Jane Eyre - Analysis of Nature Charlotte Bronte triumphs in many arenas with her masterpiece "Jane Eyre". She develops a beautiful setting and endearing characters, that sometimes overshadows some of the more subtle aspects of her novel. One very important element that is sometimes overlooked is the use of nature imagery and comments on the human relationship with the outdoors and human nature. The Oxford Reference Dictionary defines "nature" as "1. the phenomena of the physical world as a whole . . . 2. a thing's essential qualities; a person's or animal's innate character . . . 3. vital force, functions, or needs." We will see how "Jane Eyre" comments on all of these.Several natural themes run through the novel, one of which is the image of a stormy sea. After Jane saves Rochester's life, she gives us the following metaphor of their relationship: "Till morning dawned I was tossed on a buoyant but unquiet sea . . . I thought sometimes I saw beyond its wild waters a shore . . . now and then a freshening gale, wakened by hope, bore my spirit triumphantly towards the bourne: but . . . a counteracting breeze blew off land, and continually drove me back." The gale is all the forces that prevent Jane's union with Rochester. Later, Bront, whether it be intentional or not, conjures up the image of a buoyant sea when Rochester says of Jane: "Your habitual expression in those days, Jane, was . . . not buoyant." Infact, it is this buoyancy of Jane's relationship with Rochester that keeps Jane afloat at her time of crisis in the heath: "Why do I struggle to retain a valueless life? Because I know, or believe, Mr. Rochester is living."Another recurrent image is Bront's treatment of Birds. We first witness Jane's fascination when she reads Bewick's History of British Birds as a child. She reads of "death-white realms" and "'the solitary rocks and promontories'" of seafowl. We quickly see how Jane identifies with the bird. For her it is a form of...
