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Please Note The page numbers in this essay refer to the paper back version of the book published by Scholastic Inc. Religion in Jane Eyre In Charlotte Brontes coming of age novel Jane Eyre, the main character Jane not only struggles with the aspects of social class deviations but also her journey to find her own faith in God and religion. On her journey she encounters three greatly different variations on Christian faith, all of which, though she ultimately rejects, help her come to her own conclusions of her own faith and spirituality. Her first true questioning of religion is with her friend and Lowood school Helen Burns. Jane finds Helen to be serenely devout in her faith in God, and Jane admires her for it. However, Jane struggles to accept Helens passive view, as it lacks the understanding that Jane seeks.
Also, at Lowood Jane encounters the owner of the school Mr. Brocklehurst, who acts as a dictator over the girls and teachers at Lowood. His religious ideals are those of sacrifice but it is apparent that Mr. Brocklehurst takes no consideration of these ideals in his own life style. Jane immediately rejects Mr.
Brocklehurst's point of view as it is so obviously hypocritical. Finally Jane meets her cousin St. John, a minister. Upon observing him and observing one of his sermons she realizes that though he is driven and passionate his views focus on disquieting aspirations as oppose to the uplifting of spirituality. She realizes that St. John lacks a true understanding of what faith and spirituality really mean.
In Janes search for spirituality her journey leads her to find her own faith through the observations of the various and widely differing views of Helen, Mr. Brocklehurst and St. John. Jane first questions religion and faith when her friend at Lowood, Helen Burns, becomes deathly ill. She states that her mind made its first earnest effort to comprehend what had been infused into it concerning Heaven and Hell; and for the first time it recoiled, baffled, and for the first time glancing behind, on each side, and before it, it saw all around an unfathomed gulf (p. 83). Helens sickness personalizes everything she has been taught about religion, and so when she turns to it for solace, she finds that she doesnt truly understand what she has been taught, and becomes lost without her own faith to guide her.
Just before Helen dies, Jane speaks her doubts to her about who and what God is. Helen simply encourages her to have faith and that faith is the key to salvation. She states that God is their maker and will not destroy what he has created (p. 85). Jane is dissatisfied with Helens answer as she still has strong doubts.
Helens passive and simplistic view leaves Jane with a void of understanding with Jane. She again questions Helen about Heaven. Helens reply is discomforting to Jane as Helen replies that she cant exactly be sure about Heaven but that she has faith anyways because she knows that God loves her and she will be taken care of (p. 85). Jane obviously wants to have faith as she finally bottles up her own worries. Jane wants to have faith because she trusts her friend.
However Jane is reluctant to believe in blind faith. She desires not only faith, but the ability to understand. Helens unquestioning faith lacks the answers that Jane seeks. Also and Lowood school Jane encounters Mr. Brocklehurst. He proclaims his views that sacrifice is the key to true faith.
He first rejects Mrs. Temples excuse for feeding the girls bread and cheese rather than the burnt porridge that was served to them. He explains that his purpose with the school is to not accustom them [the girls] to habits of luxury and indulgence, but to render them hardy, patient, and self denying (p. 64). Instead of replacing the poor meal with something better than what they were originally given he states that the teachers should teach the students the value of spiritual edification thus encouraging them to evince fortitude under the temporary privation (p. 64). He simply means that to go without their breakfast would have been a small sacrifice to make, and learning to make such sacrifices is the main goal of faith and religion. Jane takes notice that though Mr.
Brocklehurst speaks of sacrifice that Mr. Brocklehurst himself is plenty wealthy and makes no sacrifice of his self. In fact, he actually takes in the sacrifices of others as his own reward. The lack of proper food and clothing for the girls ultimately means that Mr.
Brocklehurst saves and even makes money from their misfortunes. Mr. Brocklehurst also addresses Mrs. Temple about the girls and their dress.
He scorns one of Janes classmates for having curly hair, despite Mrs. Temples explanation that the girls hair curls naturally. He states that such things are the object of vanity and orders the girls hair cut. Immediately after his speech Mr. Brocklehurst's wife and daughters appear before them all of them with elaborately curled hair under their elegant hats. It is not hard for Jane to immediately reject Mr.
Brocklehurst's views on religion as it is apparent that Mr. Brocklehurst is a hypocrite and takes no consideration of sacrifice into his own lifestyle. She states that They [the ladies] should have come a little sooner to have heard his lecture on dress... (p. 65). Even in her young age Jane recognizes that Mr. Brocklehurst's view is inappropriately hypocritical. Eventually Jane comes to meet St.
John, a minister who takes her in after she leaves Thorn field. Jane notes that he is often not home because he is out visiting the sick and the poor as part of his missionary duties. Jane finds that St. John is clearly passionate and driven, and yet Jane is not convinced that his is content. She is disturbed by the fact that he seems devoid of that mental serenity, that inward content, which should be the reward of every sincere Christian and practical philanthropist (p. 387). When Jane attends one of St.
Johns sermons she describes it as more of a punishing lecture than an uplifting oration. As she describes, Throughout there was a strange bitterness; an absence of consolatory gentleness, stern allusions to Calvinistic doctrines election, predestination, reprobation were frequent; and each reference to these points sounded like a sentenced pronounced for doom (p. 388). St. Johns views are the polar opposite of Helens as Helen believed that there was salvation as long as you simply had faith. St. Johns view is one of punishment for wrong doing against the faith.
Janes recollection of St. Johns sermon is representative of the idea concerning the misinterpretation of religious ideals and the loss of true spirituality as the result of extremism. Jane recognizes this and rejects St. Johns view of religion. Though Jane never really finds a faith that fits her with any of these characters she does happen to find her own faith on her journey. Though she does eventually reject all three models of religion, she does not abandon morality, spiritualism, or a belief in a Christian God.
When her wedding is interrupted, she prays to God for solace (p. 325). She strongly objects to Mr. Rochester's immorality, and she refuses to consider living with him while church and state still deem him married to another woman. Even s, Jan can barely bring herself to leave the only love she has ever known. She credits God with helping her to escape what she knows would have been and immoral life (p. 354).
As she wanders the heath, poor and starving, she puts her survival in the hands of God (p. 357). Jane ultimately finds a comfortable middle ground. Her spiritual understanding is just that unlike Helens which is a blind faith or St. Johns which is a complete misunderstanding of faith. Nor is her understanding of faith hateful and oppressive like Mr.
Brocklehurst's. For Jane, religion helps curb immoderate passions, and it spurs one on to worldly efforts and achievements. These achievements include full self-knowledge and complete faith in God.
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Research essay sample on Religion In Jane Eyre
