Anne and Charlotte Brontë both make use of symbols through their novels, Agnes Grey and Jane Eyre (respectively) as didactic works to illustrate the Victorian Society about the (then) current way in which women were viewed and treated. The conflict between the protagonists and the social female identity of the time only further proves this. Agnes’s opinion of herself is evidently low by the way she finds it all too realistic that Mr Weston ‘never thought’ of her. She seems to deem this opinion largely on the fact that she can ‘discover no beauty’ (her only description of her own appearance) in her face, thus showing the internalisation of social values. Her desire to rebel against the identity society had placed on her gender is evident when she doesn’t allow this fact to stop her, questioning the ethics of said culture by describing the alternative as ‘dreary’.

Anne Brontë creates a sense of oppression for the protagonist veiled under the guise of protection through Agnes’s family. It is clear that Agnes comes from a very loving family by the way ‘No one triumphed’ over her so called inability to keep her first governess position, but instead were happy to have her back again. When she expresses her desire for independence, Agnes is met with the question: ‘what would you do in a house full of strangers without us to speak and act for you?’ The conflict Anne Brontë presents of both love and oppression of Agnes within the Grey family reflects social views that women were helpless and dependant creatures, The fact that the people Anne Brontë uses to reflect this view are women shows just how deeply ingrained into society these negative views on females were. Brontë encourages social change and the equality of the genders through Agnes’s rebellion against these limitations (lack of opportunities) by her determination and eventual succession in becoming a governess. Despite this, Agnes still remains dependent upon others throughout the remainder of the novel, therefore Brontë is exhibiting the extent of society’s reach, alluding to the difficulty of defying it.

The author uses weather as a symbol of hope within Agnes Grey. When leaving home for the first time the protagonist describes the sun as a ‘wondering beam’. This symbol portrays the hope Agnes had to become enlightened and her own independent woman in society when embarking on her journey. In contrast to this she also states that the ‘sunshine was departing’, a reference to the power of social formalities. In support of this, the character of Mr Weston – Agnes’ husband by the conclusion – is used as a symbol of encouragement for the social norms, to a certain extent. In many religions and cultures the West is seen as a way to enlightenment, through word play Anne Brontë is able to indicate that Agnes’ marriage to Mr Weston is Agnes’ journey to enlightenment. The author uses these contrasting instances to show the conflict between social female identity and Agnes’ desire to rebel and be independent.

The social ambition of characters, or lack of, is used as a symbol to rebel against social commitments. The novel begins with a brief account of the protagonist’s parents and some of the issues they’ve encountered together. Agnes’ mother is from a wealthy family, whereas her father is not. Mrs Grey defies social norms by marrying Mr Grey regardless of his standing within society, despite forfeiting ‘every fraction of her fortune.’ Brontë uses this lack of social ambition to display the benefits of challenging society’s normal values. Additionally to this, Rosalie Murray, one of Agnes’ students, marries Sir Thomas Ashby for his wealth, estate and title. Merely one year (or less) after her marriage Rosalie, when speaking about her husband, states ‘I detest that man’, a sentiment she very much feels for her mother-in-law as well. This sacrifice of happiness for social elevation allows the author to reflect the effects of current social obligations.

In addition to this, Charlotte Brontë reflects social attitudes through the oppression of Bertha Mason, Mr Rochester’s insane wife. Bertha’s confinement is to a small hidden room, behind one of two mentioned ‘black doors’, guarded by Grace Poole. This symbolise a lack of light, and perhaps hope, through the absorption of colour. This may be symbolic of the isolation and lack of freedom of the married Victorian woman, whose identity and possessions became totally her husband’s. The barrier these doors create separates Jane from Bertha. Essentially, keeping both women hidden – one from knowledge and one’s existence from society. This is reflective of the isolation and powerlessness of women within Victorian culture. The fact that Mr Rochester holds the ‘key’ in his hands lends evidence to the stereotypes of Victorian society wherein women, their freedom and identity, were the possession of men. The ‘key’ is a metaphor for the limitations of opportunity for women.  Consolidating this, Bertha’s freedom is completely in the hands of her husband. Further in relation to the doors is the description of them, ‘small black doors’. The small size of the doors is also a metaphor to symbolise even more the lack of opportunities available to women in Victorian culture.

Doors are further used to emphasise the Victorian woman’s lack of power and isolation when Jane, having ran away from Thornfield Hall, is rejected entrance to Moor House by Hannah – in which she ‘clapped the door to and bolted it within’. Jane has found herself in this situation due to her strength of character, a characteristic uncommon and discouraged in women of the time. Through her refusal to be controlled by a man into a situation she doesn’t want Jane has become stranded and on death’s ‘door’, Hannah’s refusal to aid her highlights the isolation of women as Jane is being ‘locked’ out of safety and left to die. This also shows the lack of power women had within society to gain independence, as well as Jane’s desire to rebel against it. Brontë is reflecting upon society’s inequality of the genders, and encouraging a social change.

In many ways Bertha could be seen as a binary opposition of Jane, creating a sense of rebelli0n and oppression. Jane is depicted as pale, sophisticated, small, green eyed and virtuous; describing herself as ‘so little, so pale’, ‘plain’, and ‘puny’. Whereas Bertha is shown as ‘tall and large’, ‘fearful and ghastly’ and ‘purple’ whose ‘lips were swelled and dark’. Jane states that she has ‘green eyes’ – green is the colour of hope, balance and harmony between the head and the heart; perhaps Jane’s eyes act as metaphor for the hope Jane has while trying to gain and maintain her own social identity reflecting her search for equilibrium through the novel. Jane is able to marry Mr Rochester only once she is able to stand on equal ground with him without sacrificing her mind (or dignity) to do so. Brontë uses Jane’s eye colour to imply the benefits for a more equal balance between the genders within society. The colour of Bertha’s ‘bloodshot eyes’ is used as antithesis to this, representing violence and danger, a potential result of inequality within society. On the other hand Bertha could be seen as the embodiment of Jane’s desire for rebellion against her gender limitations. When Jane is worried about her marriage to Mr Rochester, Bertha appears and Jane witnesses her ‘rent’ her bridal veil into ‘two parts’. Jane and bertha could be seen as two sides of the same coin, one showing the effects oppression can have on women (Bertha), and one showing the equality between the genders (Jane). Bertha – the oppressed – eventually, in her madness, jumps from the roof of Thornfield Hall, killing herself. Whereas Jane marries Mr Rochester. Jane states that she is her ‘husband’s life as much as he is’ hers. The difference in these character’s fate by the end of the novel shows the results oppression of women could have, while encouraging social change.

Bertha is used throughout Jane Eyre as a symbol of social attitudes towards the modernising woman. Bertha is continuously demonised, being likened to a ‘goblin’ and a ‘foul German spectre – the Vampyre’. These descriptions are a reflection on women rebelling against the cultural norms of Victorian society. A woman who shows strength and rebellion against the oppression of her husband is considered, by society, as a monster. Jane’s description of Bertha as possessing ‘a discoloured face… red eyes… fearful blackened inflation of the linaments’ only further proves this link. Bertha’s ‘purple’ face is symbolic both of power and the supernatural. This relationship between Bertha and the colours purple and black and depict her as a monster within society, for resisting the oppression of her husband, and reflects the lack of opportunity open to women to gain equal standing with their husbands. The character’s name itself strengthens this link, ‘Bertha’ being a Germanic name associated with the wild hunt – German folk lore. As well as Mason’s connotations with masonry work – stone and brick masons. Bertha is the embodiment of rebellion of women against social norms and functions as a warning, by showing the extreme results that oppression can have.

The ‘red room’, in which Jane is detained after her fight with the young John Reed, her cousin, is a major symbol of isolation.  Jane’s confinement in here represents the obstacles that her independent identity would require her to overcome; the isolation from society being the biggest obstacle. Mrs Reed’s act of ‘abruptly thrust[ing]’ Jane back and locking the door is a reflection on society’s repulsion of equality between the genders. Mrs Reed’s act of thrusting Jane back in, who is pleading for freedom, and ‘locked [Jane] in, without further parlay’ it displays how weak women were within society Jane’s ‘rush to the door’, as well as her act of shaking ‘the lock in desperate effort’ symbolise her rebellion against the social gender norms. The ‘red room’ also represents the isolation and lack of power of the 19th Century woman as well as acting as an omen for the obstacles of which Jane would have to overcome in order to define her own independency.  Brontё is able to effectively show the internalisation of these cultural values. Jane’s fight with John is a metaphor for Jane’s rebellion against the stereotypes of her gender, as women were seen as weak, helpless damsels. Mrs Reed’s later suffering and final demise allows Brontё to emphasise the importance of defiance against Victorian gender values, and highlight the struggle of the modern woman.

Windows are used to portray the bridge between the inside – confinement of the Victorian women – and out – the hope and possibility of freedom. Jane’s desire to rebel against social norms and gain her own freedom was first displayed when, as a child at Gateshead, Jane seeks solace ‘in the window-seat’. Jane’s choice to read – an act used to further one’s education – at the window is a symbol to show the journey of the modernising woman. Jane’s desire to improve herself in a more significant way than visually. The window is the visual barrier between Jane’s oppression by society – within Gateshead – and the potential freedom outside. Charlotte Brontё uses the window-seat to introduce the protagonist’s desire to rebel against the social restrictions placed on her gender by society and to gain her own identity and freedom. Later, during Jane’s stay in the red room she accounts for ‘two large windows’. These windows are a metaphor for Jane’s desire to be free from oppression, Charlotte Brontё uses the size of the windows to emphasise the strength of the protagonist’s desire. Jane then draws attention to the fact that the blinds are ‘always drawn down’. This is Charlotte Brontё commenting on the Victorian society in which women were objects rather than people. Women were property of their parents or other family members until marriage, after which they became the property of their husbands. The author uses Bertha Mason’s room – ‘a without a window’ – to further the representation of male oppression of women within the society. Bertha Mason – Mr Rochester’s insane and arsenic wife – is held captive in a windowless room, hidden within a room locked behind a black door.

In conclusion, both Anne and Charlotte Brontë use symbolism, through characters – such as Agnes, her mother, Bertha and Jane. Settings – for example the ‘red room’ – and objects like Mr Rochester’s ‘key’ and the ‘black doors’ to show the conflict between the social female identity and the protagonist’s desire to rebel against it. These symbols allow the authors to use their novels for didactic purposes. Both authors make use of both warnings against the gender roles placed on them by society and encourage a social change for equality between the genders.

bibliography

http://symbolism.wikia.com/wiki/Darkness

http://www.colormatters.com/the-meanings-of-colors/red

http://www.empower-yourself-with-color-psychology.com/color-black.html

http://www.biblemeanings.info/Words/Housing/Windows.htm

http://www.sbrusticdoors.com/blog/symbolism-of-doors/

The Symbolism of Windows and Doors in Play Therapy – David A. Crenshaw

Jane Eyre – Charlotte Brontë

Agnes Grey – Anne Brontë