As a child in Gateshead, Jane is entirely dependent on the Reeds (Brontë 13). In many ways, she is a prisoner. Indeed, Jane's imprisonment in the Red Room is the complete physical manifestation of her forced submission. Inferior to the servants, because she does "nothing for her maintenance", Jane is beaten by her cousin and upset by her aunt. Jane mocks the term "benefactress" for Mrs. Reed, because her aunt's help comes with the heavy price of subjugation. Jane is told that she "should not consider herself on an equal footing with the Misses Reed and Master Reed." . . It’s up to her to be humble and try to make herself agreeable to them.” However, despite all her efforts, Jane cannot succeed: say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay “All the violent tyrannies of John Reed, all the proud indifference of his sister, all the dislike of his mother, all the partiality of the servants, appeared in my disturbed mind like a dark deposit in a troubled well . Why was I always in pain, always intimidated, always accused, always condemned? Why could I never please? Why was there no point in trying to win anyone's favor? . . . I did not dare to commit any fault: I tried to fulfill all my duties; and I was called mean and boring, sullen and sneaky. » Jane admits that she is not inclined to rebellion at the beginning of her story. It seems fitting, then, that the novel begins as Jane's first mutiny occurs when she attacks John for his mistreatment. This moment of revolt seems to open the floodgates for Jane as she becomes increasingly unhappy with her position with the Reeds. When the final outburst occurs when Mrs. Reed calls Jane a liar in front of Mr. Brocklehurst, Jane's passionate nature gets the better of her. Jane expresses her desire for love: “You think I have no feelings and can do without a little love or kindness; but I cannot live like this: and you have no pity.” His need for love often hinders his chance for freedom and vice versa; the Reeds present the first instance of Jane realizing one while the other is absent. Jane's rebuke of her aunt is both truthful and liberating (34-5). After relieving her pent-up frustration, Jane says that "my soul began to expand, to exult, with the strangest feeling of freedom, of triumph that I had ever felt." It was as if an invisible bond had broken and I had struggled to achieve an unexpected freedom” (35). The result of Jane's ten years at Gateshead is the revelation that obedience, when it goes against one's own moral understanding, is a betrayal of self. “I must hate those who, whatever I do to please them, persist in hating me; I must resist those who punish me unjustly. It is also natural that I love those who show me affection or submit to punishment when I think it is deserved” (54-5). In the second part of Jane's life, her education acquired at Lowood offers her the opportunity to break away from those close to her (39). The end of this dependence allows Jane to foster an education that will ensure her livelihood for years to come – a necessity for gaining independence (80). Additionally, Jane is finally recognized as an individual through her budding friendships with Helen Burns and then Mrs. Temple, which gives her greater self-esteem (70, 80). She gains intellectual freedom within the institution, something she had not obtained at the Reeds, but she finds the monotony of her existence stifling after the eight yearslet her pass there (81). At this point, Jane doesn't even consider total freedom an option, "a new bondage." . . it doesn't look too sweet; it's not like words like Freedom, Excitement, Pleasure: it sounds really delicious; but nothing more than what appears to me” (81-2). She remains realistic about what she can hope to achieve in a hierarchical society. With her new servitude, Jane finds an intellectual equal in Mr. Rochester, but their different social positions remain an obstacle to their union (124, 143). On first contemplating the prospect of her and Rochester together, Jane said: "A refreshing wind, awakened by hope, carried my spirit triumphantly towards the milestone: but I could not reach it, even in imagination - a contrary breeze blew from the earth, and continually brought me back. Sense would resist delirium: judgment would warn passion” (143). Jane remains realistic about what she can expect in life. Rochester's marriage plan threatens to strip Jane of her independence. At this time, because of Rochester's superior financial situation, Jane would always be his inferior, and he, her "master" (252). Jane is fully aware of this; she knows that by accepting Rochester's proposal, she risks sacrificing her autonomy for love if she cannot alleviate the financial difference between them. Jane thinks that "if I only had the prospect of one day bringing Mr. Rochester a fit of fortune, I could better bear to be kept by him now." This is why Jane makes the effort to write to her Uncle Eyre before her marriage in the hope of acquiring even the slightest fortune (252). Without her own financial freedom, Jane is reluctant to accept the wealth Rochester wishes to give her because she feels she is not entitled to it (252). In her effort to get him some jewelry, Jane proclaims “never mind the jewelry!” I don't like hearing about them. Jewels for Jane Eyre seem unnatural and strange” (243). Jane is adamant that she doesn't change for anyone, including Rochester. During their engagement, Jane has no idea of ​​becoming an elegant lady of a higher class; she claims to be just herself: simple, without magnificent beauty or absolute complacency (244). By not becoming the classic rich lady, Jane asserts that true independence comes from being no one but yourself. At the Moor household, Jane finally finds herself among her equals in society and spirit. “The more I got to know the inmates at Moor House, the more I liked them. . . I could join Diana and Mary in all their pursuits... There was a reviving pleasure in sexual intercourse, of a kind which I now taste for the first time - the pleasure resulting from a perfect harmony of tastes, feelings and desires. principles. (327). Certainly, Jane's time with the Rivers offers her the kind of familial love she has sought for so long (360). “I had found a brother: one I could be proud of, one I could love; and two sisters whose qualities were such that... they inspired in me true affection and admiration... It was a blessing... not like the heavy gift of gold: rich and welcome enough in its own way, but sobering by its weight” (360). This love gives Jane the type of emotional support she needs to progress as an independent person. She was finally able to find love without sacrificing her autonomy. While teaching at the village school that St. John assigned to her, Jane earns her living solely on her own initiative. “At first it was really hard work. It was some time before, through all my efforts, I was able to understand my scholars and their nature.” Jane, although she is a little out of step with therudeness of his new students, preserves their teaching. Jane admits that “the rapidity of their progress, in some cases, was even surprising; and I felt an honest and happy pride in it.” The nature of her work involves a rank she has never encountered before. Her students are not as intelligent as the girls she taught at Lowood, or even as intelligent as Adèle. She was placed in a situation of poverty to hard work. However, this challenge enriches her self-governance to the extent that she now knows that she is fully capable of caring for herself and providing for herself. Jane is then able to gain complete financial independence by inheriting her uncle's large sum; with this, she gains societal freedom. With the fortune granted to her, Jane has the freedom to no longer rely on anyone for her physical well-being. With her heritage elevating her to the level of Rochester, Jane manages to find what she has always sought: a balance between love and independence. "No woman was ever nearer to her companion than I...I know no weariness of my Edward's society: he knows none of mine...therefore we are always together." To be together is for us to be at once as free as in solitude… we have precisely an appropriate character — the result is perfect harmony.” In fact, Rochester's injuries in some ways make Jane his superior as he comes to rely on her for his vision and his right hand. Jane's decision to return to Rochester presents perhaps the most remarkable facet of her understanding of freedom. Freedom of choice accompanies Jane throughout the novel. Although Jane cannot, and knows that she cannot, control every aspect of her life, she knows that she has the will and the freedom to change her life when the need arises. First in Gateshead, it is Jane's response to the apothecary: "'I'd really like to go to school'", which sets her whole story in motion. She knows that "school would be a complete change: it would involve a long journey, a total separation from Gateshead, an entry into a new life." Jane again enters a new life by choice when she takes the initiative to advertise and travel to Thornfield (82-4). At Thornfield, Jane makes her views on independence clear. Heartbroken over Rochester's false marriage to Blanche Ingram, Jane asserts, “I am not a bird; and no net ensnares me; I am a free human being, endowed with an independent will, which I now exercise to leave you.” When she finally chooses to leave him, Rochester seems to acknowledge her statement, saying that "never has anything been both so fragile and so indomitable as Jane...consider the thing resolute, wild and free...challenging me, with more what courage – with severe triumph! Despite her love's pleas, Jane is resolute in her morals and makes the decision to leave him, once again altering her life in an irreversible way. Just when she decides to leave Rochester, Jane refuses St. John's proposal. Despite her own morality and Rochester's lack of morality, Jane finds St. John's harsh, overwhelming, and, therefore, threatening. She knows that as St. John's wife, she would sacrifice any chance of romantic love; in the same way that by agreeing to be with Rochester, she would be sacrificing her principles. For her independence, she must find a balance between them. When she chooses to return to Rochester when she is financially independent, she achieves this balance. Certainly, the first sentence of the last chapter, "Reader, I married him", shows both Jane's equality with.