ly aspect, Jane is being acknowledged and complimented for all of the hardships she has overcome, all of the obstacles she has conquered, and all of the determination and dedication towards bettering her own life, independently through the years. She has essentially triumphed over all of the struggles she ever encountered.House of Mirth ended very differently and Lily’s fate, sadly, was not nearly the same.In the end, her popularity fades when she is accused of relations with a married man and is discovered to have had possible inappropriate business dealings. Her closest friends, the one’s she trusted with her “protection”, denied her in a desperate attempt to avoid being associated with Lily’s behavior, therefore jeopardizing their reputations. Lily conducted her business life and personal life in a very indiscreet way which proved later on to be her biggest fault. After essentially losing her identity and failing in her goalto climb the social ladder, Lily dies from an accidental overdose just after she realizes theextent of the mistakes that she has made. Finally, in comparing the main characters of the novels, Jane Eyre and House of Mirth, Jane Eyre and Lily Bart share few similarities and maintain many differences.Much of this can be attributed to the fact that they were raised extremely different from one another and as a result, grew up with different values and senses for what was trulyimportant in life and what was truly necessary to survive. Jane emerged from a strict,abusive upbringing, into a well-rounded, strong-minded, responsible, and dedicatedadult who triumphed in the end. Lily suffered a fate that she almost seemed destinedfor. Lily shares her name with a common flower. This fact may contain an aspect ofsymbolism in that like a dying flower, Lily’s character gradually begins to “wilt” as the novel goes on. Even her last name, Bart, shows symbolism in that it co...
