These creations reflect on the culture of that

in history. Therefore, I have chosen to approach the passage from Jane Eyre through a new
historicism lens. It allows us to view it in canonical and non-canonical works to interpret how
authors, poets, and artists view and interpret the events that happened around them.
Choosing a Lens
New Historicism was created as a direct result against the New Critical approach of
viewing a text without context. While Formalism and Structuralism allow us to look at a text and
interpret it through the words on the page and the patters they make, New Historicism views the
text within the context of the culture in which it was created. It suggests that history is in every
piece of work and that it cannot be avoided. New Historicism has an advantage for works that
were not written within the last several decades. Writers of that time, like Bronte, were
influenced by experiences and cultures that are not know today. New Historicism allows us to
examine our own reaction to historical literature just like reader-response would.
Close Reading
While reading this passage I noticed Mr. Rochester’s socio-economic troubles stemmed
from the social expectations of the time period. We can understand through New Historicism the
social expectations of men and women in Victorian England, Mr. Rochester being the second
born son, does not inherit anything from his father. His father and brother arrange for him to

Bertha Mason, a half- Creole woman with wealth to her name, in hopes for them to wed.
Arranged marriages and meetings were common between upper-class citizens and were more
considered a business deal rather than a celebration of love. Bertha was chaperoned throughout
their period of courtship so Mr. Rochester did not get to know her as he wishes he would have; “I
seldom saw her alone, and had very little private conversation with her” (Bronte). Those
interested in securing their marriage encouraged Mr. Rochester and Bertha’s courtship, aiding in