Gothic Symbolism and Rebellion – Learning Outcomes; 2. For example, Bertha Mason could represent the horror of Victorian marriage. Her character depicts the masculine nocturnal beast that wanders Thornfield Hall at night and hides during the day. The phrase, of course, refers specifically to Bertha Mason, Rochester’s sometime wife, now an insane prisoner locked in the attic of his house with Grace Poole for a nursemaid. Bertha Mason is definitely the most interesting character in Jane Eyre. Bertha Mason, the madwoman in the attic, symbolizes the problems we want to flee, the failure we can't acknowledge, and the wrongdoing we want to pretend never happened; yet Bertha … Jean Rhys' Wide Sargasso Sea. ). Bertha and the Critics LAURENCE LERNER BERTHA Mason has in the last two decades become one of the major characters of English fiction. She is shown to be of a mixed race, almost dehumanized, and remains locked up on the third floor and is never allowed to speak. Some critics have read her as a statement about the way Britain feared and psychologically “locked away” the other cultures it … These are the sources and citations used to research Jane Eyre and Bertha Mason. Bertha is not Bertha in Jane Eyre but Antoinette in Wide Sargasso Sea. “That is my wife[…] off with you now”(343). There are multiple Symbols and motifs that are found in Jane Eyre. She is seen as Jane's dark double in this way since she acts at times to express what Jane cannot. In 1966, the novelist Jean Rhys (1890-1979) published Wide Sargasso Sea. On the other hand, Bertha Mason, who has no control over her feelings, is a pyromaniac. Wide Sargasso Sea was a fantastic “prequel”, shall we say. Bertha Mason Further, Bertha serves as a remnant and reminder of Rochester's youthful libertinism. The Moon The moon is a symbol … The inferno at Thornfield illustrates the danger of letting the passions run wild. Conclusively, the character of Bertha Mason must be understood as being conveyed through a filter of representations, serving certain interests. “Black and Brilliant”, is how Jane describes his eyes. Bertha Mason is the Gothic symbol through which female sexuality and passion are represented. Later in the novel, Jane sees Bertha’s burning passionate nature and it warns her that she will only become the maniac that Bertha has if she follows her passion and her temptation for her one love Mr. Rochester. Whilst Victorian men undoubtedly desired women to be the “angels of the house”, I think it’s a little harsh to throw “most 21st century men” into the same category (that is, assuming we’re talking about Western-cultured men? Gilbert and Gubar develop a critical theory about this "madwoman in the attic" figure: she represents all the subverted rage and pain experienced by the female author of the text (in this case, Charlotte Brontë). Another is some likeliness of both women’s actions. The Madwoman, Bertha Mason, is sometimes viewed as the unexpressed emotions of Jane. Yet Bertha can also be interpreted as a symbol. Bertha Mason and Jane Eyre represent the dichotomy of the Victorian feminine, stripped down to its essentialist, patriarchal form: monstrous madwoman on the one hand, angel in the house on the other. The red-room is a strong symbol to assist in showing Jane’s growth from being trapped disrespected to being powerful and happy. Bronte does this successfully through using many different symbols in the novel such as: vision, the red-room and Bertha Mason. Indeed, it is worth to say that Bertha’s insanity is a warning to Jan not to surrender to Rochester. More generally, however, Bertha Rochester has also come to represent other things, particularly in the ways in which the novel has been read in the past thirty years. She symbolizes the oppression and exploitation faced by the colonized races. Bertha Mason is the grotesque, angry, raging side of the female; Jane learns to tamp down her righteous anger and moments of rebellion as a child, and as an adult exercises utter self-control. https://feminisminindia.com/2017/07/21/bertha-mason-jane-eyre Another is some likeliness of both women’s actions. Bertha, the embodiment of Jane's dangerous side, gets the metaphors of wild and brutal animals: “a dog quarreling” (238) or “clothed hyena” (320). Bertha has a brother, Richard Mason, who is never depicted in any way as beast like. The 1966 parallel novel Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys serves as a prequel to Brontë's novel. Vision, the most common symbol in the novel, signifies Jane’s emotional view of not only herself but others as well. One being-for an example- Bertha being a symbol and representation of Jane’s feeling in regard to the situation of her marrying Rochester. plight of the Creole woman, Bertha Mason [4]. In Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre, the characters Jane Eyre and Bertha Mason are both oppressed by the patriarchal system of the nineteenth century Britain. Gothic Plot and Imperial Gothic; 4. In the context of the colonizer’s attitude towards indigenous people, the presentation and treatment of Bertha Mason becomes symbolic. Gothic Symbolism and Rebellion – Lesson Summary This statement could be interrupted in many ways. She is no longer a horrible mad woman in the dark attic, instead, she is a very lively Creole girl with her own spirits, thoughts and love. Bertha Mason is Mr. Rochester’s wife, whom is kept hidden away in the addict. She can be cold at times, so cold that she goes through peoples things, and tries to kill them. “It removed my veil … rent it in two parts … flinging both on the floor, trampled on them” (290). Charlotte Bronte and Jane Eyre; 3. In conclusion, some critics claim that Bertha Mason is a symbol of the way Britain feared other cultures from appearing at the peak of its imperialism at the time. In “Jane Eyre,” the character of Bertha Mason serves as an ominous representation of uncontrollable passion and madness. Some examples of symbols would include Bertha Mason, the splintered chestnut tree, and the Red-room. Bertha Mason (full name Bertha Antoinetta Mason) is a fictional character in Charlotte Brontë's 1847 novel Jane Eyre.She is described as the violently insane first wife of Edward Rochester, who moved her to Thornfield Hall and locked her in a room on the third floor.. Most of the time people notice the insanity first and the … Fire is the most prominent motif throughout the book, and it represents Jane's passion and spirit, her oppression and her vitality.… Consequently, Jean Rhys gave a strong voice to Bertha Mason in the story. She can be passionate, yet hard hearted at the same time. Some examples of some motifs include ice, fire, food, etc. The dream of the destruction of Thornfield comes true when Bertha Mason burns down the estate. This statement could be interrupted in many ways. Jane likens Bertha to some kind of strange wild animal that “groveled, snatched and growled" (321). Gothic Rebellion: The Domestic and the Colony; 7. Rochester claims to have imprisoned her because she is mad, but it is easy to imagine an opposite relation of cause and effect, in which years of enforced imprisonment and isolation have made her … Mr. Rochester has a fiery personality, while St. John is associated with ice and snow, ... but also to keep it under control. This is apparent with Mr. Rochester. Her dark sensuality and violent nature contrast sharply with Jane’s calm morality, and it is no surprise that Bertha’s presence at Thornfield is a key factor in transforming Mr. Rochester into a stereotypical Byronic hero. Rochester and Jane construes Bertha according to the colonial posing of the ‘Other’ since this serves their individual motives. Bertha Mason is the symbol of what everyone can become. Bertha starts a fire, a crucial motif in the novel that symbolizes Jane’s own passion as well as her … The final symbol is Bertha Mason, the mad-women. Gothic Subtexts; Madness and Femininity; 5. Likewise, the circumstance involving Bertha Mason tearing the bridal veil in the middle of the night symbolizes an idea. This bibliography was generated on Cite This For Me on Tuesday, June 23, 2015 Thornfield Hall and Bertha Mason; 6. In volume three, when Jane returns to Thornfield and finds it "a blackened ruin," she remarks that part of Thornfield looks "as I had once seen it in a dream" (3.254). In Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre Bertha Mason and Jane Eyre share various attributes in their characters: passion, restlessness, and a will to follow their nature. Criticism has made Mr. Rochester's mad wife, concealed in the attic, central not only to the plot of Jane Eyre but also to its … https://palomajeidyllwild.blogspot.com/2016/03/bertha-mason-symbolism.html Bertha Mason, is portrayed as the alter ego of the orphaned girl, Jane Eyre. Bertha is described as “a clothed hyena,” the “foul German spectre-the vampyre,” displaying “virile force” and being almost equal to her husband in stature. Fire is a symbol of emotion in the novel. An argument that naturally stems from author Charlotte Brontë’s writing of the Jane Eyre and Bertha Mason in Jane Eyre and the description and development of their role in the narrative is that Bertha represents Jane’s symbolic double, expressive of her inner emotions and irrational rage. Each woman refuses to conform to a patriarchal society, but the manner by which each rebel against culture determine a very different future. Bertha Mason, is portrayed as the alter ego of the orphaned girl, Jane Eyre. More important than this point; howe An instance of this is when she tears Jane's wedding veil making it so that Jane is then at liberty to wear the less extravagant veil she had preferred.