Plain Jane Eyre Fare

(Just for reference, I'm answering Question #2 from Chapter 7 of Jane Eyre)




     I believe the central idea of this chapter revolves somewhat around the reaffirmation of ideals and the purification of holy institutions (specifically this one). In this chapter Jane Eyre is in the  Lowood Institution, a charity school for girls (which has is centered in Christian beliefs and standards) when the institution's director, Mr. Brocklehurst, arrives. He has come for an inspection of the place and to list his concerns. He first list various menial things that aren't majorly important but then steps on a soap box to comment about a food incident. The incident, however, is that the girls' breakfast was "ill-prepared" and to make up for it the caring superintendent, Miss Temple, allowed them to have bread and cheese, more delicate than their usual, for lunch so that they would not starve until dinner. This upsets Mr. Brocklehurst. He makes an analogy between the ill-prepared breakfast and the “sufferings of the primitive Christians…the torments of martyrs…[and] the exhortations of our blessed Lord Himself" to show that they cannot be indulged in worldly pleasures. The hunger, thirst, and pain caused by these proceeding will cause these girls to become more spiritual; anything against that is against the goals and vision of the institution. I believe that these paragraphs (13-14) contain the chief phrases that defines this chapters central idea, specifically "His divine consolations, "If ye suffer hunger or thirst for My sake, happy are ye." Oh, madam, when you put bread and cheese, instead of burnt porridge, into these children's mouths, you may indeed feed their vile bodies, but you little think how you starve their immortal souls!"" He comments more on the anomalies within the Christian based institution carrying on with the girls hair that they should not be curled or braided, the dresses shouldn't be made of fine things, and the girls should be ashamed of vanity. From his characterization we can tell Mr. Brocklehurst is very rigid and strict with rules. I know not which way the external author (Charlotte Brontë) or the internal author (Jane Eyre) wished for the audience to interpret this chapter, but from the selection I read I felt that Mr. Brocklehurst was the one that distributes conviction to straighten the followers up and to align everyone to one vision as to make the institution and its students more religious and pleasing in eyes of God. To Jane Eyre the point of the chapter was to express her disdain for this man who would come to relive her past and ruin her future. The main point made by Charlotte Bronte was to show how uptight and unrealistic in appeals the leaders of religious institutions were. This is expressed by Brocklehurst's many requests, of which, some are not regarded as serious because something like braiding one's hair or having a proper meal was regarded not as child-like or fulfilling basic needs, but by him, of the enemy which was evil and unpleasing to those in religious positions and God.