The Celebration Of Englishness In Jane Eyre

In Victorian age, the English society was experiencing great progress in various fields, including the development of industrial revolution and the economic status, thus the English people held a pride in their English identity. Jane Eyre, as the most important literary work of Charlotte Bronte, followed the fashion of celebrating Englishness. The novel is an outpouring of Jane’s pride in her typical English traits and the effort in weakening others.This thesis consists of six parts, with four chapters coming between the Introduction and Conclusion.The first part is the Introduction in which a literature review of abroad and China is given. Apart from the review of former studies regarding the novel, there is also a brief explanation of the statement:Charlotte Bronte conveyed a strong adherence of Englishness in Jane Eyre.Chapter Ⅰ touches upon the concept of Englishness, analyzing the importance of reinforcing Englishness, and tries to give a relatively complete interpretation. Englishness stands for a sense of English identity. It contains any characteristic of English society and English people that may distinguish them from the others.Chapter Ⅱ discusses the celebration of English landscape in the novel. The chapter is divided into three sections. The first section focuses on the direct celebration of English landscape in the novel. The second talks about the comparison between healthy English landscape and unhealthy oversees regions. The last switches to the deeper meanings of national features in people’s appearance derived from the meanings of landscapes.Chapter Ⅲ studies the comparison between England and other European nations among which the most important one is France. The celebration of Englishness is conveyed through negative commentary upon its European neighbors and disparagement of their citizens. Adele and her mother are both regarded as representatives of Frenchness.Chapter Ⅳ puts the attention on a significant feature of Victorian English society-social hierarchy. Being an orphan and a governess, Jane was frustrated by the unfairness in the class society. However, her reaction was not rebellious, instead, she climbed up the social ladder to cater to the rule of Englishness. The approval of such ideology which is a part of Englishness is manifest throughout the work.The last part is the Conclusion that gives a brief summary to the former analysis and states the argument more clearly. In Victorian age, the English society was experiencing great progress in different fields, thus the English people held a pride in their English identity, which is so obviously conveyed in the novel Jane Eyre.