2. How would you best
describe the central idea of this chapter? Which phrase from the chapter best
helps develop the central idea?
The
central idea of chapter seven is that Jane Eyre is attempting to comment on the
quality of life and treatment of women within the society that she lives in.
She begins the chapter by speaking on the hardships that the main character has
to endure on a weekly basis; she is forced to live in extremely cold
conditions, and has to walk through intense cold on a regular basis in order to
go to church. She, as well as the women that surround her, are deprived of food
with any real sustenance, and many times eat only two small meals a day. The
women within this story are subjected to physical abuse like this, but chapter
seven also seeks to demonstrate the psychological abuse that girls faced in
this time period. In this story, there was only one male character: Mr.
Brocklehurst. His inclusion in this story seeks to underscore one of the
central ideas of this chapter, that women from lower classes are subjugated to a
great extent by men. Mr. Brocklehurst only has negative things to say about the
girls within the orphanage. He berates one female for having curled hair,
discourages any women from wearing extravagant clothing, and publicly shames
the main character for accidentally dropping a tablet. Mr. Brocklehurst’s
reasoning for doing all of these things was that it was sinful in the eyes of
God, yet when three women from the upper-class show up in extravagant clothing,
they are not shamed, and rather given seats of honor. This shows that it is not
in fact religious reasoning for oppressing the lower-class women, but instead prejudices
that people within this society hold, as certain women are allowed to hold
rights that others are not.
The phrase “these ladies were deferentially received by
Miss Temple, as Mrs. and the Misses Brocklehurst, and conducted to seats of
honour at the top of the room” helps develop the central idea of the chapter because
it shows the hypocrisy of Mr. Brocklehurst. He is quick to point out every flaw
that he can perceive in the orphan girls, and cites religion as his
justification for saying that they were committing wrongdoings. However, when
the ladies of higher-class society arrive, not only does Mr. Brocklehurst not
berate them for wearing opulent clothing, they are given seats of honor. This
means that Eyre is attempting to show that many truly do not believe the
religious ideologies used to oppress women, as the same standards are not
applied to all women.
I do agree with your suggestions regarding the disparities between the quality of life and treatment of women within Jane's society and I believe that there is significance in that sense, however I perceived Chapter 7 alternatively and I think its valuable to consider. I believe the purpose of this excerpt is to indirectly propose the corruptions of the evangelical English society of the 14th century through the idea of creed. I believe that this chapter speaks much less about the religious implications for being a male vs. a female in this society, but more about the liberties and luxuries allocated to those of higher creed. For example, the three relatives of Mr. Brocklehurst are all females but still can indulge in much greater luxuries than the charity school children. Therefore, I believe this chapter is much more about the shortcomings of that respective society in reference to creed, rather than gender.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with your suggestions regarding the disparities between the quality of life and treatment of women within Jane's society and I believe that there is significance in that sense, however I perceived Chapter 7 alternatively and I think its valuable to consider. I believe the purpose of this excerpt is to indirectly propose the corruptions of the evangelical English society of the 14th century through the idea of creed. I believe that this chapter speaks much less about the religious implications for being a male vs. a female in this society, but more about the liberties and luxuries allocated to those of higher creed. For example, the three relatives of Mr. Brocklehurst are all females but still can indulge in much greater luxuries than the charity school children. Therefore, I believe this chapter is much more about the shortcomings of that respective society in reference to creed, rather than gender.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with your suggestions regarding the disparities between the quality of life and treatment of women within Jane's society and I believe that there is significance in that sense, however I perceived Chapter 7 alternatively and I think its valuable to consider. I believe the purpose of this excerpt is to indirectly propose the corruptions of the evangelical English society of the 14th century through the idea of creed. I believe that this chapter speaks much less about the religious implications for being a male vs. a female in this society, but more about the liberties and luxuries allocated to those of higher creed. For example, the three relatives of Mr. Brocklehurst are all females but still can indulge in much greater luxuries than the charity school children. Therefore, I believe this chapter is much more about the shortcomings of that respective society in reference to creed, rather than gender.
ReplyDeleteThink about organization here- did you treat both parts of the question equally? Might this have been a stronger response if you had incorporated your language analysis with the analysis of the central idea?
ReplyDeleteAdditionally, I do agree with Cody- there are some missed opportunities for a deeper and more thorough analysis.