Extract analysis — proposal scene

GCSE · English Literature · Edexcel · P2.A.JE — Jane Eyre (Charlotte Brontë) — selfhood, gender, class, education, religion and the gothic; the bildungsroman of Jane

Question

Read Vol 2 Ch 8: "I am no bird; and no net ensnares me; I am a free human being with an independent will" (Rochester's first proposal scene).

(a) Explore Brontë's presentation of Jane in this extract. (20 marks)

Indicative content:

Imagery of birds, nets, freedom
Direct speech rhythm — short emphatic clauses
Contrast with Rochester's desperation
Jane's voice asserting equal soulhood despite class disparity
Foreshadowing — the storm splitting the chestnut tree later this scene
Pre-modern feminism: claim to "independent will"

20 marks · take your time before peeking.

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