Secrets Have Consequences
In Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre, the main characters Jane Eyre, Edward Rochester, and Jane’s aunt, Mrs. Reed, learn that one lie or secret can accumulate into many lies or secrets and affects everyone around them as time progresses. In the beginning of the story Jane’s aunt, Mrs. Reed, hides things from Jane as a child, which affects her as a young adult, and Jane learns the secret of Thornfield which not only changes her life, but many others as well. In other words, characters’ lives, personalities, and so much more can change due to lies and secrets, just how Mrs. Reed keeps secrets and lies to Jane as a child that affect her as a young adult.
Initially, Mrs. Reed kept secrets and lied to Jane as a young child to not allow Jane to have a good life as a child, and an adult due to her jealousy. For an example, as a child, Jane was punished for actions she did not do, but her cousin John did and got away with because of Mrs. Reed’s jealously. As her punishment, she was sent to the red-room which frightened Jane because her uncle, Mr. Reed, passed away in it. In the red-room there was a secret drawer in the closet. Inside of the secret drawer there were papers, clothes, a jewel-casket, a portrait of Mr. Reed, “and in those last words lies the secret of the red-room—the spell which kept it so lonely in spite of its grandeur” (8). While Jane was in the red-room she began to wonder why she deserved such awful treatment and what has she done to her aunt for her to dislike her so much. Not only has Mrs. Reed kept secrets and lied to Jane as a child, she carried her jealousy as a burden throughout all of those years up until Jane was an adult. On Mrs. Reed’s death bed she admitted that “[she] disliked [her] too fixedly and thoroughly ever to lend a hand in lifting [her] into prosperity. [She] could not forget [her] conduct to [her], Jane-- the fury with which [she] once turned on [her]; the tone in which [she] declared [she] abhorred [her] of the worst of anybody in the world; the unchildlike look and voice which [she] affirmed that the very thought of [her] mad [her] sick, and asserted that [she] had treated [her] with miserable cruelty” (252). Mrs. Reed had also given Jane a letter from her uncle, John Eyre, which he had written to Mrs. Reed three years ago. He asked about Jane’s whereabouts, how she was doing, and how he wished to adopt her and share his wealth with her. Mrs. Reed replied that she was sorry, but she died of typhus fever at Lowood, not only did Mrs. Reed lie to her, and hide the letter from her, but she had also had affected Jane’s life greatly. If she would of given Jane the letter from her uncle, she could have lived a happy, rich life, with family who truly cared about her, and could have avoided Thornfield altogether. In other words, Jane’s life was changed greatly due to her aunt’s selfishness, and how she kept many secrets from Jane, and lied to her as a child, just like what Edward Rochester did to Jane as well.
Furthermore, Rochester kept secrets and lied to not only Jane, but many others too at Thornfield. As evidence by when Jane first started her job as governess at Thornfield she heard about the “secret” at Thornfield. She had heard of the mysterious Edward Rochester, but had never met him. She later learns that Rochester dislikes Thornfield and is preoccupying himself of other things, and is constantly away. Later, Jane and Rochester grow fond of each other, and Rochester sticks around Thornfield due to Jane. He admits to her that he has a secret, and “[he] is not a villain: [she is] not to suppose that—not to attribute to [him] any such bad eminence; but owing, [he] verily believe, rather to circumstances than to [his] natural bent, [he is] a trite, commonplace sinner, hackneyed in all the poor petty dissipations with which the rich and worthless try to put on life” (141). When Rochester tells Jane about this, she becomes intrigued and curious, and strange things begin to happen at Thornfield. One night Jane is woken up by a fire in Rochester’s room. She learns that he fell asleep with a candle by his bedside and lit the bed curtains on fire, Rochester tells her not to tell anyone about the fire. Also she hears a door open and close and laughing and scratching behind a locked door at night, she just assumes it is one of the maids at Thornfield, Grace Poole. A day after the fire she encounters Grace; she tells Jane that if she were her she would lock her doors at night. After that night Jane starts to catch on to the “secret” at Thornfield. One day a man named Mr. Mason arrived to Thornfield, Jane informs Rochester that he arrives, and he is very upset about it, but he is very fake and acts happy to see him. Later that night she is woken by Mr. Mason bleeding out by something that bit him. Rochester asks Jane to fetch the medicine, and wait with him, but not to speak to him. Jane hears more scratching and growling behind a door, but assumes Grace did it and she is just mad in the head. After this Rochester becomes very fond of Jane and proposes to her, Jane is in love with him, but is nervous to admit it to him, and he tells Jane in a year and one day after they are married he will tell her all of his secrets. Jane becomes every unhappy with her life, but proceeds with the marriage. The day before the marriage she had a dream that Grace breaks into her room and rips her veil to pieces. She wakes up to find that her veil was actually ripped in pieces, but just assumes it is Grace again. During the wedding Mr. Mason objects to say that Rochester has another wife and that is his sister, Bertha Mason. This is the climax of the story, where everything finally makes sense and all of the ends are tied up. Grace is not the crazy one, it is Rochester’s wife that he keeps on the third floor locked behind a door, and he has Grace taking care of her. Bertha was the one who caught Rochester’s bed on fire at night; she is the reason why Jane hears laughing at night, and scratching behind the door. Rochester used to hate Thornfield because of Bertha, but once Jane arrived he stayed around more. Grace told Jane to lock her doors at night. Jane thought this was a threat, but she was just protecting her. Bertha was the one who ripped the veil, not Grace. Mr. Masons bite was not from Grace it was from Bertha, and that is why Rochester was upset when he found out Mr. Mason was at Thornfield. Because of this, Jane was very confused and hurt, but yet still in love with Rochester. Rochester tried to bribe her and beg her to stay. Rochester hinted around to this and he trusted her with all of the secrets he told her. Because of Rochester and his many lies not only did he ruin his life, but he ruined Jane’s as well.
In Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre, the main characters Jane Eyre, Edward Rochester, and Jane’s aunt Mrs. Reed learn that one lie or secret can accumulate into many lies or secrets and affects everyone around them as time progresses. In the beginning of the story Jane’s aunt, Mrs. Reed hides things from Jane as a child, which affects her as a young adult, and Jane learns the secret of Thornfield which not only changes her life, but many others as well. In other words, characters’ lives, personalities, and so much more can change due to lies and secrets, just like the author suggests.