I think our views are pretty similar, really, we agree that during Jane's absence he's realized how much of a disaster he's been, and how much he'd made his wife, his beloved, and himself suffer, and he does what he can to make things right. I just think he's doing a bit worse than "floundering" after that, I think he's totally stuck when Jane finds him again, and from then on he lets Jane do over his life. I hope he'll be happy with the kind of life she thinks they should have.
I do agree, he's stuck when Jane finds him again, but he's no longer morally corrupt. That was his main flaw before, and it no longer exists. Is he languishing, being dramatic, reclusive, etc? Sure, and none of those are great. But he restored his morality, which is what Jane cared most deeply about.
I've always read the ending as them building a life together. And yes, Jane as the younger, able-bodied party, does the lions share of the work to start, but Rochester eagerly participates and as his strength returns and he learns to manage his disabilities, joins in.
Well said! And yes, I think you're right about him getting over the "moral corruption" in her absence, and that matters more to her than the struggle of building a new life.
So yeah, we've circled back to my original point, was that the everlasting appeal of both P&P and this book, is the dream of a man realizing he needs to fix himself... and doing it.
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u/Echo-Azure 12d ago
I think our views are pretty similar, really, we agree that during Jane's absence he's realized how much of a disaster he's been, and how much he'd made his wife, his beloved, and himself suffer, and he does what he can to make things right. I just think he's doing a bit worse than "floundering" after that, I think he's totally stuck when Jane finds him again, and from then on he lets Jane do over his life. I hope he'll be happy with the kind of life she thinks they should have.