Analogy of the Red Room in Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre

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We are first introduced to the Red Room in Chapter One of Jane Eyre. Here it is where we witness Jane being imprisoned into a room that exudes symbolism. These symbols continuously are used throughout the novel and are further explored through the novel’s themes. The Red Room can be explored as a symbol of what Kane must overcome in her struggles to find freedom, happiness and a sense of belonging. The “blinds” are “always drawn down” symbolizing Jane’s entrapment and passion to escape being concealed. In the Red Room, Jane’s position of exile and imprisonment first become clear, through the lexical set of “remote” and “seldom” much like her life. She is constantly treated as though she does not exist. Jane continues to be socially ostracized even after freed from the Red Room. Her sense of independence and her freedom of self-expression are constantly threatened. This is reinforced by the motif of “fire” throughout the novel. The symbolism of fire is juxtaposed by the motif of ice, which is evidence in the opening sequence of the novel when pathetic fallacy is used to describe the weather as “cold” and “sombre.” The former connotes Jane’s passions, anger and spirit, while the latter symbolizes the oppressive forces trying to extinguish Jane’s vitality, for example, Mrs Reed when she sends Jane to the Red Room. Mrs Reed ensures that Eyre is directed to the Red Room and “lock[ed]” in, to conform her to the young girl that she is expected to be. Furthermore, the Red Room is symbolic space of incarceration for Jane. The room has contrasting shades of “red” and “white.” While the red stands for passion, anger and violence, the white opposes this and signifies her control, femininity, purity and submission. The Red Room denotes that Jane has started menstruating and she needs to be kept away so that she acquires the ways of feminine behaviour. It is also

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