Lessons to be Learned

The novel, Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte motivated me to go for more constructive experiences in life. Through out the book there are many life lessons, and the one that has stood out is: someone needs to go through certain situations before becoming independent. Jane’s independence was a major factor in the novel. I relate to Jane in the fact that I too have had a rough childhood, and I wish to someday have a good life where I have become independent financially and mentally, just like Jane has done. I know I have to go through more experiences in life to become more prepared to fight for what I want.
Jane, since her childhood, she has suffered through many situatuions where she has had to face the world alone. One example, Jane lived in Gateshead Hall, and she wasn't happy at all. Her cousin, John Reed, was always teasing her, bullying he, and getting her into trouble. Jane, even called him "master Reed". Apart from the fact that Jane had to refer to her own cousin that was one year older than her "master" was just a sign that Jane couldn't possibly be have been happy living there. Jane had nothing in Gateshead Hall, she was lonesome and miserable. Mrs. Reed, Jane's aunt, had no campasion for her, she would chastise her even when she knew Jane was a victim of her son's bullying. Mrs. Reed was an awful person in Jane's childhood, she would lock her up in a room where Jane would be terrified to go into because of the fear of her uncle's spirit hunting that room. She knew that Jane was petrified to go in there and still she left her to her misery.
If I would have had that childhood, where the maid herself pitied me because in her eyes I was not even superior to her. Like how, Bessie, the house keeper of the Reeds, said, “No; you are less than a servant, for you do nothing for your keep.”. I would truly be unhappy if the maid would say that to me, why?, because I would think I'm surround by family and I shouldn't have to owe anything to my family, but in Jane's case she was taught to believe ,after her uncle's death, that she was worth nothing to the Reeds and she was just an object that was suppose to live pretending she didn't exist.
This harsh and limited childhood has molded Jane to be the character, I would one day wish to be like, like my classmate Richard said, “This bold statement has affected Jane throughout her life and it has shaped Jane's personality throughout the novel.”. (It can only hurt you if you let it) Richard agrees with the fact that what Bessie said was something that has scared Jane.
Jane hasn't just had bad encounters with live, when Jane grew up and found herself a job as a governess at Thorn field Hall, she began to experience something new. She was beginning to experience love,but not just brotherhood love but real love, love for someone who isn't really related to you. Jane was finally adapting herself in a life were there was a possibility in being happy with the person she loved, Mr. Rochester. Jane is a person who never thought of herself a person who would be able to experience happiness through love. Mr. Rochester made her think otherwise, when he proposed to her in the orchard, at first Jane was especticual about the intentions Mr. Rochester had but he later convinced her that he loved her too. And after the very romantic proposal she began a live a life where she thought she was going to be a happy at the side of her loved one. Everything was like a fairy tale, Jane seemed happy because she was marrying the man she truly loved and like Alejandra said, “Happiness is one of the things Jane never had as a child”(Happiness) because of the fact that Jane wasn't acustom to happiness she really didn't know what to expect from her “happy” marriage. Jane was bulnerable against things that might go wrong.
The fact that Jane hadn't experienced love or happiness made her more open to mistakes and posibilities for wrong things to happen. She wasn't prepared to be happy because she hadn't experienced enough to be truly happy. Yes, Jane had to overcome her hate for Mrs. Reed, the fact she had no one to lean on when she needed a shoulder, and now she has to experience the unexperience. She wasn't prepared for the news she received on the day of her wedding. She wasn't strong enough to face the fact that Mr. Mason had come to interrupt her wedding because Mr. Rochester was married with someone else and that the other woman not just was alive but also lived at Thornfield Hall. This came to Jane like a terrifying news. Like Alejandra said, “But she got carried away, she made her decision and now she’s suffering the consequences. She was thinking with her heart, but unfortunately she wasn’t thinking with her head.” (Happiness)Yes, I agree with Alejandra, Jane did get carried away but it wasn't her fault. Jane wasn't use to being treated with love or respect so she let her self go and the outcome came to be that she suffered more.
Jane, has suffered throughout her live, because she hadn't gone through the life lesson that she needs to be happy. At the end of the novel, Jane says, “"Reader, I married him" this line symbolises Jane's true happiness, but one thing I know for a fact is that Jane now is truly happy not because she married Mr. Rochester, her love, but also because she is now independent and with a family. Jane had to go through sadness, rejection, and even depression, for her to realize that she was now prepared for life. Yes, if not soon nor later, life would give chances to does who have learn and gone through certain things. Jane thought that she would never see herself happy but I always thought otherwise.

At the End of the Day Destiny Prevails

Reader, I married him.(457)

The above words were destined to be uttered by Jane Eyre according to what I think is Charlotte Bronte's view on life in her novel Jane Eyre. Charlotte Bronte seems to have an attitude of pre-determination for everything that happens in life. She shows this by showing all the obstacles, hindrances, and burdens that tried to stop Jane and Rochester from ending up together, and in the end non of these factors were able to stop their love for each other from pravailing. Society tried to stop these two character's love by threatening to judge her of only wanting to move up in social status by marrying Rochester. Rochester's secrets and finally Bertha Mason tried to stop these lives from being together for the rest of their lives and were actually successful for a while but this success was not enough. St. John also tried to change Jane's destiny from being that of ending up with Mr. Rochester to being that of ending up with him but was also unsuccessful. Finally the biggest factor that wanted to put an end to this predetermined marriage was Jane Eyre herself. She tried to run away and forget her whole experience at Thornfield Hall and to tear Edward Rochester from her heart. She wanted to start a new and different life away from him, but destiny didn't let her spend her life without him. This is an example how free will did not determined how Jane ended up. All these factors only delayed her destiny from realizing itself but never stopped it. In my personal opinion, this is undoubtful evidence of Charlotte Bronte's belief of a pre-determined destiny rather than a life of free will and choice of ones destiny. The image taken by the Flickr us Apesara shows how life is like rolling a dye; No matter how we decide to role it, we cannot change or know the outcome. Our luck has been pre-determined.

http://creativecommons.org/ns#" about="http://www.flickr.com/photos/apesara/2100811335/"> rel="cc:attributionURL" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/apesara/">http://www.flickr.com/photos/apesara/ / CC BY 2.0

It can only hurt you if you let it

“No; you are less than a servant, for you do nothing for your keep. There, sit down, and think over your wickedness.” (p.11)

Many of us have experienced others say that we are useless in a wide range of intensity. For example, in the quote above, Jane is told that she lower than a servant. She is a useless person who only causes trouble. Jane is being told this in a very intense way because of the fact that she is going to be locked in a dark room because of fighting with her cousin and is threaten to be tied up if she doesn’t stop resisting. This bold statement has affected Jane throughout her life and it has shaped Jane’s personality throughout the novel.

As intense it may seem, we shouldn’t care about what others think of us. Every hurtful statement is only said to focus on your weaknesses and to make you submissive. Basically it's just said to belittle you. The statements cannot hurt you physically, but only mentally. We leave ourselves vulnerable to the insult and it somehow finds its way to hurt us mentally like the child in the picture below. It can hurt us to the point that it changes our lives. The only way to stop the insult from hurting us is to be mentally strong and the only way to achieve this is to know the fact that it can’t hurt you. Since there is no physical pain done from the insult, all you have to know is that what the other person is throwing at you is just words. The only way these words will hurt you is if you let them, but they won’t because you know that they are just words put together to belittle you. We also shouldn’t care because we don’t live off of what others think of us. We are independent people and our actions are who we are. We are not the hurtful statements that others tell us. So these insults shouldn’t hurt us and should be looked upon as meaningless words.

Pink Sherbet Photography, "Free child looking out a window with reflection stock", http://www.flickr.com/photos/pinksherbet/3212680093/

Life Lessons from Jane Eyre: Brainstorm

Branch out and develop a more distinct personality (beyond what is expected of you).
Pursue action: out there and do stuff.
Don’t let your past determine your future.
Learn from your mistakes.
Don’t let people push you around.
Learn how to forgive others.
Sometimes you have to let society win, even though it’s wrong.
Follow through on your decisions, and don’t give up
Don’t let your environment hold you back.
Life is not fair. Don’t let one catastrophic moment ruin the rest of your life.
Take advantage of what you have when you have it.
Be grateful for what god gave you.
Be dedicated to learn something new every day.
Sometimes you are just unlucky and you have to look on the bright side
Be emotionally strong – don’t let your feelings interfere with your confidence in yourself.
Live life to the fullest.
Don’t let people’s put-downs get to you.
Don’t let negativity get to you.