Why AP?

Plot Recap
Jane confesses to Mr. Rochester she doesn't want to leave Thornfield upon his marriage to Blanche Ingram because she loves him. He returns the sentiment and asks her to marry him. She says yes. Just before the wedding, Jane is woken in the night by a frightening woman tearing up her veil. Mr. Rochester explains to her that it must have been Grace Poole. However, the wedding when the priest asks for objections, the wedding is interrupted by Richard Mason and lawyer (Mr. Briggs). Mr. Rochester cannot be married because he is already married to Mason’s sister Bertha Mason. Mr. Rochester confirms and shows Jane and company Bertha— now a mad-woman living in the attic— trying to explain that it is only fair that he can remarry because Bertha’s (future) conditions had not been disclosed to him before they wed.

Jane feels betrayed and runs away from her problems Thornfield, quickly losing all of her money and baggage. After near starvation, she finds shelter with a family (St. John, Diana, Mary) and their servant. As I leave her, she is regaining her health and looking for ways to be helpful.

Why AP?

Before I first started reading Jane Eyre, I thought it was obvious that this book is of literary merit (and therefore AP worthy). Yet, beyond hearsay, I had no actual evidence behind this belief. Now, after reading over 75% of it, I’m certain that it is well written and meaningful. However, I was unsure of what defined something as AP. I had to turn to College Board verbatim to see if this hit their definition of “AP worthy”.

According to their course audit page, AP Literature “is structured by unit, theme, genre, or other organizational approach that provides opportunities to engage with the big ideas throughout the course: Character, Setting, Structure, Narration, Figurative Language, Literary Argumentation.”

Thus, the question I was left to answer is: does Jane Eyre adequately engage the reader with these “big ideas?”

The answer, most certainly, is yes.


Character and Narration
Jane is the most obvious character to go into detail upon. She is the most complex character and we have seen her develop over the course of her story. Her emotions are dynamic and multifaceted. This provides a great opportunity to look deeply into characterization.

First, Jane is characterized by her own thoughts, her narration. The complexity of Jane’s emotions makes the novel relatable (ish) and dramatic. At the point in which Jane is considering leaving Thornfield, the reader sees a lot of internal tension.

“But, then, a voice within me averred that I could do it and foretold that I should do it. I wrestled with my own resolution: I wanted to be weak that I might avoid the awful passage of further suffering I saw laid out for me; and Conscience, turned tyrant, held Passion by the throat, told her tauntingly, she had yet but dipped her dainty foot in the slough, and swore that with that arm of iron he would thrust her down to unsounded depths of agony” (297).

Jane’s concepts of identity and love after betrayal are enduring. These aspects of character are easily applicable to an AP class. Even 21st century students can readily understand hurt and moral conflict. Grappling with conscience and maintaining a sense of personal strength, Jane is emblematic of any aging teenage character (hence the genre bildungsroman).

Similar to her thoughts, Jane is also characterized through dialogue. Jane often speaks her mind freely and passionately with Mr. Rochester (which is what makes her admirable in his opinion). Jane’s candor and lack of emotional concealment are evidenced in a scene in which Mr. Rochester and her are speaking in the garden about her leaving Thornfield.

“I tell you I must go!” I retorted, roused to something like passion. “Do you think I can stay to become nothing to you? Do you think I am an automaton?—a machine without feelings? and can bear to have my morsel of bread snatched from my lips, and my drop of living water dashed from my cup? Do you think, because I am poor, obscure, plain, and little, I am soulless and heartless? You think wrong!—I have as much soul as you,—and full as much heart! And if God had gifted me with some beauty and much wealth, I should have made it as hard for you to leave me, as it is now for me to leave you. I am not talking to you now through the medium of custom, conventionalities, nor even of mortal flesh;—it is my spirit that addresses your spirit; just as if both had passed through the grave, and we stood at God’s feet, equal,—as we are” (253)!

This passage is significant because Jane is treating Mr. Rochester as an equal. It shows that she does not believe that social caste, age, or gender should compromise her treatment as an equal in their relationship. While I could go into depth about how syntax and bold diction reveal Jane's character, instead I would like to focus on the impact of Brontë’s characterization of Jane.

Jane Eyre is around 170 years old. Jane’s action in this passage would be, at the time, highly abnormal and thus controversial. So while it may be viewed differently today, the characterization of Jane was making a statement. When speaking to her superior, rather than being poised, Jane is fervent and outspoken.

Jane was progressive: she defied social conventions and developed feminist ideas. Therefore, identifying these aspects of Jane’s character can teach an important lesson to any AP student. They would learn to recognize how Jane is a foil for other women at the time. Furthermore, in a Question 3 essay, knowledge of how Jane is different from 19th century women may be useful contextualization to earn a sophistication point.


Setting
In Jane Eyre, the setting has added to Jane’s perception of her environment. When described, the setting is described in full detail, creating an atmosphere that is in accordance with Jane’s emotions.

During this particular reading, I was struck by the sensory imagery surrounding Thornfield’s garden.

“But treading the flower and fruit parterres at the upper part of the inclosure, enticed there by the light now rising moon cast on this more open quarter, my step is stayed— not by sound, not by sight, but once more by a warning fragrance.
“Sweet-brier and southernwood, jasmine, pink, and rose have long been yielding their evening sacrifice of incense: this new scent is neither of shrub nor flower; it is — I know it well— it is Mr Rochester’s cigar. I look round and listen. I see trees laden with ripening fruit. I hear a nightingale warbling in a wood half a mile off; no moving form is visible, no coming step audible; but that perfume increases: I must flee” (248).

This passage stood out to me because the imagery surrounding the garden established the setting as, to quote Jane, “Eden-like.” The use of this garden imagery set the scene as natural and beautiful. The flowers and plants prompt ideas of life and fertility. Unlike in a typical young adult novel, in an AP level book setting is used for more than just plot advancement. In these merit-full books, setting imagery often supplements or contrasts the characters’ emotional experience. I found that the scents and visuals that Jane describes enhance the air of romance and seclusion. Jane even recognizes Mr. Rochester’s scent. How romantic?


Structure
Jane Eyre is the epitome of the age old elementary school catchphrase “show don’t tell.” While this applies to Brontë’s imagery, I’d like to quickly note that it applies to the organization of her story as well. Despite following an autobiographical structure (very linear yet told in retrospect), Jane only ever foreshadows future events. Thus, it was almost a complete surprise when we learn that Mr. Rochester is married to a mad woman, Bertha Mason!

… almost.

What makes the plot of Jane Eyre so good, in my opinion, is that I feel like despite having no idea what was going to happen, I saw it coming. And when I looked back on it, there was tons of evidence!

• Mr. Mason is first introduced as an acquaintance from Jamaica, where we learn Mr. Rochester was married.
• Mr. Rochester implies there was a capital error that occurred abroad.
• Some female is going around Thornfield committing arson, biting, and tearing up wedding veils.
• Grace Poole is an incompetent worker and seemingly troublesome yet isn’t fired by Mr. Rochester.

This trail of puzzle pieces leading to the plot twist makes Jane Eyre even more worthy of AP status. It makes you think. Put things together. Look for details.


Finally, in a non-academic sense, I have to advocate for Jane Eyre as part of the AP curriculum because it is such an enjoyable read!

Works Cited

"AP English Literature and Composition Course Audit." AP Central, College Board, apcentral.collegeboard.org/courses/ap-english-literature-and-composition/course-audit. Accessed 10 Mar. 2021.