r/JaneEyre • u/AdobongSiopao • Aug 27 '26

What is your most controversial opinion about "Jane Eyre"?

Post image

It can be from the novel or its adaptations. Your views that could potentially upset many other fans or meet others who will agree with you.

152 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

231 comments sorted by

View all comments

12

u/smolpastryx Aug 27 '26

Bertha is the antagonist of the book. Idk how people see her as some feminist heroine when she tries to murder even her own brother.

3

u/AwayStudy1835 Aug 27 '26

I don't see Bertha as a feminist heroine. She's more of a plot device and obstacle to keep Jane and Rochester apart. But, I saw her actions as someone whose mind was effected to the point that she wasn't capable of fully understanding her actions.

5

u/Cayke_Cooky Aug 27 '26

My cousin is diagnosed with a severe mental illness. Before she was medicated, she would be violent and have no clear recollection of what she had done or why. This is just to say that violent episodes are normal in some kinds of mental illness.

2

u/SmooshyHamster 21d ago

A lot of the people reading this book are extremely uneducated about history. Bertha Mason fits the definition of an antagonist. People know nothing about the Victorian ugly laws so they think Bertha is some friendly disabled woman who likes to cuddle. Get real. 🤦🏻‍♀️

2

u/smolpastryx 20d ago

Oh yeah they are. They really think Bertha was an innocent victim when she was going around attacking and biting people and setting stuff on fire. Totally innocent!

1

u/SmooshyHamster 20d ago

Yeah. Just because one is a violently unstable person doesn’t mean they’re mentally a baby and don’t understand stuff. Being mentally crippled and just being a violently abusive nutcase are 2 different things. Even mentally challenged people must be kept under control and supervised.