From Novel To Films: A Study Of Feminist Consciousness In Three Film Adaptations Of Jane Eyre

Jane Eyre, as a classic literary masterpiece, has irresistible attraction to film-makers due to its inspiring heroine and stimulating themes. So far, it has given rise to nineteen films. However, researches on the film adaptations are either unsystematic or sporadic. Moreover, most researches have been conducted from the perspective of literary ontology rather than from the perspective of film ontology. This paper focuses on three different film adaptations of Jane Eyre in different eras, analyzing the manifestation and transformation of feminist consciousness by striking a comparison among these three versions. It probes into how cultural background of different eras influences the film construction and reshaping of the female and male images as well as the gender relationships.This paper first provides a brief introduction to Charlotte Bronte and her novel, Jane Eyre. Chapter One also reviews the adaptation history of Jane Eyre and related researches as well as the purpose, method and significance of this paper. In the following three chapters, the author of this thesis respectively explores the three film adaptations of Jane Eyre of different historical times by tracing their differences from the original novel. In Chapter Two, it argues that Robert Stevenson’s1944incarnation loses the feminist color in the original novel. Instead, it lays emphasis on maternal thought, family values, and the traditional Hollywood heroic complex is employed to deal with the cultural anxiety of the male, due to economic crisis and the rising status of women between the Great Depression and post-WWII. Chapter Three demonstrates that Delbert Mann’s1970film adaptation reflects women’s independent sense to its most when the women’s liberation movement reaches the climax of the second wave in the1960s and1970s by describing men as desperate while women as tougher and stronger. Chapter Four concentrates on Franco Zeffirelli’s1996version, arguing that following waves of feminist thought, a state of transcendence of feminism has been achieved, owing to the cultural conservatism in the1980s and the early1990s which urges the establishment of a more harmonious and equal relationship between men and women. The last chapter summarizes the whole thesis and arrives at the conclusion of the study and its future research space.