Saul and David

"If Saul could have had you for his David, the evil spirit would have been exorcised without the aid of a harp." (446)

In I Samuel, of the Old Testament, Saul is possessed by an evil spirit, which can be rid of temporarily when David plays the harp. Mr.Rochester says that Jane is better than David when they are reunited. He means that Jane can comfort him completely and that he is dependent on her. She is not dependent on him, which is unusual for a husband and wife at that time. Jane does not marry Mr.Rochester to begin with, because by doing so she would have given up her self to love. One of the reasons she did not marry St. John was because she did not want to be completely under his control. When she is reunited with Mr.Rochester she is equal to him and has kept her self respect.

~Beecham, Robert. "Saul and David" Bible Studies For Growth in God.November 18, 2008. November 30, 2008.

Paradise Lost

"a cormorant, sat dark and large, with wings flecked with foam; its beak held a gold bracelet, set with gems" (127)

Jane shows her paintings that she made at Lowood to Mr.Rochester during their first discussion. The first painting is of a sea with a cormorant siting on a mast. This cormorant is from "Paradise Lost" by John Milton. The bird represents temptation and greed. Mr.Rochester is the cormorant because he is tempted by beauty and money. Jane resists the temptation to stay with Mr.Rochester and by this she resists the cormorant in her painting.

~"The Wilderness Classroom Organization" November 30, 2008.

Confined Women

"but women feel just as men feel; they need exercise for their faculties, and a field for their efforts as much as their brother do; they suffer from too rigid a constraint" (111)

In this passage Bronte rants about her belief that men and women are equal. She claims that women are constrained by domestic tasks and their homes. She believes they need to be allowed to venture and pursue accomplishments such as men do. Bertha Marshal is an example of the consequence constraint has on women. Bertha is kept up in the attic and in turn tries to kill her husband and Jane and successfully kills herself.

Religion

"the native of a Christian land, worse than many a little heathen who says its prayers to Brahma and kneels before Juggernaut " (66)

Brahma is a Hindu god that represents creation, preservation, and destruction. A Juggernaut is a Hindu temple. Mr. Brocklehurst announces that Jane is a heathen and not a Christian to Lowood. He means that if she does not worship God and chooses to take part in another religion such as Hinduism, that she is damned and shall go to Hell. He orders the girls to chop off their curls and be plain when his family wears their hair in curls and dress in fancy attire. Mr Brocklehurst represents the Evangelical movement and Bronte shows that she thinks it hypocritical by his character.

~Bulfinch,Thomas. "XXXVII. b. Hindu Mythology" Bartleby. November 30, 2008.

~Lal Nagar,Dr. Murari. "A collection of pictures of the God Brahma" Hindu Gods and Goddesses. November 30, 2008.

Eliezer and Rebecca

"it was Eliezer and Rebecca: the camels only were wanting (186)

Miss Ingram and Mr. Rochester were playing charades and the second scene seems to be a bridal scene like the first, but it is deceiving. The names Eliezer and Rebecca refer to Issac's story in the Genesis. In the Genesis Eliezer was sent by his master Abraham to find a wife for his son. He found Rebecca to marry Abraham's son, so Rebecca is not actually Eliezer's future wife as Miss Ingram is not going to marry Mr.Rochester. Mr.Rochester deceived Jane only to make her jealous in order for him to see if he can gain her love. The allusion to the Genesis foreshadows Mr.Rochester's intent.

~Ben-Chaim,Moshe. "Eliezer Testing Rebecca" Mesora. November 30, 2008.

Water and Fire

"I heaved them up, deluged the bed and its occupant, flew back to my own room, brought my own water-jug, baptized the bed afresh" (151)

Jane literally saves Mr.Rochester from the fire that his wife has set on him. The connotation of this event is that Jane is saving his heart from sin by baptising him with the water-jug. Due to his past occurrences with his wife Mr. Rochester begins to burn in the fire which represents Hell. Jane saves his heart from Hell and he follows her after this as if she were God. Jane leads him down a better path than the one he traveled before.

Mustard Seed

" 'Is this my mustard seed? This little sunny-faces girl with the dimpled cheek and rosy lips" (262)

Mr.Rochester greets Jane the morning after they express their love for one another. He calls her a mustard seed because mustard seeds symbolize faith. Mr. Rochester is faithful that Jane is his door to happiness. He has faith that if he is saved by Jane than God will relieve and forgive him for marrying Bertha Mason for money and beauty instead of love.