The
Gothic tradition utilizes elements such as supernatural encounters, remote
locations, complicated family histories, ancient manor houses, dark secrets,
and mysteries to create an atmosphere of suspense and terror, and the plot of Jane
Eyre includes most of these elements.∆
Gothic
paraphernalia is first shown in the novel in the form of the red room. Imagery
is used to represent this room as secret, prison like, but particularly to give
the room an overall feeling of horror. Jane describes the red room as having “curtains
of deep red damask” and “crimson cloth”. Jane could be using these
descriptions as a metaphor for blood, linking the red room to death. The reader
is then made aware that the late Mr Reed, Jane’s uncle, died in there and Jane
has images of him haunting the room. This supernatural event that Jane imagines
adds to the gothic genre, which increases the feeling of horror that the room
is already associated with. Jane's descriptions of the red room and her fear of
it when inside, creates a feeling of empathy for her from the readers,
especially considering her young age and circumstance: “My heart beat thick,
my head grew hot; a sound filled my ears, which I deemed the rushing of wings;
something seemed near me; I was oppressed, suffocated; endurance broke down;”.∆
In
Jane Eyre, Edward Rochester represents the gothic hero with a secret
past. At Jane's first meeting with Mr. Rochester, she notices his "dark
face, with stern features and a heavy brow.” The reader comes across a
lunatic wife (Bertha Rochester) locked in the attic of the manor house. The
peculiar sound produced by her mad ravings contributes to the atmosphere of
mystery and suspense in the novel.∆
Other
Gothic occurrences include: Jane’s encounter with the ghost of her late Uncle
Reed in the red-room; the moment of supernatural communication between Jane and
Rochester when she hears his voice calling her across the misty heath from
miles and miles away; and Jane’s mistaking Rochester’s dog, Pilot, for a “Gytrash,”
a spirit of North England that manifests itself as a horse or dog.
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