a growing governess, and a recovering schoolmistress. How did the main male influences in her life impact the development of her identity? In this paper, I argue that there is no “pure” Jane, as she is a product of the male influences in her life, unable to truly be herself.