Charlotte Bronte’s Aspects Of The Gothic

Charlotte Brontes Aspects Of The Gothic In †Jane Eyre†, Charlotte Bronte places her narrator and central character in the middle of dramatic events. One of these is at the start of the novel when Jane is trapped in the Red Room and the next is when she attends Thornfield Hall to work as a governess. Charlotte Bronte uses certain features of gothic literature to create a tense atmosphere for the reader. Jane Eyre is sent to live with her unfeeling aunt and abusive cousins, after her parents sadly passed away. Jane Eyre leads a very unhappy life as the people whom she grows up with do not treat her like family and blame her for any trouble. Now, Jane Eyre is locked in the Red-Room after an incident with her cousin, for which she takes the blame. As the years pass and Jane grows into a young woman, she is sent to Thornfield to work as a governess and, in the passage, is being shown around the estate. In the Red Room and at Thornfield hall, Bronte establishes a typical gloomy, gothic setting to create suspense and terror. Charlotte Bronte uses powerfully gothic descriptions of objects especially in the Red -Room. The name seems more important because of the alliteration and the fact that the room is identified as ‘red’ makes the reader feel that it is perhaps dangerous. The colour is often associated with blood and death, both of which create fear for the reader. We are told by the narrator that â€Å"The red-room was a square chamber, very seldom slept in, I might say never†. The use of the word †chamber† makes it sound much larger and grander and perhaps more uninviting than a regular room. The fact that the room is hardly ever slept in suggests that it is abandoned by all human company and creates a tense mood for the reader raising several questions about its safety. Bronte, therefore, uses colour to reflect the turmoil of emotions such as rage, fear and frustration which Jane is now experiencing. The objects which Charlotte Bronte describes in the Red Roo m create a typical gothic environment. We are told that the room is decorated very darkly. ‘The chairs were of darkly polished old mahogany’, which suggests that the furniture in the room is sombre, old and heavy. Colours associated with the gothic are generally darker shades, and the Red Room purposely creates images in the reader’s mind of gloomy objects to create a depressing atmosphere. When the writer describes the bed as â€Å"glar(ing) white† and the â€Å"snowy Marseilles counterpane†, this creates a contrast to the surrounding redness of the rest of the room. â€Å"Glared white† uses personification to describe the bedding as antagonistic to Jane as if it is watching her. This creates more torment for the reader. Even though the colour white might seem a much more optimistic colour than red, here it is used to create negative thoughts. The â€Å"snowy white counterpane† presents the bed as being icy cold, like death. When Jane looks in this mirror she sees a â€Å"half imp, half fairy† staring back at her. This introduces an element of the supernatural and suggests that Jane believes evil forces within the room may have possessed her and are reflected in the glass. Charlotte Bronte plays here on the superstitious fears of the reader. The fact that Jane Eyre is trapped in the red-room where her uncle died is terrifying enough but the idea that the room might have the power to drive Jane mad plays on our deepest anxieties. Death is a prominent feature of the gothic and Bronte uses the dead uncle and the possibility that he haunts the room to intensify the atmosphere. When Jane looks in this mirror is the most disturbing moment in the description of the red-room. Horror and fascination are created for Jane at this moment. The description of her †white face† and †glittering eyes of fear† show that Jane appears like a ghost to herself, the word †glittering† hinting a t madness.