Race In Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre

During the Victorian era, one of the underlying issues that society was faced with is race. In fact, similar, derogatory characteristics were allocated to different groups of people such as white, middle class women, Blacks and members of the lower class. These different groups of people were seen as irrational, superstitious and sharing the same physical qualities like skin colour for example. However, race in the book Jane Eyre applies not only to colour, but nationality as well. In addition, the way that these different groups of people were seen showed some of the inequalities that existed during this particular time period. The author Charlotte Bronte allows the reader to gain insight as to how race defined a person according to Victorian prejudices, through the main character, Jane, as well as through the other characters like Bertha, who assists with the development of the story. Bronte does this …show more content…
Not only does Bronte use those points to show how race functions in this novel. In fact, she also uses race to highlight the arrogant treatment of the upper class people such as Blanche, for example, towards the lower classes like Jane, for example. The issue of race and its function in this particular novel is represented as negative. During the time that this book was written, there was an exceptional fear of the racial differences as it regards to beliefs and culture of the Victorian Era. Overall, the importance and representation of the functions in which race plays in this particular novel assist in showing some of the many inequalities that existed between the different races in the Victorian Era, as well as the many struggles of social oppression that the people were faced