Bronte poses a large question with the addition of the character Bertha within the novel, even though “...a woman writer must examine, assimilate and transcend the extreme images of 'angel' and 'monster' which male authors have generated for her" (Gilbert 17). Bertha is considered essentially subhuman by the other characters in the novel, all due to the fact that she could not fit the mold of the “angel in the house.” This poses the question: are the expectations of women in Victorian society enough to drive women to insanity, eventually leading to an inescapable demise? Though this question does not have a specific answer, there are many symbols and ideas within Jane Eyre that add to the discussion. Bronte uses the character’s within her novel to portray how the “angel in the house” can lose her mind and become the “madwoman in the attic” due to the pressures of Victorian societal expectations placed upon married
Bronte poses a large question with the addition of the character Bertha within the novel, even though “...a woman writer must examine, assimilate and transcend the extreme images of 'angel' and 'monster' which male authors have generated for her" (Gilbert 17). Bertha is considered essentially subhuman by the other characters in the novel, all due to the fact that she could not fit the mold of the “angel in the house.” This poses the question: are the expectations of women in Victorian society enough to drive women to insanity, eventually leading to an inescapable demise? Though this question does not have a specific answer, there are many symbols and ideas within Jane Eyre that add to the discussion. Bronte uses the character’s within her novel to portray how the “angel in the house” can lose her mind and become the “madwoman in the attic” due to the pressures of Victorian societal expectations placed upon married