How Does Charlotte Bronte Use Bird Imagery In Jane Eyre

In Charlotte Bronte’s novel, Jane Eyre, Bronte uses bird imagery that parallels Jane’s journey as she becomes a woman. The birds symbolize how Jane is trapped, like a caged bird, in the beginning and then develops into a mature young woman who has the strength to ‘set off on her own’. In the end of the novel, Jane returns to Mr. Rochester to start a family, much like birds return to their nest. Through the use of bird imagery such as doves, Bronte allows the readers to gain insight into who Jane really is which is caring, altruistic and self-reliant. In chapter one, Jane chooses to be separated from her cousins at Gateshead Hall and invests her time into reading Bewick’s History of British Birds. She finds privacy in a window seat where she is able to be away from …show more content…
Mr. Brocklehurst, the head of the Lowood school, cares little for the girls who attend his school and he feeds them very poorly. He believes in a philosophy based on limitation and he states “my plan in bringing up these girls is, not to accustom them to habits of luxury and indulgence, but to render them hardy, patient, self-denying. Should any little accidental disappointment of the appetite occur, such as the spoiling of a meal, the under or the over dressing of a dish, the incident ought not to be neutralised by replacing with something more delicate the comfort lost, thus pampering the body and obviating the aim of this institution.” Birds typically feed off of others scraps and Jane’s willingness to give her food away, which is given to her infrequently, shows her compassion for others. After eight years of possessing the same routine at Lowood, Jane declares for liberty, much like a Dove. According to Bewick, “Doves live as rather voluntary captives, or transient guests, than as permanent inhabitants" and Jane can be considered a captive until she completes her