Mood Assignment

Small chips of paint fall to the ground after losing their battle to the merciless weather. A strong, freezing wind sighs through the crumbling highway bridge. The unevenly white-washed sky flashes warnings of an impending storm. An old pair of muddy boots, tied tightly to a collection of worn, creaky bones, dangle off the rusted remnants of the traffic barrier. A young but tired face is angled at the horizon, blankly staring off with glazed eyes. A calloused hand gently grazes a festering cheek laceration. The rhythmic echo of a water drop can be heard from below. Aside from this, the world is frozen: silent and macabre.

The silence is broken for no more that a second by a pleading whine. The massive, filthy paws of a Shiba Mix land with a twang onto the metallic beam. The eerie silence is broken yet again as the twenty-something year old clears dust out of her dry throat to speak. 'Okay. I hear you, I hear you,' she rasps, 'I'm coming.' Her black and blue legs swing up and over the ugly, olive colored bar on which she was sitting. With her feet finally return safely to the cracked pavement, she reaches down calmly and slowly to place a mostly gloved hand on the mutt's head. His normally chestnut fur, much like his master's clothes, were black from soot and ash.

Slowly, she makes her way towards the road through the blackened woods, dreading what was sure to come. Loyally, he follows his master, by her side,  towards anything and everything that would be waiting for her. Together, they move forward, ready to face what was left of the world.

Jane Representation

This is Jane's brain. It has a force field around it. The force field is Jane's self respect. It's job is to keep out all the negativity. The red lines are sounds Jane doesn't like to hear such as people telling her what she should and shouldn't do. Those green lines are all the positivity sliding right on through the barrier. These are things Jane does like to hear such as nature or Mary and Diana. The quote that best matches the image is, "I am no bird and no net ensnares me: I am a free human being with an independent will."

I feel like this is the best way to depict Jane's character because it's just so true. Jane doesn't let anyone influence her decisions. She has the power to decide for herself. It's like she puts cotton in her ears whenever someone tries to tell her what to do or how to do it. She has always been the independent type of character I look up to. She isn't a bird in a net. That would imply that she has no choice. She always has a choice and she always had the power to take that choice and make it her own.

Jane's New Relationships (Book 3 Chapters 1-6)

At first I was a little nervous when Jane left Thornfield. She really, really, really needed to get away from Rochester's abuse. If she waited until she had more money or a place to go, she might have gotten sucked back in. I was so nervous about her 'roughing it' until she found somewhere. Sleeping outside, begging for food. My poor baby. I don't understand how so many people could send her away. But then she finds the Moor House.

Me, when people are rude to Jane

Hannah, the housekeeper there, wanted to send her away. She was skeptical because of Jane's nice clothes. She assumed Jane didn't need help even though she was begging for it at the door? Later when they're talking in the kitchen, Jane goes off. She mentioned how, even though Hannah didn't 'mean anything by it', she was still quick to judge. Jane says that some of the best people in the world have been in poverty as well and it wasn't a crime to be poor. Then Jane is the bigger person and shakes Hannah's hand, leaving all of it in the past.

My personal favorites when it comes to Jane's new friends are the Rivers siblings. The girls are true saints. While Jane is recovering from her nights of travel, Mary and Diana are consistently visiting her. They were always concerned for Jane's well being. After she comes to, they start to hang out. They teach her German and she teaches them to draw a little bit. St John would have been a lot harsher to Jane if these two weren't around. I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about him. He's a bit of an odd duck. He isn't rude to Jane which is all I can ask for. Otherwise, I love the way they all interact. These three are lovely companions for Jane and I can't wait to see how they melt together in the future.

 Rosamond and Jane is a perfect combination. They are adorable together. I feel as though they are more compatible than Jane and Rochester could ever be. Rosamond thinks that Jane is 'good, clever, composed, and firm.' She was 'only one tenth as handsome' but looks aren't everything. Rosamond also thought Jane's life would make a 'delightful romance.' Rosamond visited Jane very frequently at the school. Jane thought she was 'charming' and a 'cool observer of her own sex.' Rosamond loved how well Jane could draw and even spoke about Jane at home. One could make the argument that I find lesbian undertones in everything. One could also argue that I'm just pointing out the facts.

Gothic Elements in 'Jane Eyre' (chapters 1-21)

Part of what makes a story ‘gothic’ are the medieval like settings. Jane Eyre comes across many of these on her journey. The most notable is her current home, Thornfield. Essentially, Thornfield is a big castle with almost no inhabitants. It is set far from the nearest town, almost in the middle of nowhere. Then there is the Lowood School. It is an orphanage and a schooling facility. It it full of very religious nuns and nearly one hundred young girls. Quite a few of it’s inhabitants died of typhus. All of which is incredibly creepy.

Another detail of a gothic story are supernatural events. Jane has unfortunately witnessed some of these happenings. It started when she was a young girl. She was locked in the Red Room well into the night. While she was in there she saw a bright light which she swore was a ghost. She experienced ghosts again in Thornfield. When she heard the loud, high pitched laugh that sent shivers down her spine. This turns out to be Grace Poole, another of Rochester’s employees. When she goes into town to mail Mrs. Fairfax’ letter, she sees Mr. Rochester’s dog, Pilot, for the first time. She hides in the brush because she thinks it is a monster patrolling an abandoned road for it’s next victim. There was also the time the ‘Gipsy’ came to Thornfield. The other girls were amazed that she new so much about them. When Jane went in, she played along and also wondered how the gipsy knew so much. Later we find out that the gipsy is just Mr. Rochester in disguise.

Gothic stories also have many mysterious characters. The first character that comes to mind is Grace Poole. She tends to keep to herself in her room and doesn’t even come out for meals. She was allegedly the one who tried to kill Mr. Rochester. She is still employed and still living at Thornfield. The other staff is also mysterious. They know something that Jane doesn’t. They know all about Grace Poole and won’t directly answer Jane’s questions. They also whisper about ‘if she knows’ referring to Jane. Also, during the party, a man came by and claimed that he was a friend of Rochester’s. No one knows much about him. They know his name is Mason and he comes from a warm climate but everything else is a mystery.