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Jane Eyre

Contents

Context
Author
Characters
Chapters 1-2
Chapters 3-4
Chapters 5-6
Chapters 7-8
Chapters 9-10
Chapters 11-12
Chapters 13-14
Chapters 15-16
Chapters 17-18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapters 23-24
Chapters 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27-28
Chapters 29-30
Chapters 31-32
Chapters 33-34
Chapters 35-36
Chapters 37
Chapters 38
Questions  

 


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Chapters 31 and 32

Summary

Jane moves into her cottage and a little orphan girl serves her as a handmaid. 

Her pupils at the school have very limited education.  Only a few can read, and none can write or do arithmetic. She believes that she is in God’s hands, for he has guided her away from a life as a mistress with Rochester, who said that they could live in France, to an honest vocation as a school mistress. 

Jane notices that St. John is deeply attracted to a local girl, Rosamond Oliver who is a benefactress of the school, but he suppresses his desire as he thinks it will interfere with the work he has obligated himself to do for God.

As the months pass, Jane becomes an important member of the community who appreciate her devotion to their children, and their improvement is clear to see.

Jane tries to encourage St. John to pursue his feelings for Rosamond, and she even suggests that she could paint a miniature for him.  St. John decides that he can allow himself 15 minutes a day in which to dream about Rosamond.  He tells Jane that although he has strong feelings for Rosamond, she would not be a suitable wife for a missionary. He looks over Jane’s drawings and tears a strip from the edge of one of them and departs quickly.

 

Interpretation

Whilst Jane was at Thornfield she slowly let her heart take over from her head when ruling her affairs.  She has now reverted back to having her head dictate her actions, and she has subdued the feelings in her heart. In order to forget about the past, she immerses herself in her work to the benefit of the local children. She continues to enjoy her new friends Diana and Mary, but she is unable to break the shield that St. John has erected around himself.  His denial of his true feelings clearly affects his personality, and he is often depressed and moody.

Jane does not relish nighttimes, for she still allows her thoughts to drift back to Rochester.

St. John is also in the same predicament.  He doesn’t allow his feelings for Rosamond to develop. These are suppressed, like Jane, and he busies himself about his parish and dreams of life as a missionary.




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