Sandra M. Gilbert, a popular feminist theorist, and Susan Gubar have stated in their essay, “The Madwoman in the Attic”, that women’s characters in literature are often categorized as either “active monsters” or “passive angels”. The “angel at home” image depicts a woman who has domesticated herself and whose main goal is to serve her husband. Jane Eyre may be described as strong, but she clearly fits the stereotype. Jane Eyre is sent off to Lowood Institute early on in the book. There she learns about feminine submission. This will be useful later when she becomes a governess. Charlotte Bronte clearly intended to portray Jane as the “angel”, since Jane willingly accepts her role as governess and does everything Rochester asks of her to win his approval. Jane is manipulated by Rochester as her feelings grow stronger. Any feminist ideals Jane may have displayed in childhood are replaced with inferiority and obedience. Jane is adamant that she’s not good enough to deserve Rochester’s affection. She takes on all the characteristics of an angel. Jane does this throughout the book, as she often labels herself as a lesser being and not deserving of happiness. Jane’s “angelic” qualities are evident in her complete subservience towards Rochester at the fire scene. Also, when Mr. Mason is bitten by a dog, Jane is told to take care of him. At the novel’s end, Jane helps to bring him back to full health. Rochester’s role is to classify images. In Wide Sargasso he uses his patriarchal authority to do so.
In Jane Eyre’s case, the monster would be Bertha Mason. The “monster” stereotype is often the darker side to the angel. (Gilbert 365-361) In Bronte’s book, Bertha Mason represents nearly every facet of Jane’s character. She’s the rage for Jane’s repression. The rebellion against Jane’s tolerance. The “big woman…of virile force” in contrast to “poor and obscure Jane”. 26, 23). Jane and Bertha are at odds over their marriages with Rochester. Bertha is in it for the money and sex, while Jane is there for love and equal rights. Bertha is a psychic split between a woman who submits and a lunatic rebel. Gilbert and Gbar believe that the “madwoman attic” stereotyping is created when the woman character rejects her submissiveness to husbands and society. It demonizes women and makes them feel inferior to society. Bertha’s refusal to accept Rochester’s “perfect spouse” role is a great example. He takes away her humanity by putting her under an animal’s image and locking her up. Rochester’s primary role is to set stereotypes through labels for these women. In Bertha’s case, he does this by willfully changing her given name. Bertha’s real name is Antoinette. Rochester’s dehumanization of Antoinette to tame “monstrous” behavior and establish his patriarchal rule over Antoinette is a result of this attempt. Bertha, by accepting the new moniker “madwoman of the attic”, accepts her role both as the “colonized other” and as the madwoman. Rochester’s relationship with Antoinette largely consists of erotic sexual relations. “I saw her die often in my own way, and not hers,” Rochester says about their communal relations. (Rhys 55) Rochester’s sexual dominance of Antoinette – now Bertha – is shown by the fact they spent most of their time together in sexual contact. In addition, her “sexually-fallen” status solidifies Rochester’s position as “monster.”
Jane Eyre’s and Wide Sargasso Sea’s feminist theory about the “angel at home” versus “madwoman up there” is crucial to the two novels. Jane and Bertha are the protagonists of the story and they both embody stereotypes that further reinforce patriarchal values. Jane’s feminist nature is evident in her refusal of Rochester to kiss her, the eventual attainment of financial independence she achieves, and finally, her marriage to Rochester. Her power is demonstrated by “Reader. I married him”. (Bronte ch. Jane’s angel stereotype role is unavoidable, despite her complete independence. Bertha is a dehumanized beast, meant only to be used by Rochester as a tool for dominance and power. It is interesting that while both of the stereotypes eventually surrender their power to Rochester, the angel is the only one who may be able to achieve independence. (Cho 107) It is possible that this is due to the notion that Bertha represents the repressed part of Jane’s character. Bertha cannot find her place within society since she has lost her humanity. The only thing that can save her is death. Jane is able to realize her true identity and follow her own wishes after her monstrous aspect has died.
The “angel/monster” dichotomy influenced Victorian women writers. These writers felt figuratively crippled as a result of the cultural pressures they faced in the Victorian era. This led them to project their “anxiety about authorship” onto their characters, often as physical or mental illness. During the nineteenth-century, mental disorders were characterized as “female illnesses” due to maladjustment in the social setting. They even became the foundation of the concept of femininity. (Gilbert 53-78). Anorexia can be attributed, on the surface, to low self-esteem and vanity. While this is certainly true, another deeper-seated cause could be the woman’s desire for invisibility and to escape death. Charlotte Bronte’s creation of Jane, a character who attempts to escape from her gender through anorexia, is a way to express her fear of authorship. The “angel” in literature is often a character who suffers from physical illness in order to show her conditional femininity. (Gilbert 55)
Jane’s self-analysis and her view of patriarchal societies is first seen in this scene. While she contemplates the injustices she has experienced, she decides to find an escape. (Newman, 32-35). She wants to escape “insupportable oppression” by using some strange means, such as running away or, if this is not possible, stopping eating and drinking, and dying (Bronte, Ch.2). 2). Jane is forced to change her ways after realizing that her attempts at revolution against the oppressors she faces only bring her more problems. She adopts the feminine ideals, such as subservience, anonymity, and suppression. She learns, at the Lowood Institute in London, that Mr. Brocklehurst’s starvation of young women is done to instill character and nobility. Jane quickly learns to embrace the virtues she has gained by being small, plain, gentle, and obscure. She uses her self-inflicted smallness and invisibility to retreat into small, recessed spaces and think alone. She is playing the role of the “proper woman” that “mustn’t actively solicit the gaze or engage in an obvious display” (Newman, 33).
Jane’s small size, pale complexion, and plain appearance are not enough. Jane uses anorexia in order to conceal herself from Victorian society’s oppression and to avoid her personal problems. In her attempt to cope, Jane develops a potentially dangerous physical condition. Bronte’s book spans a female’s growth and life, so we can see Jane’s body deteriorate and become wan. It is no surprise that her appearance often contrasts with those of other beautiful female characters like Blanch Ingram or Celine Varnes. Jane’s appearance is often at odds with that of other desirable female characters in the novel, such as Blanch Ingram and Celine Varnes. Jane’s continued starvation creates a psychological split between her, Bertha and the rest of society. Bertha represents Jane’s anger and rage. Bertha can also represent Jane’s hunger. Thornfield can be compared to Jane’s angelic servitude or Rochester’s socially imposed power. Bertha is then driven to destruction in an act of revenge, almost like Jane’s desire to free herself from Rochester’s power. (Gilbert360) Jane Eyre seems to be a cautionary tale about how repressing these unpleasant emotions can lead to death and destruction.
Jane Eyre’s and Bertha’s characters can be viewed as feminist subtexts when they are compared to Gilbert and Guibar’s “angels” and “madwomen”. Bronte’s female character are affected by her idea of patriarchy being suppressed. Jane Eyre’s cleverness and independence are reverted to subservience in order for her to be Rochester’s “angel”. Although she is her equal in intelligence and morally superior to him, money and gender are the most important social qualities that make her his subordinate. Bertha, the madwoman, is even worse because she can’t control her mind or her morality. The binary opposition that the two characters face concretizes a psychic divide which, ironically, binds them together: Jane becomes the angel when Bertha becomes the monster. Jane’s constant search for anonymity and safety in a patriarchal environment is aided by anorexia. Jane uses her anorexia in order to repress anger, hunger and rage.