Romantic Elements
- subjectivity / subjective emotions (1st person narration)
- Jane is in a quest to be loved. She searches for romantic love, for a sense of being valued and a sense of belonging. She has no family and learns that other ties can be broken easily by death (Helen Burns), by marriage (Miss Temple) or by a higher authority (law/Mr Rochester).
- sense of individuality: She learns how to gain love without losing her autonomy. Only after proving her self-sufficiency can she marry Mr Rochester.
- imagery of nature: Jane is always in contact with nature. She finds solace in nature. She reflects her feelings through descriptions of nature. Ex: the opening paragraph.
- She goes through a process of self-discovery, an inner journey.
- conflict between passion and reason
Gothic Elements
- Most of the time there is a gloomy atmosphere. It is always raining when something bad happens or when Jane feels sad and depressed. Ex: page 18 (rain and wind)
- Supernatural phenomena, ghosts, mystery, terror: the strange mysterious laugh, the mysterious fire, someone in the attic, the fortune-teller lady, Mr Mason being wounded by
“someone”, “someone” tearing Jane’s veil into pieces the night before her wedding.
- Suffering in the hands of a villain/ undeserved suffering: John Reed, Mrs Reed, Mr Brocklehurst.
- Superstitions: In the red-room Jane is afraid of Mr Reed’s ghost. Her dreams are depicted as messages. For example, seeing an infant in a dream is a bad omen. The chestnut tree is struck by lightening and is split in two which is a bad omen and which foreshadows the split of Mr Rochester and Jane.
- She hears a voice (Mr Rochester) while talking to St. John.
