#IBMakingArt

It is with a solemn heart that I am using my first Freebie. Thank you for this wonderful opportunity, and I look forward to seeing a crisp 100 in the gradebook.

The Society of Jane Eyre

6. Writers often highlight the values of a culture or a society by using characters who are alienated from that culture or society because of gender, race, class, or creed. Explain how the author uses various literary devices (such as irony, characterization, and figurative language) to provide social commentary, OR  how the character’s alienation reveals the surrounding society’s assumptions and moral values.

     The author of Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë, strived to show the anti-feminism nature of 19th century England through various figurative devices. Even though this book was written under a man's name, Brontë had to show women's alienation through the subtext of Jane's first-person perspective observations. One of the main examples of figurative language in the beginning of this excerpt is the use of foreshadowing. As the protagonist is recalling past events from her life, she is able to use foreshowing to emphasize what is to come. The text states, "All along I had been dreading the fulfilment of this promise,--I had been looking out daily for the 'Coming Man,' whose information respecting my past life and conversation was to brand me as a bad child for ever: now there he was" (Brontë). The man being discussed in this quote-Mr. Brocklehurst- was only just introduced to the audience, and is the main authority figure of the facility. However, not until the author says he will be the "fulfilment of this promise" does the reader realize he will play a crucial part in Jane's life. The narrator goes on to say that he will "brand me as a bad child for ever", foreshadowing he will punish Jane and will have a lasting effect. This supposedly eternal branding is symbolic because it shows the level of power men have over women. Even though Mr. Brocklehurst will likely not be a permanent figure in Jane's life, a single act could alienate her from society for her entire life. Since she is recalling this memory so vividly, this lifelong branding may still be affecting her years later because a man was the one who implemented it.
    

     Once Jane's punishment begins, the author effectively describes her emotions using similes. One notable example is when she is forced to sit in front of the class to be showcased as a heathen. All of her classmates peered at her, and she "...felt their eyes directed like burning- glasses against my scorched skin" (Brontë). The students' eyes are compared to burning glasses, showing the intensity of their stare. However, what makes this simile more effective is how the author described her skin as "scorched." Being used in the past tense, it shows that her skin was already burned before they started staring at her. This is not only symbolic of her earlier embarrassment, but how she is oppressed and alienated in society regardless of her actions. Having her classmates gawk at her was simply another instance of how she is scorned by a man's world, because she is now isolated from the peers she used to identify with.
     Lastly, the author successfully used juxtaposition to show how alienation in English society was not unique to one girl. When Jane's classmates walk by her and are not allowed to make eye contact, one girl does so obviously. In the protagonist's elation, she recalls, "What a smile! I remember it now, and I know that it was the effluence of fine intellect, of true courage; it lit up her marked lineaments, her thin face, her sunken grey eye, like a reflection from the aspect of an angel" (Brontë). The girl is described as somewhat grotesque, with marked features and a sunken eye. Yet, she is still described as being the reflection of an angel despite her outward appearance. As the smile given is one of understanding, it shows that many girls share the same struggles as Jane. While at first glance this may not seem like alienation because they have a common understanding, it shows how female inferiority is a trend in that society. The juxtaposition of an ugly girl being an angel shows that the most kind-hearted people are those who rebel against societal standards. Even though a simple smile may not seem too difficult, it is considered an act of rebellion in this scenario. It shows how the English patriarchy tried to isolate women from each other despite a shared understanding. Therefore, through these methods of foreshadowing, similes, and juxtaposition, Jane Eyre portrays women as alienated from society because they are practically helpless to oppose their superiors: men. 
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Picture: https://i.pinimg.com/originals/56/39/5f/56395feaf05d67a4ec43d8684497a103.jpg