Representation of the 'Other' in Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre

Shihada, Isam M. (2005) Representation of the 'Other' in Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre. The Atlantic Literary Review.

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Abstract

This study aims at examining the representation of the ‘Other’ as portrayed in Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre (1847). It attempts to inspect how the ‘Other’ is viewed in nineteenth-century England and the cultural ideology behind such specific representation. It poses crucial questions as to why the ‘Other’ is constantly represented negatively in mainstream western narrative, as in the case of Bertha Mason, who is portrayed as a madwoman and a voiceless monster who deserves a ten-year rigorous confinement in the Attic. I will attempt to focus on the cultural and historical context of Jane Eyre and its impact on the representation of the ‘Other.’ I will also draw on Edward Said’s theorization related to race, representation, and resistance in my analysis. Keywords: Representation, Jane Eyre, Bronte,Other, Edward Said, Orientalism

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