"They are not fit to be with me," says young Jane Eyre of her rude and spoiled cousins ​​who consider themselves superior to her.(29) In this simple quote they find all facets of young Jane: she is angry, passionate and subtly – but positively – confident. It would be easy for Charlotte Bronte to continue Jane's story in this way, presenting her as a perpetually embittered and proud heroine, rendered incapable of growing up by her traumatic childhood, but Bronte refuses to cast her heroine as a flat character. Over the course of the novel, Jane grows, matures, and learns to forgive, but she never loses her courage and keen sense of self. Her growth is shown primarily in her visit to the Reed home as an adult and her ability to develop intimate relationships with people, while self-preservation is demonstrated in her determination to follow her beliefs in both Rochester and St. John. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Jane's visit to the Reed home at nineteen is a remarkable demonstration of her growth. The last time we see her in direct contact with her aunt and cousins, she has a burst of passion: “I'm not a liar: if I were, I would say that I loved you, but I declare that I don't love you: I hate you more than anyone else in the world except John Reed” (38). In her short but intense speech, Jane reveals all her repressed anger from years of mistreatment. He carries his contempt for the Reed family with him until he meets Helen Burns at Lowood. When Jane divulges her tale of woe to Helen, she expects an affirmation of her right to be angry. Instead he receives a much more constructive response: no doubt she was rude to you... wouldn't you be happier if you tried to forget her severity, along with the passionate emotions it arouses? Life seems too short to be spent cultivating animosity or recording wrongs. (61)Although Jane does not fully convey the effects of this advice to the reader, it can be assumed that she takes it to heart and allows herself to be softened and transformed; as his friendship with Helen begins, his references to the Reeds' cruelty become fewer and far less emphatic. When Helen dies, Jane seems to carry some of Helen's spirit of forgiveness within her, not enough to eliminate her assertiveness, but enough to make her less reluctant. Thus, when our heroine returns to Gateshead, she has overcome her passions and the wrongs done to her, and can declare simply and freely to her dying aunt: "I am passionate, but not vengeful... I would have been happy to love you if I you would have allowed it” (242). Although her aunt said nothing kind to her, admitted to keeping Jane's only other relative a secret from her, and even described the petty reasons for her years of harshness, Jane became mature enough to forgive her and not allow herself to be negatively affected by the event, she stays to help her cousins ​​pack their bags and leave Gateshead after her aunt's death, and even hides what she really thinks of them to avoid. conflicts. If Bronte had been a less skilled writer, she would have made Jane refuse the invitation to see her aunt out of spite and resentment, or perhaps she would have made her come and say cruel things to her "family". being able to stop dwelling on the past and offer help to the Reeds shows both the character's personal growth and Bronte's talent as a novelist. Another aspect of Jane's character that demonstrates her development is her ability to cultivate intimate relationships with people. . Although his young life is mostly pain and abuse, he never limits himself eithermakes no effort to be cold and unaffectionate. Although she has a good amount of self-control, she still allows herself to love other people, wanting nothing more than to be loved in return. Again, this could have been another case where Bronte could have made Jane flat and predictable. As a consequence of her childhood in Gateshead, where her only friend was Bessie, and her adolescence in Lowood, where love was available in smaller rations than bread, Jane might have guarded her feelings so closely that she could isolate herself completely. and refused to have anything more than a working relationship with others. However, she allows herself to become attached to Thornfield and Adele, and becomes passionate about Edward when he finally reveals his love. Even after the ill-fated marriage, he is still able to form new relationships with the Rivers. Hostility and distrust would have made her a classic disgruntled young woman, but her maturity and aptitude for personal growth make her an open and kind-hearted character despite her history. Despite her capacity for love and forgiveness, Jane never loses the strong sense of self that she first displayed in her battles with Aunt Reed. Given that everyone in Gateshead makes a daily effort to convince Jane that she is worthless and evil, Mr. Brocklehurst tries to convince everyone that she is a liar, and the atmosphere of Lowood is not particularly conducive to self-esteem, it would not have been surprising to find the Nineteen-year-old Jane in a state of uncertainty, self-loathing, and depression. But these things do not afflict Jane Eyre for more than an instant. Although she has a tendency to be very self-critical, insisting on drawing a bad portrait of herself and a good one of her "rival" (which ties in with the larger pattern of her certainty that Rochester doesn't love her), this could really be seen more like realism than self-hatred. Her strong sense of self is most evident in difficult situations with the two men who want to marry her. Assertiveness grants verisimilitude to the character, as it would be impossible for Jane to completely change from a fiery girl to a passive, meek woman without a trace of her former courage. When Edward Rochester's existing marriage is revealed to her at the altar, Edward does not want Jane to leave him. He is sure that, although they are not married, she will agree to continue their relationship and travel with him to France. Considering the highly passionate state of their relationship and the fervent love Jane has for Edward, it takes a considerable amount of confidence and self-respect to tell Edward that she loves him, but that it would be immoral to stay – and leaves Thornfield at night, without even a glance at his beloved. After this, we once again see her sense of self and her full understanding of what she wants and who she loves when St. John Rivers proposes to her. Again, due to her constant search for love and the tendency of many to try to convince her that she is unlovable, she could have weakened and accepted the proposal for fear of never receiving another one again. But she is stronger and more faithful to her heart: «Like his wife – always at his side, and always contained, and always controlled – forced to always keep the fire of my nature low, to force it to burn inside and to never emit a scream. , although the imprisoned flame consumed vital after vital, this would be unbearable” (410). She knows that a marriage to St. John would require her to compromise and abandon the only man she truly loves, and she is strong enough to maintain her resolve and not marry the gloomy priest. Both of these cases demonstrate that despite everything she's been through, Jane knows herself and trusts that knowledge more than anything anyone else can say.