1. The author's different social backgrounds
Jane Austen lived in18th century, while Charlotte Brontexq lived in19th century. Different social backgrounds make them create different characters.
In the era of Jane Austen's life, young women in the upper class could not really be independent, and women were shut out of work, university, politics and so on. Therefore, it is extremely ironic that Elizabeth thinks that Lady Catherine is a judge in her own life, although she is not a member of the county security committee, because it is impossible for a woman to be a judge at that time. At that time, only a few occupations were open to women, and most of these jobs had low wages and poor environment. Therefore, many upper-class women only get money through marriage or inheritance, and only a few women are professional women. They can earn their own money to support themselves and gain independence. At that time, unmarried women had to live with their families, and marriage became the only means for them to get rid of the shackles of their families and stay away from the protection of their parents. It can be seen that some women choose marriage because marriage is the only feasible way to get financial security and escape from their families, which is also the reason why Elizabeth lacks self-reliance compared with Jane Eyre.
Charlotte Brontexq lived in the glorious Victorian era of19th century. People advocate unity, thrift and self-control, and individuals should work hard for the prosperity of the country. Due to the prosperity of social economy, many women, especially middle-class women, have their own leisure time, and they can arrange their own time. Victorian women had a sense of sovereignty. Jane Eyre, an ordinary woman, was plain and short, but her rebellious spirit became an exploration of shaping female images at that time. Jane Eyre bravely broke through the shackles of tradition and enthusiastically pursued love and happiness. She demanded equality between men and women, women's liberation and spiritual independence. Jane Eyre is the first independent female image who treats love, life, society and even religion in her unique way.
2. feminism
Elizabeth and Jane Eyre are two great rebellious women. They are two important female images in the history of English literature who pursue independence and treat love and life in a unique way. They are self-respecting, independent, fearless of power and equal to men. Their personality depends on the author's attitude towards life, and both authors have one thing in common, namely feminism.
Jane Austen's works often describe the relationship between men and women and expose the female problems of her time, so as to criticize society, especially its influence on women. She was a pioneer in the feminist movement. Even at that time, marriage and children were women's occupations, but the heroine in the work was not only interested in marriage and children. In Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontexq reflects women's desire for independence and equality, and pays attention to the process of women's status, spiritual independence and personality development. It shows us the heroine's struggle for independence. Biographers all emphasize Charlotte Brontexq's lonely rural life. If she doesn't behave well, her aunt will treat her with "hell fire". Life has taught her a harsh lesson. She lost her mother when she was five. Charlotte Brontexq achieved his artistic achievements by taking his suffocating childhood as the theme, and the result was an immortal image of Jane Eyre.
Second, the similarities between Jane Eyre and Elizabeth.
1. Self-esteem and self-love
Jane Eyre and Elizabeth are both women who pursue spiritual independence. In that era when men dominated almost all social fields, it is very valuable to have such qualities. Jane Eyre realized the importance of self-esteem even when she was a child. When my aunt thought she was a girl who was easy to cause trouble and behaved badly, her self-esteem was greatly hurt. No matter how difficult it is, she won't sell herself short or cry roast meat. She has reason and rules in her heart, so let her respect herself. She fell in love with Mr. Rochester, first, because Mr. Rochester respected her; On the other hand, because she thinks she is qualified to win the love of men. When she learned that Rochester had a crazy wife, she resolutely chose to leave, which further proved her strong self-esteem.
Both Jane Eyre and Elizabeth are clearly aware of the value of women, and in this respect, Elizabeth is not inferior to Jane Eyre. At first contact, she didn't like Darcy, who was born in a famous family, mainly because Darcy's behavior hurt Elizabeth's self-esteem. Her sister indulged in official and obscene flattery and finally eloped with others. In her opinion, her sister's behavior is an infringement on women's dignity, and she is ashamed of it. Strong self-esteem made her never do such a thing. Even when Darcy showed her love and proposed to her, she resolutely refused. She couldn't stand Darcy's offence to herself, because these words touched the most sensitive part of her heart. She doesn't accept others' pity and contempt, and she is confident, which is exactly the quality that modern women should have-knowing themselves, cherishing themselves and respecting themselves.
2. Not afraid of power
/kloc-British society in the 0/9th century was influenced by the Enlightenment, and people advocated "freedom, equality and fraternity". Influenced by this thought, Jane Eyre showed a rebellious character in her childhood, and in the days when she lived with her aunt, Jane Eyre showed super endurance. Although her aunt hated her and abused her, she was never afraid of her aunt, but showed amazing will in front of her aunt. The trumped-up charges imposed on her by Mr. Lloyd Brewer Hearst turned her inferiority into hatred for this hypocritical hypocrite and for Lloyd's school killing children in a religious cloak. It is in such a school that Jane Eyre made up her mind to leave this dark and dreary environment and yearn for a new life. After leaving school, she stepped into the big stage of society with her unique personality and super exploration spirit. She strives for independence, demands personality liberation and opposes traditional church preaching.
Like Jane Eyre, Elizabeth shows contempt for power. She has keen observation and judgment, strong self-confidence, spiritual superiority and charming rebellious character. She dares to act boldly and challenge decent ethics with her own actions. Many of her actions run counter to the traditional "women's morality": she walked three miles in the rain to visit her sick sister, flatly refused her cousin's proposal of marriage, and in the face of Darcy's dignity-damaging arrogance, she declared that "even if all the men in the world are dead, I don't want to marry someone like you." When Elizabeth was invited to a party at Lady Catherine's house, everyone was too nervous to talk casually. Some people even took the opportunity to please Lady Catherine, but Elizabeth was the only one who kept calm. She even accused Lady Catherine of being "unreasonable and unreasonable" to her face.
The pursuit of true love
As a poor and humble governess, Jane Eyre did not suppress her emotions according to the requirements of society, but dared to take the world by storm and fell in love with the nobility of the upper class, unwilling to change her education and style of cultivating bourgeois ladies and abide by the rules of aristocratic games to enter the upper class. Jane Eyre and Rochester are really soul mates and equal in love. Their combination is far stronger than the combination of family and status, which is beyond the scope of economy.
Similarly, Elizabeth pursues true love wholeheartedly. She despises Charlotte's view of marriage, and thinks that Charlotte's marriage is based solely on money, not on mutual love. She also laughed at her sister Linda's hasty marriage. She thinks Linda's marriage is based on sex, and there is no emotional communication between them. In Elizabeth's view, you shouldn't get married without love. There are only two kinds of unhappy marriages in the world: those based on economy and those based on beauty. Marriages like Elizabeth and Darcy last forever because of the strong bond of love, and both sides always live in happiness.
3. Differences between Jane Eyre and Elizabeth
1. Comparison of life experience and family background
Elizabeth, the heroine in Pride and Prejudice, was born in a typical middle-class family and received secondary education. She has no job, can't be independent economically, and her family is in constant trouble. Mother is absurd and vulgar, sisters are impetuous or bookish, relatives and friends are uneducated, and father's property will be inherited by distant relatives, so marriage is her best destination. Elizabeth's life is the epitome of Austin's England. Capitalism was established, but feudalism was deeply rooted. Hereditary aristocracy and middle class coexist, men completely occupy the mainstream of society, and women are excluded from social affairs. The only place where they can display their talents is their families. But there are maids at home, and naturally they become idle "idlers". She and her sisters pay the most attention to popular fashion styles, are keen on parties, talk about single officers or rich children who have just started their careers, and yearn for an ideal marriage with both love and material harvest.
The heroine in Jane Eyre is a woman living at the bottom of society. Her parents died when she was a child, and she was put in foster care at Aunt Reed's house, where she was deeply abused. He was sent to lowood school and received a cruel education to punish the body and save the soul. The indomitable will and tenacious vitality not only enabled her to survive the physical and mental devastation, but also enabled her to learn to play the piano, draw pictures and speak fluent French. Although she is lonely, humble and penniless, her talent and mind enable her to live independently. As a tutor, although his salary is pitiful and he is discriminated against, he can be called economic independence and maintain his dignity in front of everyone. Compared with Jane Eyre, Elizabeth is just a flower in the greenhouse and has never experienced ups and downs. Although she is not as good as your wife, she is also taken good care of. The latter is a wild flower in the wilderness, which has been graceful and has faced life through storms.
2. Personality comparison
Elizabeth's relaxed living environment makes her smart, lively, witty and humorous, and natural and graceful. She has keen observation and judgment, strong self-confidence, spiritual superiority and charming rebellious character. She dares to act boldly and challenge decent ethics with her own actions. But compared with Charlotte Brontexq's Jane Eyre, Austen emphasizes women's self-worth, which is a rare non-utilitarian feature in women's consciousness. For Austin, it is far more important to rebuild a sound female subject consciousness than to strive for women's equal social status. She does not emphasize that women must achieve the same social status as men, and even denies the difference between male and female roles in society. She attaches importance to women's own development and self-improvement, and emphasizes women's self-discovery.
Jane Eyre's suffering has created her sensitive, enthusiastic, brave and independent character. She dares to resist and fight for freedom and equal status. But under her strong self-esteem, she has a sensitive and inferior heart. She was afraid of her surroundings and took a defensive stance. Her life experience, appearance, property and status all make her feel inferior, so she will resist insults and discrimination from outside more strongly than anyone else and work harder to safeguard her personal dignity. Her personality is characterized by bold and rebellious words. Compared with Elizabeth, Jane Eyre is more mature and independent, with anti-intelligence, initiative, independence and resistance, but her intelligent independence is a short and ordinary but passionate, stubborn and independent character, which is also stronger and more representative.
3. Comparison of views on marriage and love
In Elizabeth's view, you shouldn't get married without love. Her attitude towards love and marriage is strangely rational. Although the marriage she yearns for is based on love, it must not be divorced from economic needs. Although she was initially fond of Wickham, who was handsome in appearance and eloquent, and was once determined to win his heart, menstruation persuaded her to quit quickly and rationally, effectively preventing herself from falling in love with Wickham further. There was only one reason: neither side had any property. In the traditional patriarchal cultural concept, Elizabeth has always been in a weak position where women are chosen. The marriage of material love and double harvest is only a means to improve her status and a way to prove her cleverness.
Compared with Elizabeth's love, Jane Eyre, as a poor and humble tutor, did not suppress her emotions according to the requirements of society. Compared with the relationship between men and women in Victorian era, her sense of equality and her pursuit of equal love are nothing less than a bomb. The novel tells us that the best life of human beings is human dignity, and the ending of the novel arranges such a life for the heroine. What Jane Eyre shows us is a simplification, a return to nature, a feeling of pursuing wholehearted devotion, and a sense of simplification regardless of gains and losses. It is like a glass of ice water, purifying every reader's mind and awakening readers, especially female readers.
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Elizabeth is sensible and humorous, smart and bold. She is a rare rational person in the world of fools, which is also the virtue she can get in return from Darcy. Her fate has a contingency that is divorced from reality. Stubborn and enthusiastic Jane Eyre is more realistic and is the representative of women who resist the patriarchal society. These two female images are obviously different because of the writers' different life experiences and times, but they have their own advantages and are deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, which makes these two novels occupy a place in the history of English literature and even world literature.