What does Mr. Brocklehurst Symbolise?

Minor characters

Both Gateshead and Lowood work as models of Victorian society, but Brocklehurst in particular represents a form of religious doctrine that Jane instinctively rejects. His faith is all hell-fire and brimstone, he oppresses the children under his care with an extreme Evangelical zeal.

Who does Mr. Brocklehurst represent in Jane Eyre?

Mr Brocklehurst is the supervisor of Lowood School. He is mean, vindictive and enjoys making the girls quiver in his presence. He enjoys the power he has and enjoys doling out punishments. Brocklehurst wants the pupils of Lowood School to be modest and pious and he cruelly restricts their food rations.

Who is Mr. Brocklehurst based on?

Rev William Carus-Wilson
The school’s founder and head, the Rev William Carus-Wilson, was the inspiration for Mr Brocklehurst, Lowood’s autocratic head. The fearsome Brocklehurst was “little liked here; he never took steps to make himself liked”.

How does Mr. Brocklehurst influence Jane Eyre?

Mr. Brocklehurst negatively impacts Jane by imposing his beliefs on her. He also informs her that she will go to Hell if she does not enjoy reading the Bible. He calls her deceitful, which he says is “a sad fault in a child” and “is akin to falsehood”, and as a result her life will be damned.

How does Jane describe Mr. Brocklehurst?

Mr. Brocklehurst enters the book in this chapter, ushering in the change that will alter Jane’s life. On first seeing this grim man, Jane describes him as “a black pillar!

What does Mr. Brocklehurst call?

interloper and an alien
Calling Jane an “interloper and an alien,” Brocklehurst attempts to place Jane back into the inferior, outsider position she occupied at Gateshead.

What religious movement is Mr. Brocklehurst a part of?

the Evangelical Christian movement
Key context. Mr Brocklehurst adheres to an extreme version of the views of the Evangelical Christian movement. Charlotte Brontë had first-hand experience of this type of viewpoint during her own childhood.

How is the hypocrisy of Mr. Brocklehurst revealed?

During his initial inspection of Lowood, Brocklehurst reveals his hypocrisy when, in viewing a young woman’s naturally curly hair, he reacts with an exaggerated self-righteousness: “’what- what is that girl with curled hair? ‘… And extending his cane he pointed to the awful object, his hand shaking as he did so” (73).

What happens to Brocklehurst in Jane Eyre?

Brocklehurst finally meets his comeuppance, as a public investigation reveals all his mistreatment. As such he is removed from an active role in the school, losing all his influence in how it is, and although remaining in his wealthy position, he loses all his credibility and is only mentioned twice more in the book.

How does Helen impact Jane?

When Helen dies, Jane absorbs the lesson that the meek shall not inherit the earth. While Jane initially rejects Helen’s brand of religion, she does incorporate it in her life later on, especially when she relies on the spiritual kindness of strangers after leaving Thornfield.

How is Mr. Brocklehurst presented in Chapter 4?

Mr Brocklehurst’s interrogation of Jane reveals him to be harsh and cruel and guided by intense religious beliefs. To Jane’s childish eyes he reminds her of the wolf in the fairy story ‘Little Red Riding Hood’: ‘what a great nose! and what a mouth! and what large prominent teeth! ‘ (p. 39).

What does Mr. Brocklehurst say to Miss Temple about the burnt porridge?

Mr. Brocklehurst is especially upset about the two times Miss Temple served the girls an extra lunch to make up for their burned porridge. … Mr. Brocklehurst says that if she can’t get her hair straight, then she should just cut it all off to be humbler.

What lessons does Helen teach Jane?

If nothing else, Jane did learn one lesson from Helen, that it is better to have a clear conscience than it is to be loved. Helen shows where her confidence and hope lie as she is dying. Jane worries what will happen to Helen when she dies, and questions whether Helen truly believes in a heaven.

What did Helen Burns tell Jane about Mr. Brocklehurst?

Helen tells Jane she is exaggerating: Only eighty people of the hundreds of millions in the world heard Brocklehurst, and most of those people probably pity, rather than dislike Jane.

What advice does Helen give Jane?

What advice does Helen give Jane? Jane is a fighter who cannot meekly accept justice. An insensitive hypocrite. He orders that no food may be served if the porridge is burnt, asserting that fasting is better for the girl’s souls.

What does Helen represent in Jane Eyre?

Brocklehurst embodies an evangelical form of religion that seeks to strip others of their excessive pride or of their ability to take pleasure in worldly things, Helen represents a mode of Christianity that stresses tolerance and acceptance.

Why does Jane admire Helen?

She is first attracted to Helen because she is reading, recognizing how they are alike, since “[she], too, liked reading” (59). Jane immediately asks her a long series of questions about the school and herself, and after the two girls become friends, Jane continues to be the questioner and Helen the teacher.

How does Helen differ from Jane?

Helen is a practical and open minded person but Jane is a tempered slightly rough person. Helen trust the God fully but Jane trust the God little. Helen believes life after death but Jane is little doubt about that. Helen is a sick person but Jane is a healthy person.